Chocolate Guinness cake is a rich, ultra-moist chocolate cake made with Irish stout, and is a popular St. Patrick's Day dessert. It doesn't taste like beer at all. The stout simply deepens the chocolate flavor and gives the cake that dense, almost fudge-like texture that makes it completely irresistible. This bundt cake version is easier than my death by chocolate cake, which also uses Guinness but is more of a layer cake.
This versatile recipe can be made in cake pans and layered with easy buttercream or cream cheese frosting as well! You could even make it into cupcakes.
🔍 Quick Look: How To Make Guinness Cake
⏱️ Prep Time: 15 minutes
🍳 Cook Time: 45 minutes
🕒 Total Time: 60 minutes
👥 Servings: 12
📊 Calories: ~421 kcal per serving (based on nutrition panel)
🔥 Cook Method: Bake Guinness cake batter in a bundt cake pan, then frost with a Guinness ganache drip.
👩🍳 Flavor Profile: Rich, fudgy chocolate, and deep malty flavor with a very moist crumb.
⭐ Difficulty: Easy, making it great for a fun St. Patrick's Day celebration.
There's a reason Guinness beer has been used in baking cakes for years. The roasted malt notes of Guinness, rich with hints of coffee, cocoa, and dark caramel, intensify the chocolate flavor and make it deeper and more complex without tasting like beer.
Its subtle bitterness balances the sweetness perfectly, while the stout's sugars and gentle acidity create an incredibly moist, tender crumb that stays soft for days. As it bakes, the flavors blend into something bold yet smooth, giving you a chocolate cake that feels comforting, sophisticated, and absolutely worth making.
R Smith says "Love this recipe! First of all it is very easy to pull together - no creaming butter and sugar, so alternating wet and dry ingredients to mix. It's quick and easy. Most importantly it is very flavorful and has a more delicate crumb than what a bundt cake normally produces. I will definitely be making this again."
Ingredients Needed
There's just something that works so well about pairing a dark stout with chocolate. The slight bitterness of the beer balances the sweetness perfectly, so it's rich without being overpowering.
Guinness is an Irish dry stout beer. It has a malty sweetness and a hoppy bitterness with notes of chocolate and coffee, which is why it adds so much flavor to this delicious cake. The alcohol does bake out of the cake, so very few traces of alcohol are consumed while eating the cake. The alcohol actually tenderizes gluten, making the crumb of the cake more tender and dense, and adding moisture to the cake. You can replace Guinness beer with any kind of dark stout and get a similar flavor profile.
Sour cream adds moisture and tang to this cake; the acidic nature of sour cream reacts with the cocoa powder and baking soda to give us a dense, tender cake crumb like my WASC cake and Chocolate WASC cake. You can replace sour cream with Greek yogurt if you prefer.
Natural Cocoa Powder - You want to use a natural cocoa powder like Hershey's cocoa powder, not Dutch-processed. The difference between Dutch-processed cocoa powder and natural cocoa powder is Dutched is alkalized so that it neutralizes the cocoa powder's acidity. In this case, we want the acidity because it reacts with the stout beer, creating that distinct flavor profile. To replace natural cocoa powder with Dutched cocoa powder, substitute it in a 1:1 ratio by volume, but adjust the leavening agents to account for the lack of acidity in the Dutch powder. Specifically, replace the baking soda in the recipe with double the amount of baking powder.
Baking Soda - Reacts with the natural cocoa powder and the stout beer, making the cake fluffier and enhances the flavor.
Step-By-Step Instructions
Baking this cake is so easy thanks to the bundt cake pan. Just bake, cool, frost, and enjoy!
Step 1: Preheat the oven to 350°F and prepare a Bundt pan with cake goop or other pan release spray. Make sure to coat the sides and center of the pan well.
Step 2: Add the butter and Guinness to a heat-proof container and heat it in the microwave until the butter is melted. Or, in a large saucepan, heat beer and butter until butter is melted, then remove from the heat and set it aside for now.
Step 3: Combine the sugar and cocoa powder in the bowl of your stand mixer.
Step 4: Add the beer mixture to the cocoa mixture while mixing on low speed with the paddle attachment until combined. This can also easily be mixed with a hand mixer.
Step 5: Combine the eggs, sour cream, and vanilla in a medium bowl. Then add the sour cream mixture to the cocoa mixture while mixing on low until it's combined.
Step 6: Combine the flour and the baking soda. Mix the dry ingredients into the cocoa mixture until smooth. Make sure to scrape the bowl to incorporate all of the ingredients.
Step 7: Pour the cake batter into the prepared bundt pan
Step 8: Bake at 350ºF/175ºC for 45-50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Step 9: Cool the cake in the pan for 10 minutes and flip the Guinness cake onto a cooling rack to cool fully.
Step 10: Make the ganache frosting by combining all the ingredients together in a heat-proof bowl and melting them in 30-second increments in the microwave. Whisk until smooth.
Step 9: Cover the ganache with plastic wrap and set it aside until you are ready to pour it on top of the cake. You may need to slightly reheat the ganache if it cools too much before adding it to your cake.
Step 10: Place the cooled cake on a serving plate and slowly pour the ganache around the top of the cake. The ganache should be at the temperature of a caramel sauce.
Expert Tips For Success
Here are some expert tips to make your Guinness chocolate cake exceptionally rich, moist, and flavorful.
Bloom the Cocoa in Hot Guinness. Warm the Guinness with butter before adding cocoa powder. Whisking cocoa into hot liquid "blooms" it, intensifying the chocolate flavor and creating a smoother batter.
Do Not Overmix. Once you add the flour, mix just until combined. Overmixing develops gluten and can make the cake dense instead of soft and tender.
