New Holland Dragon's Milk Oak Barrel Ale - New Holland Brewing Company

CHickman

New York

3.98/5  rDev +1.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours very dark opaque brown, almost black looking, with a creamy 1 finger tan head that faded slowly and left good spotty lacing and a creamy layer on top.

Smells of bourbon right up front; smack, pour the beer and the bourbon is there. After it calms down you also get vanilla, molasses, raisin, dark fruit, sweet malt, caramel, charcoal, toasted grains and then light booze; the bourbon basically dominates the nose and smells like a nice boozy stout.

Tastes follows the nose, with bourbon up front, vanilla, molasses, raisin, dark fruit, sweet malt, brown sugar, cocoa powder, dark chocolate, toasted grains, caramel, charcoal, herbs or light floral hops, and then booze; it is very sweet, quite complex and the chocolate, rich dark fruit and bourbon all blend well together. It borders on too sweet, so I’m glad this was only a 12 oz bottle. Considering how in your face the alcohol is, it’s surprisingly easy to drink and devoid of any real heat.

Mouthfeel is very creamy and smooth, with very mild to almost zero carbonation that’s oddly thin and watery, a very heavy chewy body that was thick, and a sweet boozy finish that's a cross between molasses and a shot of bourbon.

A very good beer overall, I liked the dynamic here; there was no hiding the intent, it was a boozy stout and it came out swinging. The BA notes state this is a stout aged on Heaven Hill Bourbon barrels, and while I am not familiar with Heaven Hill Bourbon, I now feel like I know that product and may enjoy it. Definitely worth trying this brew.

Serving type: bottle

12-12-2012 04:10:23 | More by CHickman

tabooky

4.28/5  rDev +9.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

There’s 3 things you need to know about Dragon’s Milk;

1) New Holland takes a good imperial stout, black and strong yet smooth. 2) They aged it in an oak bourbon barrel which imparts a prominent oaky-vanilla-milky quality that really smooth’s out the acidic nature of the stout, down right creamy. 3) It’s like someone dumped half a shot of your favorite bourbon into it. The bourbon taste is right up front, naked and saying “hey, look over here; I’m Bourbon, check out my junk”.

This is all brought together in pseudo harmony with many layers of toasted, creamy, alcoholic notes. It has a thick mouth feel and tons of flavor you would expect from a 10%-er. Definitely a sipper. One will do. Could get gross after a while but I really enjoy this 25oz-er.

Serving type: bottle

12-12-2012 01:38:33 | More by tabooky

kojevergas

California

3.68/5  rDev -5.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Served on-draught into a stemflute in a Minneapolis bar. Reviewed from notes taken around Thanksgiving 2012.

A: Pours a one finger khaki colour head of nice cream, good thickness, and good retention for the high ABV. Body colour is a very dark ruby-black. Nontransparent.

Sm: Caramel, cream, dark malts, chocolate, and rich dark chocolate covered cherry. A moderately strong aroma.

T: Dominant chocolate with rich caramel and dark malts for the foundation. Chocolate cherry comes through. Bourbon undertones. Rich and well balanced. Delicious. Some raisin. Licorice. Well built. I like it. Well layered, nicely complex, and subtle. I'd like more roast in the foundation. I get some grape on the finish, which is too sweet.

Mf: Smooth and wet. Creamy. Nicely thick. Good carbonation. Heavy on the palate.

Dr: Drinkable and enjoyable. I quite fancy it. A delightful brew. I'd like to try it in bottled form. I look forward to trying more beers from this brewery; this was a good example of the style.

B

Serving type: on-tap

12-06-2012 19:13:04 | More by kojevergas

TheSixthRing

California

3.85/5  rDev -1.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Appearance - Pours jet black with cola brown edging where light can penetrate. Poured aggressively, it produced a cocoa powder colored finger with head with good retention. Nice, fine and silky lacing with great stick.

Smell - Alcohol astringent forward aroma, with lesser notes of vanilla and chocolate.

Taste - Starts with strong notes of vanilla and alcohol. Strong alcohol heat throughout. Mid-taste a chalky chocolate flavor makes it's debut. Aftertaste hits on mocha coffee and faint alcohol heat.

