This style of beer dates back to the turn of the 20th Century when a brewery from Kent, my county of birth, named Mackesons, first obtained a patent for a new way of sweetening beer. Through the addition of lactose, a sugar derived from milk, they made a beer that was later marketed with the slogan “looks good, tastes good and, by golly, it does you good.” It was recommended as a healthy drink for mothers. Laws have since prevented brewers from making health claims about this beer and the names “cream stout” or even sweet stout” have come to be used for the style. Milk Stouts have been brewed in Africa, the Caribbean, America and Europe.
The name comes from the Monty Python movie Monty Python and the Holy Grail and the stage show Spamalot