Sweetback's Milk Stout
Rainhard Brewing Co.

5.2% ABV. 25 IBU. At my lady Pamela's house; canned and chilled, from Small Batch Dispatch's November 2024 curation. My second beer from the Toronto, ON brewery.

Jan 30 2025

 

Look: Pours dark brown to black with a 1 1/2 finger tawny head with tiny bubbles. After 5 minutes the head has settled down into a tiny cover across the top.

Smell: Slightly muted, with cocoa and milk chocolate power (like Nestles Quik)

Taste: Dark chocolate backbone, with hints of sweetness. Roasted coffe, and a hint of leather in the middle. I'd have prefered a touch more of sweet chocolate.

Feel: Big bodied and creamy. Mouthfeel is probably this beers best attribute.

This beer earns a solid B. Not the best Ontario milk stout available, but worth a try.

473 mL can from the LCBO; dated Jan 13 2021 and served barely chilled.

Pours an inky brownish-black colour, producing one finger of foamy, light tan-coloured head that melts away within two or three minutes' time. A messy band of arcing lace has been left in its wake, with a thin collar and filmy cap also remaining in place; looks good to me. It smells primarily of roasted malts - there's dark chocolate and cocoa, with hints of coffee grounds, milk and brown sugar sweetness, as well as a touch of earthiness.

It's palatable enough, but a little sweeter/less balanced than I'd prefer. It starts off with caramelized sugars, lactose and milk chocolate, followed by hints of cocoa and coffee that develop later on in the sip - these help to counter the saccharine forefront somewhat, but not entirely. Suggestions of earthy hops join the cocoa and coffee elements towards the finish, continuing into a relatively sweet aftertaste with lingering suggestions of roasted/burnt grain. Light in body, with moderate carbonation levels that impart a gentle bite to this stout's smooth, somewhat fluffy texture. One serving was easy enough to finish, but I wasn't clamouring for another.

Final Grade: 3.79, a worthy B+. Rainhard Sweet Back's is a pretty good sweet stout, but it doesn't go above or beyond my expectations for the style in any way whatsoever. It's competently brewed with no direct flaws, though it's also very straightforward - kind of forgettable, to be honest, and kind of lopsided toward the sugary-sweet side of the spectrum - though neither of those are really dealbreakers for a milk stout, hence the reasonably good grade. I don't see myself returning to this one anytime soon, but if you enjoy milk stouts then I'd encourage you to try this at least once.

473ml can served cold into a chalice. LCBO purchase for $3.55 CDN. Nice to mix things up with a stout on a hot summer's day. This may have been brought out of retirement. Canned May 29, 2020.

Appearance - Very dark brown, nearly black in color. Small finger of light tan head on top that looks frothy.Moderate head retention and a small ring of lace.

Smell - Dark chocolate, cocoa powder, coffee and not much else. These aromas are reasonably intense and well blended.

Taste - Rather roasty of slightly burnt malt, some trace amounts of coffee and minimal chocolate. Could use a touch more chocolate (or other moderately intense flavor)

Mouthfeel - Smooth and pretty slick, carbonation is medium-low but a touch prickly.

Overall - Decent milk stout, but lacking some of the sweetness I'd come to expect with the style. Needs a bit more chocolate.

Smooth and bland .

 

 

Got this one from hopsolutely this past summer

From a 500ml bottle into a pint glass
IBU: 25

APPEARANCE: Pours out clear black and yields a 1+ finger, looser looking, fizzy and crackly light tan head with decent retention. Clear black body with no real carbonation evident. Head fades to a full foamy cap. A half splotchy wisp remains until the end leaving some lacing down the glass.

SMELL: Milder nose of roasted malt, slightly burnt notes, light milk sugar with some sweet cream. Nice, though could be more forthcoming.

TASTE: Roasted barley and lactose sugar up front. Light cream notes as well, moving into a medium but lingering finish of roasted barley, sweet cream, milk sugars and some light coffee bitterness. Pleasant for sure.

PALATE: Medium body and medium levels of carbonation. Slightly creamy on the palate, goes down fine and finishes a bit astringent.

OVERALL: This was pretty good. Nothing crazy or world altering, but certainly a well-made, sessionable milk stout. Worth checking out if you get the chance. Cheers guys!

Bottle: Poured a black color stout with a nice brown foamy head with good retention and some lacing. Aroma of light coffee notes with some roasted malt and black chocolate notes is nice. Taste is a good mxi of floral coffee notes with dry roasted malt notes and some light black chocolate notes. Body is about average with some creamy notes and good carbonation. Drinkable with just enough complexity for the style.

 

Lactose in powder milk form, however this bitterness overtaken by sweetness. A sippable drinkable beer. On tap at the source.

A really nice milk stout. A nice roast profile with chocolate notes and the expected sweetness from the lactose without being too sweet. A great sessionable beer.