Mouthfeel - Medium bodied, with moderate carbonation. Smooth and creamy to start, but the alcohol gives a thinning, dry finish.

Overall - This is a good stout, but comes through with a lot of heat. I imagine this being a beer hard alcohol drinkers might like; I myself find it a bit too aggressive and transparent. Decent complexity that's overwhelmed by the near numbing heat. That said, there's just enough redeeming stout character that I'd drink it again.

Serving type: bottle

12-03-2012 05:50:11 | More by TheSixthRing

sleuthdog

Illinois

4.3/5  rDev +10%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

2011 vintage 22oz bottle poured into snifter glass

Appearance: I would call this very dark brown just flirting with all out black in color. In fact I think this is as dark as brown can get without being black. No light penetrates when held to the light, however it does become a touch lighter brown when backlit. There was no head formation for me and there is a very fine collar around the edge of the glass. No lacing at all.

Smell: Now this is where its at! Reminiscent of BCBS for me although milder. I get big bourbon, huge vanilla, roasted notes, coffee, and chocolate. There is a noticable alcohol presence and huge oak notes. I could smell this all day long.

Taste: An absolute huge bourbon vanilla bomb! Follows the nose with above noted roasted, coffee and chocolate and oak. Up front the mouth is introduced to the bourbon and vanilla followed by the others already stated. Alcohol is evident but not in a distracting sort of way. Everything is just in perfect balance.

Mouthfeel: Medium to full and oh so creamy! A bit light for a big barrel aged stout but seems to work for this one. I tend to want this style to be more on the chewy side but for this beer the feel does seem spot on and I can honestly say I wouldn't want it be any different.

Overall: My friend has been on me to try this one and I finally got it into a glass. I have to say I am extremely impressed by this beer. An absolute steal at $8 a bomber and so easy off the shelf that it makes me smile. I will be picking this up more often for sure!

Serving type: bottle

12-03-2012 01:12:52 | More by sleuthdog

psnydez86

Pennsylvania

3.83/5  rDev -2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Apperance- Poured a deep dark mahogony into a pint glass with good lacing and nice 1.5 inch esprosso like head. light can barely pass thru this monster.

Smell- Roasty Coffe, Vanilla, Bourbon, booze.

Taste- Starts off with a typical roasty coffee stout tastes which quickly gets attacked by some vanilla and strong bourbon flavor. I'm not a bourbon fan at all but it is a nice sidekick to the vanilla and roasty character of this beer.

Mouthfeel- Nice creamy mouthfeel on this one which I think is perfect for the style

Overall- Its my birthday today and a friend of mine picked this up for me at 8 Degree Plato Beer company Ferndale, Michigan. This is actually the first oak aged Stout i've had and I really enjoyed it. If your the kind of person that enjoys craft beer and enjoys bourbon/whiskey on the rocks this beer will turn you into a raging alchoholic if your already not there. CHEERS.

Serving type: bottle

12-01-2012 23:49:02 | More by psnydez86

flyboy599

Wisconsin

4.48/5  rDev +14.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

S - Chocolate, vanilla, musty oak.

A - No light is passing through this beer, very "motor oil" dark. Poured from a bottle with about a quarter finger of light caramel head which quickly vanished.

T - Oak and vanilla permeate the chocolate heavy malt character. The sweetness of the vanilla, almost caramel like, nicely counters the light bitter coffee flavor. At 10% ABV, the after-taste is only slightly of alcohol. No big burn.

M - Velvety and smooth. The carbonation, or lack of it, allows for the full smooth feel.

O - This beer ran me $17.50 for a 4 pack so the expectations were pretty high. Mostly, I felt that the beer delivered. It had the sweetness of a Wee Heavy that countered the bitter roast taste most common to a stout. The fact that it drew this sweetness from vanilla was interesting that the oak flavor lent itself nicely to the style. Given it's price it won't be one that I'd grab every time, but I'd say it's memorable enough for a repeat.

Serving type: bottle

12-01-2012 20:56:22 | More by flyboy599

IrishHockey

Indiana

4.28/5  rDev +9.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Poured from a bottle into my Founders snifter. Bottled was chilled to 35 degree F, just like I like my booze.

Pour: looks great. Nice, black, small tanish head that quickly fades into a small frothy crown then to nothingness.

