Dragon Stout

Brewed by Desnoes and Geddes (Diageo PLC)
Style: Foreign Stout
Kingston, Jamaica

Serve in Snifter, Tulip

284 mL bottle, Bordeaux glass. Dark brown-black hue with traces of burgundy at the shallow points. The head is short, frothy and light tan in colour. Rich anise strikes first, shortly followed by a massive vinous, tannic sensation. Prunes and currents add to the mix to create a Zinfandel type experience. Woodsy hops, bitter chocolate and dark caramel underpin the aroma. The flavor lacks some of the dynamics of the aroma but fares well none the less. Chocolate, espresso and molasses notes come in force leading into a juicy, slightly acidic, center redolent of dark fruits. The finish brings some spicy and roasty dryness but mostly continues the earlier themes and is fairly curt. An aftertaste of dark cherries can be felt across the front of the tongue. The body is slimmer than expected, though still robust, with a velvety texture and restrained carbonation. A mediocre effort compared to some of the greats in this style but still respectable, especially when compared to the other bile spewed forth by this brewery.

500ml Bottle picked up at the Grog shop, Jericho, Oxford 29-07-06. Pours black with a light brown head, sweet very malty aroma, and this follows through into the taste, very pleasant but perhaps a touch too sweet masking some of the other flavours a little, but there was a roastedness about it and maybe even a little chocolate there.

Picked up a bottle in the Bronx. Dark color woth small head. Smell of chocolate and molasses. Surprisingly taste the same with a sweet roasted after taste.

284 ml bottle via trade with JoeMcPhee! - Thanks Joe! Pours black with a light tan creamy head that stays pretty well and laces some. Aroma of light roasted malt but there really isn’t much there at all. Flavor is lots of chocolate, a touch of roasted malts, but not much more. Palate was actually a very light stouot wtihout much carbonation at all. Finishes quite dry.

UPDATED: MAR 17, 2008 Jet black sample settling into an inky stillness. What little head there is disappears quickly. Probably best swigged from the bottle. Smell is pure Dandelion and Burdock, taste roastily bitter with some aniseed and a surprising waft of alcohol. Not bad, but very thin and watery for a beer of this style and strength. Somehow it tasted so much better on Negril beach. Can’t think why. (Re-rate, 17/03/08) Scotch dribbled over waxed jacket aroma. Too much whiskeyish booze/butterscotch, and syrupy dark sugar flavours of the adjuncty, just-tipped-in-the bottle kind. Makes more sense in Jamaica.

Bottle... Pitch black ale with a small, creamy, light brown head. Smells like chocolate cola. Lots of cloyingly sweet chocolate in the flavor... maybe even a little vineous. Full-bodied and velvety with medium carbonation. Lengthy, sweet, chocolatey finish.

No foam, completely black. Aroma strong of malt, nothing special there. Strong in flavour. There’s something special about this one, something sweet. I can detect the anis and chocolate mentioned here, but this is complex. Good one, complete opposite to the coopers stout, in a positive way. These two should be drunk next to each other.

A good stout. I had it up in Canada, a great flavor of chocolate/coffee, a cool bottle, but unfortunately only an 11 oz. bottle, I would like that extra ounce.