Irish lead the party as Guinness celebrates 250th birthday

By Andrew Bushe (AFP) – 23 hours ago

DUBLIN — Guiness, Ireland's unofficial national drink, celebrated its 250th birthday Thursday with Prime Minister Brian Cowen hailing the anniversary as "an excuse for having a great party."A scion of the Guinness brewing dynasty was also on hand to lead toasts to the "black stuff." The brand is a huge commercial success around the world. Rory Guinness, a great-great-great-great-great-grandson of Arthur Guinness, who brewed the first pint of the dark ale in 1759, said it was a great day for the family and the company."One of the keys to Guinness is the fact that it comes from Ireland, because the country is what supplies the wonderful barley, the water, all the magic ingredients to go into making such a delicious pint.