Smell: much like I was anticipating. Bourbon, slight coffee and chocolate. Smells great! I really like the smell!

Taste: wow! Bourbon up front, getting some booziness (I like it), getting some vanilla, chocolate, and some coffee. Not a lot though. Mainly bourbon. It's good! I have to say a lot better than I was expecting.

Overall: I'd buy again. It's really good! Not quite the best bourbon barrel beer I've had, but by far the easiest to find and cheaper than the limited releases. If you can find this, buy it. It's a good bourbon barrel stout. Don't expect it to be a BCBS. It's a bit thinner, and a touch less refined, but a solid beer.

Cheers!

Serving type: bottle

12-01-2012 04:05:57 | More by IrishHockey

JerzDevl2000

New Jersey

3.95/5  rDev +1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Picked this up via the single bottle in Totowa. For $4.99, I expected this to be pretty darned good and a bit different from the other Stouts that are filling up the store shelves now. While not as dark and thick as other Stouts that I've had, this was just as aggressive and enjoyable as the "motor oil" examples of this style and this certainly warmed me up enough on this cold Autumn night!

The pour to this was a nice dark brown along the with just a hint of light shining through around the edges. Although the lacing left a bit to be desired, the head was frothy and stuck around for a while. Oak and booze stuck out in the nose with some vanilla that took over quite a bit when this was sipped. The lack of carbonation allowed the thin, dark notes of that flavor to really stick out with some licorice and anisette mixed in there for good measure. This almost felt like a cordial rather than a beer since I enjoyed my beer in "shots" rather than sips and the full,roasted nature of other Stouts wasn't present as much here. Just a hint of the oak lingered in the back but unlike a Scotch Ale, the peat and sticky caramel that would accompany one wasn't present here at all.

To be fair, this was quite aggressive but the alcohol didn't detract from this beer. It merely served as a reminder that this was indeed a Stout, just slightly different in nature from the norm. Fans of that style, Scotch Ales, non-spicy Winter Warmers, and after dinner cordials on the strong side owe it to themselves to this give this a go - there's a lot to like here.

Serving type: bottle

11-30-2012 07:31:50 | More by JerzDevl2000

BrownNut

Florida

4.21/5  rDev +7.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25

2012 vintage served 60 degrees in a tulip.

A - 4.0 - Pours out of the bottle like rootbeer, transparent brown as it falls and with a fizzy head. But once in the glass it's opaque black. A flashlight shined into it reveals an edge of evenly cloudy dirty brown. The head dissipates fairly quickly.

S - 4.0 - A little chocolatey, moist bread doughy, maybe a bit of woodsy booze. Nice.

T - 4.25 - Definitely a wood note, confirmed from the aroma. Some background coffee note. The chocolate, the wood, and a roast quality come together very nicely to make a sum more than their parts. What a nice warm burn of fumes hovering in my throat for a while after swallowing. And that 10% has my face nice and warmed up. I should be clear that I really like warm booziness and have yet to find a beer that's "too hot" as many say here. This one is goldilocks for me. This is the beer you want to drink on a cold winter night.

M - 4.5 - Smooth and velvety. Usually when you pour a thick black motor oil stout, you expect a thick viscous mouthfeel, and when you pour a transparent one like this, you expect a light mouthfeel. But despite its appearance this is easily medium bodied if not a bit north of there.

O - 4.25 - Very good and very enjoyable. This one's a solid keeper. It's just interesting enough to make you want to keep buying it but drinkable enough that it doesn't have to be a special occasion. I really enjoy the notes that the wood adds and really like the nice gentle warm throat burn here in a cold house. This is a sit back and get cozy beer for later at night when things are quiet. If it would just snow in Florida and if I had a fireplace and a leather recliner and a blanket, things would be perfect - you know how it gets so quiet at night when snow thickly blankets everything and nobody's out. That's when I'd drink this.

Serving type: bottle

11-30-2012 00:17:18 | More by BrownNut

Hachiman

Japan

4.43/5  rDev +13.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours very dark, almost black red. Short-lived grease slick head. Negligible lacing.

On the nose has an alcoholic top note, molasses, caramel and roasted malt aromas.

