DKML (2025)
(Batch of DKML)
Founders Brewing Co. in Grand Rapids, Michigan, United States 🇺🇸
Lager - Malt Liquor Rotating|
Score
7.01
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Here you have what could be the first malt liquor worthy of a glass. Typically a slighted style, we thought we would class it up with a stay in the wood and a healthy dose of dry-hopping. A huge hit of corn gives this one a smooth sweetness while its time spent aging in bourbon barrels will give you reason to share. Be warned: this one will kick you where you most expect it.
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Clarkvv (16523) reviewed DKML (2025) from Founders Brewing Co. 1 month ago
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7.5
Bottled 7/24/25, drunk 12/26/25, as pictured.
Rich malts pump out the honey, with soft bourbon-like sweetness and mellow oak. Maybe a bit of sweet corn and a hint of warming alcohol, but nothing sharp. Vanilla, oak, honey notes are all round and inviting.
A little more "stiff", shall we say, in the mouth. Same rich honey-like maltiness from the nose, with soft, gently sweet bourbon and vanilla notes, but joined by a peppery, strongly warming alcohol character and light corn. Lingering pepper, hints of hop and mild bourbon. Oaky vanilla and rich, sumptuous, honey-like malts go a long way here, but yeah, there's some dull alcohol and strong peppery warming. You could write it off as "to-style" but I think that would be a cop-out and style or not, there shouldn't be any bit of sharp alcohol in this bourbon barrel American Strong Ale.
Bitterbill (4330) reviewed DKML (2025) from Founders Brewing Co. 3 months ago
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 6.5 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 6.5
Bought locally, bottled July 24th 2025.
It pours a clear copper/gold with a finger of foam that shrinks quickly but doesn't go away completely. Lacing is excellent.
The smell is on the sweet side with big Bourbon aromas, caramel malt, light hints of grain, negligible hop presence. Big alcohol...
The taste is very boozy with the Bourbon front and center. Sweetness from it and caramel malt is pretty extreme yet isn't cloying, which I reckon is kind of a contradiction on my part. The alcohol started really big but now, it has calmed down somewhat. Just me getting used to what is going on here.
Pretty fullish body, carbonation is a bit restrained, which I like.
Interesting experiment but I probably won't drink again.
KevinReddirt (2121) reviewed DKML (2025) from Founders Brewing Co. 3 months ago
Appearance - 7 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7.5 | Texture - 7 | Overall - 8
I was happy to learn Founders was re-releasing DKML. The 2017 version was and is the best malt liquor I have tasted. And I do have some experience with the style, a blessing or a liability I am not sure. I found a four pack at a mom-and-pop liquor store in Santa Fe recently and have held off drinking one until I am ready to do a rating. The same taste as the original version? I have no idea what the plan is with the brewer. Meanwhile I have a 12 oz bottle significantly cooled off and ready to go into a glass. Very much your normal beer appearance, I see a clear gold with some red to it in the body and a slender skim of white foam to decreases to a ring around the glass. Plenty of carbonation. I smell grain, bit-of-honey candy and some barrel effect. And now a drink. I believe the taste is similar if not the same as it was several years ago and this is a good thing of course. Grain, bourbon, a candy sweetness, malt, some oak and a small bitterness completing. The mouth feel is quite full, a lot of depth, well done in my opinion. This beer remains the best malt liquor of all time with number 2 way, way behind. Congrats to Founders for bringing this one back and not thinking they had to change it up. I call this a powerful, tasty, fulfilling beer. It was worth the wait.