Battle of the milk stouts: Castle vs Striped Horse

If you’ve been drinking beer in South Africa for a while, you’ll likely be familiar with Striped Horse. The contract brand launched in 2014 with a lager and a pilsner, at the time both brewed at Cape Brewing Company (CBC). Packaged in unique long-neck bottles, the brand was very much in the high end/craft/super-premium department. Over the years, Striped Horse evolved as a contract brand should – a flagship bar popped up on the Muizenberg beachfront, a pale ale was added to the stable – and then removed. The brand was then acquired by Signal Hill Products (owners of Devil’s Peak) and it seemed they had a different plan for Striped Horse.

In 2020 (I think – let’s be honest, the last year and a half is all a bit of a boring blur), Striped Horse lager was released in an almost-quart bottle (600ml). It was an interesting move that certainly caught the eye of craft drinkers. Were they trying to popularise a new bottle size? Or were they, perhaps, attempting to challenge SAB? The strategy became clearer earlier this year when Striped Horse launched a new beer. It was a milk stout, packaged in both 330 and 600ml bottles.

SA has a long and slightly curious relationship with milk stout, documented by UK beer writer and historian Martyn Cornell on his excellent Zythophile blog. It’s not a beer style that retains much popularity elsewhere, and yet of all the styles to choose from, a South African craft/premium contract brand decided on milk stout. There seems little doubt it was conceptualised to try and take on Castle Milk Stout (CMS).

But enough preamble. Let’s get to the tasting.

I’d be quite amazed if any South African reading this blog had not tried Castle Milk Stout. It is, by many reckonings, the best of SAB’s beers and until about a decade ago, it was one of the best and most interesting beer available in the country. It doesn’t necessarily adhere perfectly to the style parameters. Castle Milk Stout is fermented as a lager and its ingredients list caramel alongside the usual malt, hops, water and of course, lactose, which gives the beer its dairy-based name. But it still scores highly among drinkers and among judges – and rightfully so.

When I bought the two to taste side by side, I knew I had to taste them blind. But it didn’t really make much difference – one whiff of CMS was all I needed to identify which stout was which. It was a pleasantly nostalgic aroma – a touch of caramel, a hint of chocolate and a sweet bubblegum quality that took me back ten years or so, when I first moved to South Africa. Craft beer was largely limited to lagers, or ales that you could only find at the smattering of brewpubs around the country. Castle Milk Stout was widely available and it generally had its own dedicated place in our fridge.

I have fond memories of using it to break the monotony of sampling pale lagers when we first started studying towards the BJCP. I have very fond memories of occasionally finding it on nitro pour at select pubs around town. And I have the fondest memories of sampling its richer, bolder cousin NESSY (Newlands Extra Special Stout) – allegedly the base high gravity beer before it (allegedly) gets diluted and turned into CMS.

Remember Castle Milk Stout Chocolate? Read my review of it here

castle milk stout defends its title against striped horse milk stoutThen along comes Striped Horse. And it is good. It’s really good. Thicker and fuller bodied than Castle, Striped Horse Milk Stout is perhaps not what South Africans picture on their palates when they think of milk stout, but I doubt it would fail to impress an international appreciator of the style.

Borderline black with a lingering fluffy foam crown, it’s decadent to look at and more so to sip, with lashings of chocolate and coffee dominating. It has the telltale sweetness of the style but there’s just a touch of bitterness in the back to balance things out and keep you going back for another gulp.

In comparison, CMS seemed almost cloying and as I neared the bottom of my glass, I found myself craving another sip of Striped Horse to balance out all that sweetness.

They’re both undoubtedly great beers, and both took medals at this year’s African Beer Cup. But I think it’s safe to say that in my fridge the little corner that was once reserved for Castle Milk Stout is these days likely to be reserved for something with more legs.

Have you tried Striped Horse Milk Stout? How did it compare to the classic Castle version? Let me know what  you thought in the comments section below.

20 Comments

  1. Dwayne Senior

    I did this taste test with my father-in-law (a CMS drinker from way back). After quite a bit of discussion, and two second opinions (our wives) we all agreed the striped horse was a bit too sweet. It’s possible our CMS was a bit drier & less sweet than the norm, I find CMS very inconsistent, which may come down to new stock/old stock?

    Reply
    • Lucy Corne

      Interesting now I want to taste them again!