The flavor is uncommonly well balanced for an imperial stout. Vanilla notes tie together caramel and acidic roasted malt. Hops not much evident: nutty/herbal tastes, not very bitter.

Carbonation was low, mouth feel medium, left a sticky residue on the lips. Warming alcohol in the back of the throat.

Serving type: bottle

11-28-2012 02:21:35 | More by Hachiman

fauxpunker

3.8/5  rDev -2.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A: Pours black with a thin, quickly disappearing, tan head. Opaque, but not motor oil thick like I was expecting.
S: Can definitely smell oak and vanilla. Some chocolate as well. All malt.
T: Sweetness hits up front along with a roasted coffee undertone. The vanilla not also makes an appearance. Alcohol pops up on the end giving it a somewhat sour finish.
M: Full, but not chewy. Carbonation seemed a bit low. Despite the alcohol in the taste, it doesn't really burn. It definitely warmed me up.
O: All the pieces are there but they don't quite come together like I'd hoped. The ABV isn't hidden as well as in others I've had. Not bad by any stretch. Great way to warm up on a cold day.

Serving type: bottle

11-25-2012 17:38:50 | More by fauxpunker

Strix

Wisconsin

4.43/5  rDev +13.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

Black with dark red edging, decent initial head, faces to a ring, leaving some lacaing.

Bourbon and wood in the nose.

When cool, sweet malts dominate. As it warms, oak and bourbon take over. Definitely an alcohol bite, but it complements the mix. Vanilla really melts well with the mix.

Mouthfeel super smooth, light carbonation.

This was nicely done. Unique and balanced, a little boozy but if you like that it works.

Serving type: bottle

11-25-2012 02:47:21 | More by Strix

MadScientist

New York

3.93/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

A: A deep, dark ruby brown almost black with good clarity. The head is a medium light brown with small compact bubbles and average retention.

S: A moderate oak aroma having mostly chocolate and vanilla characteristics with a light touch of cinnamon. There is moderately-light malt sweetness with some roasted and chocolate malt aromas. There are no hops aroma.

T: Rich malt flavors with oak and some bourbon like character. The oak brings a fair amount of vanilla that plays well with others, complimenting the chocolate and roasted malt flavors. The is a moderately hops bitterness with no hops flavor. A light touch of fruity ester having a little bit of fig and prune-like flavors. The balance is about even between the malt sweetness being countered by the hops bitterness and the alcohol. The finish is slightly sweet with a roasty, chocolate aftertaste.

M: A creamy, medium-full bodied beer with a moderately-light carbonation. No astringency and a slight slickness on the tongue. The alcohol is very apparent, being a touch boozy at first but its a gentle warmth afterwards.

O: A nicely balanced oak aged stout with some alcohol warmth.

Serving type: bottle

11-22-2012 00:13:47 | More by MadScientist

jwhancher

Pennsylvania

4.15/5  rDev +6.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Had a pint at Penguin's practice facility in Canonsburg, PA. Served in a standard pint glass pretty cold. Little head and looks dark & opaque. Don't blame this on the brewery; just going with how this was served to me.

Smells pretty good. Nice oak, bourbon and vanilla notes. Some detectable alcohol notes from the bourbon. Tastes great- love the vanilla & bourbon character. Sweet tasting- guessing some lactose in here. Nice lingering sweet bourbon & honey-like sweetness. Mouthfeel seems like an issue to me. Feels light. Needs more body and more mouthfeel. The perceived alcohol seems hidden but I know it's there.

Overall, glad to have finally tried. A solid dark oaked bourbon beer. Needs a little fine tuning though.

Serving type: on-tap

11-15-2012 02:07:47 | More by jwhancher

fitrock2112

Ohio

4.38/5  rDev +12%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Poured the Oak Aged Dragon's Milk into a pint glass.

A - The black ale has a finger of mocha head.

S - The aroma of this one smells of roasted malts, chocolate and some booziness on the back end.

T - Wow, this beer is very smooth and has much more roasted malts, vanilla, and chocolate goodness than the smell. There is some booziness on the back end, but not overpowering at all.

M - This beer is very smooth, and for a barrel aged beer this is very nice. I would say a medium body leaning towards a heavy, but nothing like a Russian Imperial.

O - Again, very impressive, smooth barrel aged beer. I highly recommend this one. Cheers!

