DuClaw Devils Milk

Brewed by DuClaw Brewing Company
Style: Barley Wine
Abingdon, Maryland USA

Draft at Fell’s Point and then Bel Air in the same day. Don’t ask. :) Poured Amber in color with small off white head. Taste is well balanced with Raison tones. Hints a caramel as well. It hides the alcohol remarkably well.

Growler shared at Madness w/ the Moose. First off all let me say......WOW. I sampled this one again and again, okay more like chugged then sampled but I couldn’t let this beauty go to waste. Poured a clear reddish amber with a large white frothy head. The nose on this one is so hoppy I would of swore it was an IIPA or at least an IPA. Flavor is very sweet with lots of honey, malt and even a slight bit of rye flavor in there. Hardly any trace of aclohol coming from this 12.2% monster. 12.2% no wonder the rest of the night is just a "little" foggy.

Draft at Fell’s Point. Poured brown color with a slight head and nice lacing. It is bitter and hoppy with a sweet malt flavor, floral notes, and good carbonation. The alcohol content, although very high, is well-masked. Well done.

Growler at argo0’s xmas party brought by neighbor Tom (thanks Tom!!). Pours amber copper, with medium off-white head. Very hoppy-citrus/pine/soap. Flavor similar. Almost tastes like an I2PA. Some caramel in taste, and strong alcohol aftertaste.

Growler at A&K Holiday tasting brought by Tom, thanks: Coppery hue with a lasting creamy head and very good lace. The aroma has a big hoppy nose, dry hopped, piney, tropical (mango, star fruit, grapefruit esters), clove and a hint of soap at first but did fade and some white chocolate. The taste is malty and sugary with a hit of acidic fruit and big bitterness. Liquorice, clove and caramel finish with some band-aid notes as well. The mouth feel is aggressive and biting, warming and alcohol is noted. This is good but needs to be aged more to mellow out and mesh the flavors.

Last of a growler poured into a snifter. No head and little carbonation. Reminded me of a cask pour. Deep brown/black color. Very malty aroma. Sharp hops bite initially. Sweet backbone. Needed to age longer. Best beer yearly beer made by DuClaw. I have another growler of Devil’s Milk that I am going to age until atleast April or May. I have aged this for a year and it just gets better.

I wanted to like this more than I did. It was just way too hoppy. Even after it warmed it just didn’t have the sweetness and complexity that greatness needs. It is by no means a bad barely wine, it just lacks a fruity complexity to go with the hop bite. In a blind taste test I would mistake this for a double IPA.

On tap @ Bowie location. Light brown color w/no head. Strong alcohol aroma. I was dissapointed in this one, just way too rough for me. Just tasted like alcohol, like doing a shot of whiskey. No sweetness, nothing to balance out the high alcohol flavor. I’ve heard a lot of people rave @ this, & maybe it gets better w/age-I hope so since I have a bottle ageing, but I couldn’t even finish it. Just too hot for me.