Let the Beer Rest Briefly. f your Guinness is very fizzy, let it sit for a few minutes after pouring. Too much carbonation can affect batter consistency and rise.
Use Room Temperature Ingredients. Eggs, sour cream, and any dairy should be at room temperature. This helps create a smooth, emulsified batter and an even bake.
Do Not Overbake. Stout cakes are meant to be moist. Start checking a few minutes early. A few moist crumbs on a tester are ideal.
Let It Rest Overnight. Like many chocolate cakes, Guinness cake often tastes even better the next day. The roasted malt and chocolate flavors deepen as it sits. No need to refrigerate, which will just dry the cake out. Just cover in plastic wrap and set it aside at room temperature.
FAQ
Do I have to use Guinness beer?
No, not necessarily, you can swap out whatever dark beer you would like, the aspect of the Guinness stout is the chocolate flavor that deepens the flavor of the cake. You can leave the alcohol out altogether and use coffee, milk, or just water. For the ganache, I recommend swapping the beer for heavy cream. However, the beer does create a very moist chocolate cake.
Where can I find Guinness beer?
Most local grocery stores carry stout beer. Especially during the month of March for St. Patricks Day celebrations.
Can I bake this in regular cake pans?
Yes, This recipe will bake a nice layer cake, it will fill three, 6-inch cake pans or two, 8-inch pans.
What other frostings go well with Guinness chocolate cake?
If you tried this Ribeye recipe or any other recipe on my blog, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it goes in the comments. I love hearing from you!
Recipe
Guinness Chocolate Cake
This delicious beer-infused chocolate cake makes a dense, moist crumb that has a hint of Guinness but still rocks your socks off with a strong chocolate flavor. The perfect cake for St. Patricks Day celebrations!
Preheat the oven to 350°F and prepare a Bundt pan with cake goop or pan release spray. Make sure to coat the sides of the pan well.
Add the butter and Guinness to a heat proof container and heat it in the microwave until the butter is melted. Or, In a large saucepan, heat beer and butter until butter is melted then remove from the heat.
Combine the sugar and cocoa powder in the bowl of your stand mixer.
Then mix in the butter and beer mixture on low speed with the paddle attachment until combined. This can also easily be mixed with a hand mixer.
Combine the eggs, sour cream, and vanilla in a medium bowl then add the wet ingredients to the beer mixture and mix until combined.
Combine the flour and the baking soda. Mix the dry ingredients into the beer mixture until smooth. Make sure to scrape the bowl to incorporate all of the ingredients.
Pour the cake batter into the prepared bundt pan.
Bake at 350ºF/175ºC for 45-50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Cool the cake in the pan for 10 minutes and flip the bundt onto a cooling rack to cool fully. The ganache can be prepared just prior to displaying or serving the cake.
Making Guinness White Chocolate Ganache
Add the white chocolate and the beer to a medium or large bowl.
Microwave the chocolate mixture for about 30 seconds until the chocolate begins to soften. It's best to do this in 10-second increments so that the chocolate does not overheat too quickly in one spot.
Let the chocolate sit for about 3 minutes and then add the butter and whisk until smooth. If the butter is not melting out, heat it in the microwave again for just a few seconds at a time.
Cover the ganache with plastic wrap and set it aside until you are ready to pour it on top of the cake. You may need to slightly reheat the ganache if it cools quickly.
Place the cooled cake on a serving plate and slowly pour the ganache around the top of the cake. The ganache should be the temperature of a caramel sauce.
To store the Bundt cake, keep it in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days. It can be wrapped and frozen for up to a month. Pro-tip: Don't freeze the entire cake, wrap individual pieces in plastic wrap and freeze them. Then you will have a slice of cake anytime!
Video
Notes
This recipe can also be made in three 6" cake pans or two 8" cake pans.Guinness is an Irish dry stout beer. It has a malty sweetness and a hoppy bitterness with notes of chocolate and coffee, which is why it adds so much flavor to this delicious cake. The alcohol does bake out of the cake so very few traces of alcohol are consumed while eating the cake. The alcohol actually tenderizes gluten, making the crumb of the cake more tender and dense, and adding moisture to the cake. Sour cream adds moisture and tang to this cake, the acidic nature of sour cream reacts with the cocoa powder and baking soda to give us a dense tender cake crumb.
Liz Marek is a professional cake artist, sweet and savory recipe developer, and the founder of Sugar Geek Show, where she teaches cooking, baking and cake decorating through detailed tutorials, food science explanations, and kitchen-tested recipes. She has been creating recipes and teaching baking techniques since 2008, helping bakers of all skill levels gain the confidence to make professional-quality desserts at home.
Liz is known for breaking down complex cooking and baking concepts into simple, approachable methods. Her work focuses on helping people understand not just how a recipe works, but why it works. Through Sugar Geek Show, she shares step-by-step recipes, cake decorating tutorials, and practical baking guides designed to make professional techniques accessible to everyone.
Over the years, Liz has taught thousands of students through online tutorials, classes, and educational content focused on real kitchen results. Her recipes are carefully tested and written to help people succeed the first time they make them.
When she’s not developing recipes or teaching baking techniques, Liz also hosts curated travel experiences for women through her travel brand Soul Sisters.
You can find Liz’s latest recipes, baking tutorials, and food science tips at Sugar Geek Show.
Reader Interactions
Comments
Megansays
Can I use espresso that I brewed instead of powder or would that increase the liquid content? If I can, how many shots?
Megan says
Can I use espresso that I brewed instead of powder or would that increase the liquid content? If I can, how many shots?
Elizabeth Marek says
you could replace some of the liquid with espresso