Beer Review: Ballast Point, Victory at Sea Imperial Porter

 Had this the other day (at about 11:30am, it’s got coffee in it…), and was reminded of how delicious it is. Part of me wishes that Ballast Point would serve this year round, but at the same time it almost tastes better when I’m forced to wait for it. I wasn’t planning on ordering it as it doesn’t normally fit for San Diego weather in May, but it happened to be a chilly, balmy afternoon which was perfect for a Victory at Sea.

You get a solid amount of chocolate and coffee flavors (purchased locally from Caffe Calabria), and then just a hint of that vanilla to sweeten it up at the end. It’s hard to tell that this beer has a 10% ABV, which is probably why they only pour you a half pint at the brewery, but this is a beer to be sipped and enjoyed on a nice rainy day (which we apparently don’t have in San Diego anymore). I’d love to try this on nitro one day… 4.25 pints out of 5.