      Reply
  2. Martyn Cornell

    Oh, wow, I so want to try this … (Thanks for the very kind mention, btw)

    Reply
    • Lucy Corne

      If I ever get back to Blighty I’ll bring you a bottle!

      Reply
  3. Dyllan de Beer

    I highly agree. I rarely go into a bottle store and walk out without a CMS quart. I did have the Striped Horse lager “quart” and it is quite affordable, like mass-produced beer. I believe their goal is to rival the quarts made by SAB. I have not tasted the Striped Horse stout though but will do a bit of a taste in the near future.

    CMS is very dear to my heart, and probably will be for a long time. If there is a product to rival it, great.

    Maybe we’ll see Striped Horse 1 litres in bottle store fridges in the near future?

    Reply
  4. Alistair Sim

    I could never stand Stout, in my 20’s and 30’s, but fell in love with the style, after drinking a Champion’s Breakfast Stout, at Triggerfish. It is still the most awesome stout I’ve ever had. It’s just a pity it’s so expensive and not often available.
    Since then, I’ve tried and loved Castle Milk Stout. Every time I go buying beer, I’d most likely take a quart of CMS home as well.
    Last week, after booze lockdown #956 was lifted, I saw the Striped Horse Milk Stout and decided right there to try it.
    It tasted a bit too gassy for me, compared to CMS. I prefer the CMS.
    Now that the main rush is over, I’ll go buy one of each and give the Stout Zebra another try.

    Reply
    • Lucy Corne

      I’ve been really interested by other people’s comments here and I too am going to grab a bottle of each and taste them again soon!

      Reply
  5. Phillip

    I like them both, but CMS wins by a small margin. The other factor that comes into play here is the availability of the Striped Horse Stout, seems they are forever out of stock, sadly.

    Reply
    • Lucy Corne

      I imagine that will be a problem for a lot of people. I too had trouble finding it I must say…

      Reply
  6. Nick Woodward

    I like both…have always thought Castle Milkstout was easily the best offering in SABs lineup…But I disagree…I found the Striped horse a bit thinner. Could have been the day, will try both again. Cheers.

    Reply
  7. Brian

    I developed a taste for the classic guineas that was sold in quarts is sa just before they stopped producing it. Striped horse has that slight bitterness I enjoyed which I was surprised to find in a milk stout. Did try substitute CMS and wouldn’t knock it but find it just too sweet for more than one glass.

    Reply
  8. Dave

    Ive drank stout since my younger days
    In england I always drank cms and
    Guiness I tried stripped horse stout
    And found it very good strong taste
    Bit thicker I could easily finish off a
    6 pack off cms But not Striped
    Horse stout Even with it being
    In a smaller bottle I’ve definitely Switched to the Striped horse after 20 years drinking cms

    Reply
  9. Peter

    Tried Striped Horse milk stout yesterday for the first time – think I prefer it to CMS; seems to have more flavour!

    Reply
  10. Deon

    I prefer the Striped Horse on the stout side of things…

    Reply
  11. Andre van Greunen

    Had a Striped Horse stout draught on tap at Whisk the other night, was fantastic, will buy some to continue the experience

    Reply
  12. Greg

    Been a Guinness stout (dry stout) drinker for many years (my “self treat” after donating blood) and tried CMS once, not impressed, too sweet. Today I tried a Striped Horse, after my regular blood donation, as Guinness is now very hard to find and I was very impressed. Striped Horse will definitely be my “go to” stout when I can’t get a Guinness.

    Reply
    • Lucy Corne

      Awesome, good on you – more people should reward themselves with a beer after giving blood!

      Reply
  13. Derrick

    I prefer caste milkstout over stripped horse stout.

    Reply
  14. Richard

    For most of my adult life I’ve been a beer drinker and would not shy away from trying something new as and when it appeared – including the chocolate milk stout when SAB Miller introduced it. I’d always enjoyed a CMS and would also often pour a “Black and Tan” as something different. Guiness is probably the premium and sets the standard for a stout but when the Striped Horse stout appeared, I knew I’d found the perfect milk stout. I’ve also become somewhat of a homebrewer, brewing my own since 2008 but it still hasn’t stopped me from treating myself to a few “pyjama’d donkies” and enjoying them with my wife…

    Reply

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