Your friend loves Guinness and talks about it like it’s the greatest beverage known to man. But it’s literally the only Dark Beer he’s ever tried.

His birthday is coming up — a perfect opportunity to get him a special beer that will open his mind to a whole universe of epic craft Stouts. Stouts packed with flavor beyond their wildest imagination.

But you shouldn’t start him off with an everything-but-the-kitchen-sink, adjunct-filled, crazy concoction that could scare him off craft beer forever. Nah, you need to introduce him with a quintessential Stout. One that’s converted leagues of drinkers to craft. One that led a brewery to win GABF’s Small Brewery of the Year in 2008, and went on to become the defining beer from one of the biggest names in craft.

This is a special occasion and you want to make a huge impression. You need something that’s been cellared for two and a half years to reach peak smoothness and, dark chocolate mocha-flavored complexity. Get him AleSmith’s 2016 vintage Speedway Stout.

AleSmith converted to cans in 2017, so this was the last vintage of Speedway to ever be bottled. Not only is it incredibly delicious, but it also makes for a killer collector’s item.

You won’t get your friend to give up Guinness, and why should he? It’s a tasty go-to whenever you find yourself in an Irish pub. But now you’ll know, whenever your buddy invites you over for a beer, he’ll have some mega-tasty craft alternatives on standby.

Rated 4.38 on BeerAdvocate; 4.28 on Untappd