Serving type: bottle

11-09-2012 01:10:52 | More by fitrock2112

dbrauneis

New Jersey

3.85/5  rDev -1.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A: Pours a very dark amber to dark brown (almost black) in color with some brown highlights and light to moderate amounts of visible carbonation near the surface. The beer has a finger tall creamy tan head that reduces to a small patch of thick bubbles, a very thin film covering the majority of the surface of the beer, and a medium-thick ring at the edges of the glass. Moderate to significant amounts of lacing are observed.

S: Moderate aromas of bourbon and bourbon barrel (oak/vanilla) with some very light notes of milk chocolate sweetness.

T: Moderate to strong flavors of bourbon with some lighter notes of dark roasted malts, milk/lactose sweetness, milk chocolate, oak, and vanilla.

M: Medium bodied with light to moderate amounts of carbonation.Moderate amounts of alcohol heat and some light dryness in the finish.

O: This is an enjoyable beer due to the bourbon barrel aging adding to the nice stout flavors and aromas but needs to be sipped slowly as this is a pretty big beer (and the alcohol is not too well hidden in it).

Serving type: bottle

11-08-2012 20:17:23 | More by dbrauneis

VelvetExtract

Massachusetts

4.05/5  rDev +3.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

A-Pours dark brown. Lots of light penetration. Looks like a Brown Ale. Consistent lacing rings. Head is tan and frothy.

S-The barrel lends a delectable nose of maple syrup and wood. The bourbon/whiskey notes are far from coercive. They mesh with the sweetness exceptionally well. Light chocolate and some lactic milk notes. Great use of the barrel.

T-Again, the barrel shines. It is a bit more aggressive than the nose. Milk chocolate. Light roast. Like dipping a piece of toast into bourbon. Light molasses and maple syrup. Booze comes out. Quite lactic. Vanilla milkshake with a shot of whiskey. Pretty cool, but I like the nose a bit better.

M-Buzzing carbonation. Body is not very full. Booze dries you out a tad. It is pretty drinkable.

O/D-A pretty tasty brew. A cool take on the barrel-aged brew. Not a sludgy, viscous and overly barrel dependent beer. It is lighter, more lactic and the barrel presents itself in a different manner. I truly enjoyed this but I didn't really love it.

Serving type: bottle

11-08-2012 02:46:47 | More by VelvetExtract

kangarooAdam59

Maine

3.9/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

The last of my beers to review from my Michigan haul:

Into a pint glass:

A: black colored body that yields a one finger white head that concaves into the body after about a half minute with no carbonation seen rising. Some thick foamy lacing graces the sides of the pint glass.

S: bourbon up front with some chocolate in the background.

T: balanced around the bourbon and chocolate, some slight roastiness comes in as the beer warms.

M: creamy and close to a medium maybe heavy sort of feel. There is a dry and bitter aftertaste. This isn't exactly a drinkable beer, probably because of the high ABV.

O: I like the appearance and taste, but boy oh boy, when my pint glass was sitting on the end table at least two feet from my nose, I could still smell the bourbon, perhaps a bit too powerful for me. Still, this beer is a good sipper, probably should've saved some for the later colder months to come.

Serving type: bottle

11-07-2012 00:13:46 | More by kangarooAdam59

thagr81us

South Carolina

4.03/5  rDev +3.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

2010 Vintage! Served from bottle into a Duck-Rabbit nonic. Poured a massively dark brown (almost black) with a minimal light tan head. Maintained phenomenal lacing throughout the glass. The aroma was comprised of sweet malt, roasted malt, vanilla, and dark fruit. The flavor was of sweet malt, roasted malt, caramel, vanilla, dark fruit, and subtle sweet alcohol. It had a medium feel on the palate with medium carbonation. Overall this was a pretty good brew. I thought with some age on this one that the alcohol aspect would be completely gone. On the flavor that was definitely the case. However on the flavor there was still a nice little kiss of booziness to be found that was rather surprising at first. Once your palate adjusted to this though it was really quite nice to have a touch of heat to this one. It was fairly well balanced with just a hint of roastiness but more sweetness with the vanilla and caramel going on. A really well done brew that I would suggest anyone to try at least once.

