It didn't take too much arm-twisting to convince us to go to an event at The Dublin Jack on a Friday afternoon to try out a new Guinness beer. The informal occasion announced some news for local ale lovers. For the Irish ale's 250th anniversary - technically, it is celebrating founder Arthur Guinness signing the 9,000-year lease to use the then dormant St James' Gate brewery in Dublin 250 years ago - they've brewed a limited edition new G250 stout.

It will only be available in three markets around the world: Australia, the United States and Hong Kong. 'Consumers here are very open to trying new things,' senior marketing manager Eva Yim said. 'It's small in sales volume, but it's an international city. There are some diehard consumers here. Also, the packaged product sells very well. It's not just westerners ordering it on tap in Lan Kwai Fong; 80 to 90 per cent of Guinness sales come from cans in supermarkets.'

So how is the new beer different? 'It's carbonated instead of nitrogen mixed.' Leaving out the specifics of the science, in short, it's less heavy and you won't get as big a head of foam. Whether true Guinness fans will like it, we'll have to wait until mid-July to find out. That's when the bottles become available - and only for a few months.