GUINNESS PLC

formerly (198286) Arthur Guinness & Sons PLC, or (18861982) Arthur Guinness Son and Co. Ltd. manufacturer of distilled liquors and brewer of a distinctive, dark, creamy stout. Headquarters, formerly in Dublin, are now in London. The company was incorporated in 1886 as Arthur Guinness Son and Co. Ltd. and became a public limited company in 1982. Guinness was founded when Arthur Guinness bought a small brewery in Dublin. At first the brewery produced a variety of light and dark beers, but in 1799 it was decided to concentrate exclusively on porter, a dark beer with a rich head. The beer prospered and became known as the national beer of Ireland. In 1855, upon the death of Arthur Guinness, his son Benjamin Lee Guinness took over the company. The beer had long had a strong following in Ireland, and Benjamin spread its fame overseas. Guinness is now sold in more than 120 countries worldwide and has a number of breweries abroad. In 1985 the firm acquired Arthur Bell & Sons PLC, a distiller of Scotch, and in 1986 it bought The Distillers Co. PLC, which was the largest Scotch whisky distiller in the world. Guinness' use of clandestine and apparently illegal stock transactions in acquiring Distillers created a major corporate scandal when these acts became known to the public. In addition to brewing and distilling, Guinness has interests in pharmaceuticals, plastics, engineering, and leisure and holiday activities. In 1955 the company began publishing The Guinness Book of Records. Originally conceived to help settle trivia disputes in pubs, the book is now published worldwide.