Serving type: bottle

11-06-2012 17:43:20 | More by thagr81us

Infamous7100

Ohio

3.73/5  rDev -4.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

A: Pours a mahogany and is slightly transparent. A long lasting tan head with some decent lacing.
S: a tad more muted than I expected. Aromas of oak, bourbon and chocolate seem to dominate the profile. Less malt than I expected..semi complex.
T: represents a bit better than the aroma. Sweet bourbon notes accompanied by oak along with pleasant malt notes. A slight dark chocolate bitterness.
M: extremely creamy, low to medium carbonation and not as filling as you would think. Finishes slightly dry and bitter.
O: a very good brew, but expected some more complexity. Perhaps the bourbon should come through more, but what it lacks in bourbon is made up in balance of malt, dark chocolate and booze. Pick some up.

Serving type: bottle

11-01-2012 23:20:05 | More by Infamous7100

ChrisH1024

Ohio

3.98/5  rDev +1.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Poured from a bomber into a glass. Good head, does not disappate, good lacing down the glass. Smells of chocolate and bourbon with hints of oak. The bourbon hits in the beginning with a chocolate and oak finish that hits dry on the back off the tongue. The beer is creamy yet carbonated and has a great feel. Overall, a good beer that is worth buying again, but still leaves me wanting more.

Serving type: bottle

11-01-2012 23:14:48 | More by ChrisH1024

warrenout330

Ohio

3.65/5  rDev -6.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

12oz bottle poured into my snifter

A- pours a dark brown, once the whole bottle is poured turns to a pitch black. Thin fluffy tan head, miniamal lacing to the glass

S- smells sweet, sugary, followed up boozy oak Bourbon. Not over powering but its there

T- light sugary chocolate malt, mellow woody characteristics, Bourbon booziness

M- light bodied for a stout, almost makes me feel like this is a milk stout with alot of lactose,alcoholic ting spread out like a spread formation on the palate. Bitterness at the swallow trying to balance this out... hit or miss in this bottle

O- I like this... its different... boozey as all hell... sweet and woody... if your into strong Bourbon or Scotch than this is the brew for you....

Serving type: bottle

10-28-2012 07:40:41 | More by warrenout330

cindyjeffsmith

Georgia

4/5  rDev +2.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

appearance: handsome mahogany with a thick tan head and lacing. Doesn't look a stout though.
smell: vanilla roastiness with a hint of bourbon. Quite subdued compared to many barrel aged brews. Nice nose though not tremendous.
taste: mostly as the nose goes. a bit of alcohol burn that subsides and mellows.
overall: a nice brew but at $15.99 a 4 pack, somewhat a disappointment. Gets better and more complex as it comes to room temp.

Serving type: bottle

10-27-2012 22:07:28 | More by cindyjeffsmith

Greywulfken

New York

3.85/5  rDev -1.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

A: translucent brown obsidian on the pour; glass of black beer with slightly translucent edges; initial ivory finger of head settles into a milky film with a thicker collar; a few motes of lace speckle the glass

S: malty milky sugars prominent; background espresso and chocolate; overlaying oakiness

T: bittered and dark roasted malts and winey, oaky woodnotes dominate; for a stout, very subdued chocolate and espresso flavors. On the dry oaky finish, bitter hops and barrel-aging flavors are interrupted by spikes of sweet anise

M: light-bodied; there is mild sweetness at the start, but it turns and finishes mostly dry - some sugars poke in; some of the 10% abv slips through; relatively light-bodied for a stout

O: Turns out this is the only "American stout" I've ever had. I've had tons of double/Imperial stouts, Russian Imperials, and a bunch of American and Baltic porters, plus my fair share of American black ales, so my comparisons come from there.
A decent stout, closer in taste and feel to American black ales and porters. Different from my normal stout expectations - less sweet and dense, stronger bitter and roasted malt flavors, less of the "stout trifecta" flavors (chocolate, espresso, licorice). Dry, oaky flavors from the barrel-aging were readily evident, so if you're a fan of barrel-aged dark/stout ales, you'll probably like that.
I love developing my stout knowledge, and promoting stout knowledge among others - so pick up a couple of bottles if you see 'em - again, a decent stout. Improved as it warmed.

Serving type: bottle

10-27-2012 20:53:35 | More by Greywulfken