One of the reasons I like the craft beer community so much is because of the consistent support and solidarity. A shining example is a set of former dairy tanks, which AleSmith Brewing Company sold to Eagle Rock Brewery when they opened in Los Angeles in 2009. ERB, the affable team of Jeremy Raub, father Steve, and wife Ting Su, bought AleSmith’s equipment after the San Diego brewery upgraded to a larger facility. Co-owner Jeremy Raub equated AleSmith’s system of repurposed dairy tanks to “a scaled up home brew system.” However, those tanks earned AleSmith plenty of acclaim, and they’ve also served Eagle Rock Brewery well. As Jeremy Raub said in 2009, “They have good mojo working.” That craft beer black magic came full circle when Eagle Rock Brewery hosted AleSmith’s team to brew a collaborative milk stout (10% ABV), fittingly called Dairy Tank.

Dairy Tank contains toasty chocolate malt and milk sugar, which delivers lactose to the classically British style of dark beer. This is the craft beer equivalent of chocolate milk, complete with a velvety mouth feel and considerably more punch.