Review: Ballast Point Victory at Sea Imperial Porter

Ballast Point Victory at Sea Imperial Porter 
10.0% ABV
Ballast Point Brewing Company, San Diego, CA
22 oz bottle
Served in Dogfish Head Signature Glass
Date on bottle: Best by 10/25/13
Reviewed on 12/29/12 

This porter pours a dark bubbly brown with a toasty beige head that retains good thickness.  Good lacing.

Smell consists of coffee, dark chocolate, vanilla, malt, hops, licorice, spices.

Taste has coffee, vanilla, chocolate, brown sugar, malt, hops, raisins, licorice, toasted bread.

Mouthfeel is smooth with some grainy bite at the back of the mouth.  Decent bitterness with a subtle touch of dryness.

Overall, this is a rich tasting porter with some good bitterness and a nice hit at the back of the mouth.  Hoppy and malty with rich coffee, chocolate, and vanilla tastes.  A nice smoothness comes through from start to finish, even as it has a bitter bite.  More flavors are revealed in tasting as the temperature rises.

Score: 95

A Slight Change to My Current Top Ten

I've had a slight change in the My Current Top Ten list, which hangs out in the right column of this page.  Ballast Point Sculpin IPA and Green Flash Palate Wrecker have switched places, mostly owing to Sculpin now being available in my area and Palate Wrecker being a seasonal that, well, hasn't wrecked my palate in quite a few months now because there's none to have.

Ballast Point: Now Available in Maryland

Ballast Point is now available in Maryland, with visual confirmation of Sculpin IPA (number 6 on My Current Top Ten list, reviewed here), purchased from Corridor Fine Wine in Laurel:

Also spotted on Corridor's shelves were Big Eye IPA, Pale Ale, and Indra Kunindra.  The Frisco Grille in Columbia, Maryland, has Wahoo Wheat on tap as I'm writing this, with Sextant Oatmeal Stout coming soon. Exciting!

Review: Ballast Point Sculpin IPA

Ballast Point Sculpin IPA
ABV: 7.0%
Ballast Point Brewing Company, San Diego, CA
22 oz bottle
Served in Dogfish Head Signature Glass
Reviewed on 8/24/12 

This IPA pours a light amber color with a snow white head.  Very good lacing with decent carbonation.

On the nose, aromas of hops, pine, lemon, citrus, fruitiness, slight malt.

On taste, strong dry bitter hops right at the front, with a fruity character following.  Definite lemon and apricot notes.  Some malt and pine notes as well.

Mouthfeel is smooth, well balanced with a bold profile of flavors yet still retaining a good even light crispness.

Overall, this is a great tasting, distinctive IPA.  Strong flavors present with good hoppy bitterness and dryness.  Quite fresh and crisp.  A classic that, according to some reports I've seen online, may soon be available in Maryland. 

Score: 97