Damon - Dandelion Chocolate
Hill Farmstead Brewery

This will be the first time I've had any iteration of Damon since September of 2013. Very excited for this.
Bottle conditioning since December 27, 2024 and cellared since October, 2025
500ml wax sealed bottle poured into my Treehouse Teku glass

Appearance: Fairly dark, light carbonation creating an outer ring of dark khaki foam around the glass. Very dark, quite dark, but on the light test there are hints of dark caramel as well as the dark black color. Overall, a very nice looking beer. Definitely some legs after swirling. Even better appearance on the second pour. 1/4-1/2 inch dark khaki head that dissipated before I could even type it out.

Aroma: I usually spend quite a bit of time on the appearance before writing anything here, but the pleasant aroma is already hitting me. Very good start. Boozy, but not burning. Chocolate for sure, tootsie roll smell. Dark roasted malts. Bourbon. This may have a little more heat than I was expecting, let's give it a sip. I'm not sure what's going on here. I feel like I got an off-bottle, but that doesn't make sense. This went right from the brewery to home to the cellar so it's not a chain of custody issue where it was stored improperly.

Taste: Not what I was expecting. My brother-in-law and I drank a lot of KBS and Bourbon County Stout over the week of Christmas and maybe that swayed my expectations a bit. Maybe I'm getting the chocolate a bit in the background. It's not as pronounced as I was expecting. There's a brewer's recommendation for this to be consumed within 6 months of release. I'm not sure when this was released but I'm consuming it roughly three months after purchase. That could have something to do with it, but I'm not convinced. There's an odd aftertaste as well that I'm not so sure about. The bourbon is coming through much more strongly than the chocolate...or even the malts too. The taste is good, but the aftertaste is subpar and maybe even a tiny bit off. Maybe not off, but I don't care for it and actually dislike the aftertaste a bit.

Mouthfeel: Pretty good, no wow factor. Not thin, not thick, not just right either. There's a seeming acidity on the mouthfeel. Maybe something from the chocolate? I'm really unsure.

Overall: I hate to say this, but disappointing. I came into this with very high expectations but it just fell short for me. This is the third iteration of Damon that I've had. Double Damon [bourbon and port] was exceptional [not perfect but worth the drive] and original Damon which when I had it was the best stout I had up to that point and was pretty much the benchmark for me. This is...sort of all over the place. The look is pretty close to perfect, the aroma is prominent but could use more balance. The taste is pretty good, not wonderful and has an underwhelming aftertaste. Mouthfeel is also pretty good, but again not there for me. Going for the second pour and hoping that my experience improves. Will continue the review with the second pour. More of the same. No improvements, maybe even worse. Such a let down. I'm glad that I still have a few HF favorites from that trip that I still have to review, as well as two new beers. I'm glad I didn't save this one for last.

 

 

 

 

B1 held up really well!

500ml capped bottle into a Side Project snifter.

Pours pitch black. Wispy dark mocha head. Spotty lace with legs for days. Nose is brownie, chocolate, and cocoa powder. Hint of pistachio and mint. Light booziness. Beer opens semi-sweet fudge, cocoa powder, and milk chocolate. Touch of liquorice and sweet soy sauce in the middle. Slight hints of mint, chewy fudge, and mellow barrel notes in the finish. Nicely balanced. Body is medium to full with low carbonation. Slick and velvety on the palate and goes down soft and slightly boozy. In a world of ultra rich stouts, this profile is actually quite nice.

Subtle, balanced, well constructed, and complex. Everything I expect from Hill Farmstead.

 

Glossy obsidian black with a thin tan head that disperses to a fine chain around the edge.

Very characteristic of Hill Farmstead's selection of barrel aged dark ales, this exhibits a very woody barrel expression, splintery even, though the nibs make for a really chocolatey nose.

The slick body allows for a slightly boozy palate that comes to a semi-dry finish that emulates cacao liqueur. It improves as it warms.

 

Bottle shared by Brennan. You continue to amaze and inspire me with your generosity. Cheers!

 

Thanks to whomever sent me this 375ML bottle this winter. My whale-hunting days are pretty much behind me, so jazzed to try this one.

No hiss when the cap goes spinning off into space, nor are there bubbles in the still night. The nose is chocolate & roast. No barrel. Uh.

Damon: Dandelion Chocolate defies expectations. The heavy, uncarbonated mouthfeel is a kick in the gonads, & not in a good way. Terribly distracting. The actual flavor leans heavily on chocolate & heavy malts, & appears to have been aged in neutral steel barrels. Touch of booze on the finish. Like 21 Pilots, a small sample would have been sufficient to render judgment.

The Los Angeles Angels of beer, this slinks in under the mediocre line. A completely unexpected outcome from a storied, great brewery & a legendary beer. Meh.

 

This one pours a very dark black color, with a small head, and a little bit of lacing.

This smells like sweet milk chocolate, oily malt, vanilla, and heavy roast.

This honestly was not as good as I figured it would be. The chocolate is sweet and almost oily, and buries the barrel character that is so intrinsic to Damon. There's a bit roasty and ashy bitterness on the back end, too. If there was more barrel here, or less chocolate, this would be better.

This is medium bodied, and very creamy and oily. It's not super drinkable overall.

This was surprisingly messy, considering this brewery. Regular Damon and the various iterations of coffee Damon are all much, much better.

 

 

Dark brown / black oily appearance with a sparse tan head that recedes quickly to a collar, no lacing. Milk chocolate, faint vanilla and dark roast, faint bourbon barrel. Thick oily body, light carbonation. Delicious but not as expected.