New Holland Dragons Milk

Small sample from the bottle. Consumed during the New Holland beer and chocolate pairing at Great Taste of the Midwest on 8-9-2008. 2006 edition. Pours brown with a reddish hue and beige head. Bourbon and raspberry aroma. Pleasant, mellow, milky, sweet taste has soft bourbon and stout-like elements. Medium body. Subtle but good.

THOUGHTS: A nice beer, but not very British at all. Seemed more like an American Strong Ale. It did get a little British as it warmed and some of the hops came out a litter beer. It smelled nice but not really like it was described on the bottle. Overall, nice but still a little disappointing. Also my bottle said 8.5% ABV not 9 as listed here TECHNICAL: Bottle. Poured a clear, dark brown with red highlights when held to the light and a small, tan head that mostly diminished and left fair lacing. The aroma was moderate to heavy caramel, chocolate and coffee malts, light wood, light vanilla and alcohol. The initial flavor was moderate to heavily sweet and lightly acidic; while the finish was heavily sweet and light to moderately bitter with an average duration. The flavor was nice but a little watery. There was lots o’ malt. Some chocolate and coffee, then just a hint of villa and slightly more wood and even less hops. The medium body was oily then syrupy later with soft carbonation and a very light alcoholic finish for the ABV.

Dark pour - brown -red almost black and completely opaque. Thin light tan-head. Lots of chocolate and cocoa on the aroma. Roasty with a bit of sour fruit (berries perhaps) and a bit of creamy lactic acid. Theres a slight metallic note as well. Very mellow flavor, slightly sour. Not sweet but could very little bitterness. Coffee grounds and a bit of alcohol on the finish. Not bad, but nothing too special. Needs a bit more of kick. It was a little flat and thin on the body.

one of the reasons for the slightly lower score is due to the fact this felt a bit more like a stout our porter than a strong ale. call me crazy, but i just dont agree on the classification.

22oz. Bottle. Says 8.5% on the botte. Very dark black with hints of red. Small tan head. Aroma is oak and bourbon. Light palate, slight alcohol burn to the finish. Hints of vanilla, coffee and caramel. Very drinkable and dangerously smooth for 8.5%.

Pours a dark black/ruby from the bottle with a trim white head. Tons of bourbon in the aroma. Syruppy sweet with a faint taste of vanilla. Luxuriously rich to the point that one bottle yields a mild stomach ache as well as intoxication. Be a friend to yourself and share this.

On tap at Oregon Brewers Festival 2008--Dark chestnut brown body w/ a rich bubbly tan head. Woody, malty, bourbon, caramel, and vanilla notes. Hoppy. Subtle yet bold. Great!

On tap at the Oregon Brewer’s Festival. This was my other favorite! Decadent, chewy, bourban hint of flavor, and warm boozy finish!