Guinness Bread
This Guinness bread is a hearty brown soda bread made with whole wheat flour and the classic Irish stout. And because it uses baking soda for leavening, it’s easier and quicker – just over one hour – to make than my sweet brown bread, though equally as delicious slathered with salted butter or your favorite cheese.
So read on for the detailed tips and tricks for this Guinness brown bread recipe and learn all about soda bread and baking soda – but only if you want to. Just want the recipe? Grab your Guinness, hit that purple Jump to Recipe button, and let’s make a Guinness soda bread!
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What is soda bread?
I started a deep dive into soda bread during our 2026 trip to Ireland. Much of the wheat grown in Ireland is a softer, lower-protein wheat that can’t develop the gluten structure needed for yeast breads. So when baking soda became available in the 1800s, the quick bread called soda bread quickly became part of the Irish identity.
Ingredients
Baking soda, the reason why this quick bread is called “soda bread,” provides chemical leavening. The sodium bicarbonate reacts with acidic ingredients (e.g. buttermilk) to create carbon dioxide air bubbles that expand in the oven.
Equal parts of whole wheat and all purpose flour gives this Guinness bread a deeper flavor without being dense. I promise it’s much easier to make a whole grain soda bread than a whole grain yeast bread!
Guinness is an Irish stout, a dark beer with a malty, slightly bitter flavor. Buy your Guinness in the can, if you can.
Please see the recipe card below for complete information on ingredients and quantities.
How to riff on this recipe
Some of my first recipe tests included oats in the soda bread itself, but I disliked the variable density this produced in the bread. I’ve also made this Guinness bread with a dark molasses as the sweetener but personally found it too bitter.
Here are a few ways you can play around with the recipe:
- Vary the type of flour. Because a soda bread is less dependent on gluten development, it’s easier to mess around with the flour type.
- Vary the sweetener.
- Top your Guinness bread with something other than oats like sesame seeds or, if you must, everything bagel seasoning.
Recipe tips and tricks
Making this Guinness soda bread is truly super quick and easy. Butter or use cooking spray to grease your loaf pan.
In a large bowl, mix all the dry ingredients, then add the liquids and mix only until all of the dry ingredients are moistened. It will look rough and shaggy.
There’s no need to knead a quick bread, nor do you want to. This is a pretty sticky dough.
Turn the soda bread dough into your prepared pan. I like adding oats on top of this brown soda bread to offset its rustic look, but you don’t have to. Press down gently so the oats stick to the bread.
The baking soda and buttermilk will start to react as soon as the dry and liquid ingredients are mixed, so get this Guinness bread in the oven right away and bake.
I give you permission to slice this warm – another advantage of a quick bread! – but otherwise let it cool to room temperature before storing the loaf in a plastic bag. It’s best within a day after baking but great toasted after that.
Recipe FAQs
Yes. Let the soda bread cool, slice into thick slices, and freeze in a freezer bag for three to six months.
Soda breads don’t make great two-fisted sandwiches, but they’re perfect for open-faced toppings like eggs or avocado. Serve your soda bread slathered in butter or with your favorite cheddar cheese. Or go with a beef stew or my easy 4 ingredient potato and leek soup.
Yes, I’ve made this a few times with Black Butte porter, since that’s what we had in the fridge. A different dark beer may have slightly different taste, but they should all work well.
If your baking soda has been in your pantry a while, you can check it by adding a small amount – less than a teaspoon – into a glass measuring cup. Add some white vinegar. If it bubbles and fizzes, it’s good. If it doesn’t, you’ll want to replace your baking soda before baking this recipe.
Related quick bread recipes
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Recipe
Guinness Bread
Ingredients
- 2 cups (250 grams) whole wheat flour
- 2 cups (250 grams) all purpose flour
- ¼ cup (50 grams) dark brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup (220 milliliters) Guinness draught preferably from the can
- 1 cup (240 milliliters) buttermilk
- 2 tablespoons neutral oil e.g. canola, vegetable
- ¼ cup rolled oats to top
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 375°F and grease a 9 inch by 5 inch loaf pan with butter or cooking spray.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the whole wheat flour, all-purpose flour, dark brown sugar, baking soda, and salt.2 cups (250 grams) whole wheat flour, 2 cups (250 grams) all purpose flour, ¼ cup (50 grams) dark brown sugar, 1 teaspoon baking soda, 1 teaspoon salt
- Add the Guinness, buttermilk, and vegetable oil and mix only until all traces of flour have disappeared. It will be a rough, shaggy dough.1 cup (220 milliliters) Guinness draught, 1 cup (240 milliliters) buttermilk, 2 tablespoons neutral oil
- Gently pour the soda bread mixture into the prepared pan. Scatter the rolled oats over the top and press them gently so they adhere.¼ cup rolled oats
- Bake at 375°F for about 50 to 60 minutes, until the center of the loaf reaches 200°F on an instant-read thermometer. Remove the loaf from the pan to a cooling rack – it should give a slightly hollow sound when tapped gently on the bottom.
Notes
Nutrition
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