New Holland Dragons Milk

Brewed by New Holland Brewing Company
Style: Stout
Holland, Michigan USA

Decent. I could have used more flavor - underwhelming. The coffee, chocolate and oak notes were lost on me. Besides the thinness, a good drink.

Mmmm, this one is tasty! Pours a dark mahogany color with a small, bubbly tan head. Minimal traces of lacing noted. The nose reveals bourbon kissed chocolate and mocha, with maple covered pecans and alot of oaky vanilla. The bourbon fumes are just enough to let you know its there. The flavor follows suit, with subtle bourbon pervasive throughout the malty, chocolaty, coffee goodness. A mild, earthy hop character adds balance. The vanilla component is such that it leads me to believe new American oak was used, as the woodsy character is similar to what a bold Napa Chardonnay might employ. Medium bodied and smooth, this one drinks easy for 9% ABV and shows no alcohol burn on the way down. This reminds me of Barley Johns’ Dark Knight, though much more tame in its use of the barrel. Great brew! I’ll be seeking out more for sure.

Bomber from Soonah; nose of chcolate, coffee, oak, and light fruit and vanilla notes; clear dark brown with a medium beige head; flavor of nuts, light berries, chcolate ,and light hop bitterness in the finish.

The pour is very dark brown with a little cream colored head. The nose is very enticing, lots of vanilla, butter, and oak,and quite vinous. The flavor is good, but doesn’t live up nose. A fairly good strong ale.

Very dark. Pourse with a nice tan head and leaves a big eye of lace. Smells and tastes of vanilla and chocolate. Nice and creamy, heavy in the mouth. I wasn’t sure what to expect when I purchased this, but I’m glad I did. I’d definately drink this again.

Michigan Wintr beer festival 08. Had two different vintages. One the most recent, the other a 2005! The 2005 is a very different beer, so that goes in parenthesis where the two beers differ. Dark brown with little head. Subtle sweetness. Fruity oaky smells. (The nose is a bit sharper and fruitier on the 2005). Small bubbles and a subtle body to it. The nose predicts the flavor well. A bit of oaky sweetness. Dark malt. Vanilla sort of bourbon is less dominant than I remember previously (Some odd Jolly Pumpkin like bite inhabits the 2005, yummy!). This works. A big clean beer. The score is this higher for the 2005 version.. the other deserves a bit of a bump down, .2 points maybe.

Extreme Beer Fest 2/15/08: Hmm, this tasted like a stout to me. I also tasted coffee, raisins, and prunes. There was a background sweetness in the taste. Enjoyable.

Bottle: First off let me preface this by saying that I’ve had this brew multiple times, draft and bottle, and finally have gotten around to rating it. Even though there is no date on the bottle, I believe this is a fresh one. This is so much more balanced than I ever remember it being. Dark brown pour with a minimal, white head. Dark roasted malts, chocolate, vanilla and subtle oak aroma...not much bourbon. Medium-full bodied mouth feel, very creamy throughout. The flavor pretty much emulates the nose, again with a very subtle oak characteristic that is much more enjoyable than it has been previously. If this is where this brew’s headed from now on, I’m going to buy up as much as I can.