Guinness is expected to brew a special anniversary stout to mark its 250th birthday next year, it emerged today.
The commemorative beverage may be launched in a blaze of worldwide publicity around St Patrick's Day in March.
The 250th anniversary marks the date which founder Arthur Guinness signed the lease on his famous St James' Gate brewery in Dublin in December 1759.
The facility is now one of the country's biggest tourist attractions, drawing hundreds of thousands of visitors each year.
A spokesperson for Guinness parent company, Diageo, declined to comment on events planned for the 250th year but industry sources insist the anniversary brew will form a major part of celebrations.
Arthur Guinness opened his first brewery in Leixlip, Co Kildare, in 1756 before moving to St James’ Gate in Dublin three years later.
PA