All About Beer Magazine

Beer Talk

Santa’s Little Helper Imperial Stout

Port Brewing Co.
San Marcos, CA

Available: CA, AZ, CO, WA, IL, PA, MA

First created at the Pizza Port in Solana Beach in 1997, and brewed annually ever since.

ABV: 10.5
ABW: 8.4
Color: n/a
Bitterness: n/a
Original gravity: 1092

• Charles Finkel

  Delicious, rich strong ale, perhaps a bit too fruity to qualify as a stout. That said, it is delicious. Handsome cappuccino-colored head and spicy nose satisfy the senses. Black as Xmas night, the dark roasted malt is balanced with well-selected hops. A superb digestive and restorative: I recommend it after the big meal, rather than with it.

• K. Florian Klemp

  What an impressive pour, the color is deeper than black, the burnt brown head moussy and tenacious. The slightest evocation of hops gives way to a malted milk, licorice, and espresso nose. Another swirl of the snifter unleashes vanilla and bittersweet chocolate. The mouthfeel is velvety smooth, the flavor is chicory-infused full roast coffee, spiky anise, and dark cocoa. The charred black currants in my dessert of maple-oatmeal cookies favors this impy nicely. The finish is relatively gentle for a beer of this fortitude. This is one well-built brew.