Día De Los Muertos – Mexican Cake Stout
Hammerton

L- Superfically black, but ultra-deep ruby-red is apparent held right by a halogen. Poured with a partial 1mm tan cap, but that fully cleared within 10-15 seconds. Looks rather inert and that's despite being in by regular nucleated glass.
S- Smells of cocoa, richness, lactose/milky, coffee, hints of smoke.
T- Ok, a bit different than expected. It's not instantly sledghammer-sweet as some Milk Stouts can be. The flavour is more pungent than the feel. I certainly get cocoa, coffee, plus whisps of smoke. There is a milky edge from the lactose but it retains some subtlety.
F- I'm used to higher-ABV% Milk Stouts that pour and feel like engine oil. This one is notably lighter, and less OTT/rich in parallel. This is a Stout-like foundation + exotic notes - the OTT aspects of heavier ABV% beers of the style.
O- An example of less is more perhaps? It's very much of it's style just it isn't brewed to be some form of challenge to personal courage in drinking it. All of that said I find contemporary Milk Stouts broadly pushing my limits. So I enjoyed this one more than most, but perhaps not enough to wish to buy more, especially at such a price.
440ml £4.80 crafty-hipster can. Bought from TremblingMadness/York as part of a mixed case for home delivery. BB: Oct-2021.