Moylans Dragoons Dry Irish Stout

Brewed by Moylans Brewery & Restaurant
Style: Dry Stout
Novato, California USA

22 oz bottle from Holiday Wine Cellar. A deep roasted malt nose that smells rich and creamy and a perfect example of how my memory would the aroma of a stout. Appears as a pitch black liquid with a small forming of foam for a head. The flavor is tad bit bland and simple but in general it still holds a decent amount of burnt dark malt and a hint of Irish cream or hazelnut in the finish.

Courtesy mgumby10. Black, thin light tan head. Powdered cocoa aroma, licorice, some roast, nice aroma here. Nice dry taste, dry roast and coffee, light English hop finish. Clean and very drinkable.

Bottle. Black body, medium head, roasty nose. Somewhat fruity, roasty, not so dry, tasty but not exactly to style.

A vigorous pour into my New Belgium globe goblet produces an almost three-finger thick, lightly browned, dark tan colored head. The beer is quite black in color, though it does pass just a hint of light through it if held up directly to the light. The aroma smells quite dry and full of roasted, dark malt notes; reminiscent of well, almost blackened, grain, charcoal, dry espresso, burnt soda crackers and perhaps a hint of a dark grain sweetness. That last may just be my imagination though as this beer is clearly roast dominated and it is hard to get a sense of anything else in the nose.

Dry with a fizzy, carbonic acidity that sort of adds to the overall dryness. Ample flavors of well deeply toasted grain move to more of burnt and even bitter finish that lingers on just a bit after the beer has left my mouth. There is some burnt grain acidity here, though not quite as much as one might expect (the mash PH seems to have been held well enough in check). This actually does get fairly bitter and slightly astringent in the finish from the burnt grain focus. Despite being so dry, this does have a touch of body to it, though the fizziness of the carbonation tends to get in the way of the texture despite being fairly light (in carbonation). A couple of vigorous swirls of my glass release most of the carbonation and greatly reduces the harsh carbonic bit and makes this beer more creamy and less astringently burnt. As the beer warms up a bit it even picks up a slight burnt fruitiness that helps to further add a bit of balance.

I am a bit surprised to say it, but this is actually probably better on Nitro, or preferably from the hand pump; the reduced carbonation and carbonic acidity would really help to keep this beer more balanced. And the beer does actually smooth out, become more integrated and not as overtly roasted if I vigorously swirl out the carbonation; serving this on the warm side certainly helps too. Not exactly the best beer to be drinking out of the bottle, if you work at it you can turn this into a nicely drinking beer though. I would love to have this served via hand pump from a cask at about 59°F / 15°C.

Purchased: Plaza Liquors, Tucson AZ

Courtesy MGumby10. Very dark brown pour that was slightly watery. Very nice chocolate malt roasty grain aroma. Chocolate malt, coffee, roasted grain taste, with a nice dryness. Very tasty.

I was actually very pleased with this. Very easy to drink with good flavors. Pitch black with thick, dark tan head. Aroma full of oatmeal, roasted barley, a small bit of chocolate, and the fresh, clean, almost piney aroma typical of dry stouts. Flavor was same, but with more roasted barley. Very clean finish with no bitter aftertaste. Such an easy drink. Quite tasty.

Pours opaque black with off-white lasting head. Roasted malt aroma. Flavor is dry with roasted malt. Body is light. Nice and easy drinking.

22 oz. bottle from BevMo (Tucson) - Pours a clear brown color with a one and a half finger thick tan head. Light lacing. Aroma is toasted caramel malt and a touch of smokiness. Flavor is toasted caramel, lightly smoked, and faint chocolate malt with a touch of coffee in there. Palate is slightly dry. Medium body. Quite nice to drink.