Winter is coming. To us, that means porter season is officially here. We love the style, especially during the winter months, for its roasted barley, chocolate, and sweet malt flavors. It’s a complicated style that has all of the roasted, bitter chocolate qualities of stout with an extra kick of indulgent sweetness. But while we love classic porters, it’s imperial porters that really put us over the top.
For those unaware, just like with other beer styles that have the moniker, “imperial” porters are bolder in roasted barley, chocolate, coffee, and malt flavors than their traditional counterparts. As the title would dictate, imperial porters are also higher in ABV. This is why the style is great for the colder months. Not only is it higher in flavor, but higher in warming alcohol content.
Now that we learned a little bit about imperial porters, it’s a great time to find some to stock up on. Lucky for you, we did all the work. We found eight of the best robust American imperial porters and we ranked them based on aroma and flavors. Keep scrolling to see if your favorite beer made the list.
8) Flying Dog Gonzo
ABV: 10%
Average Price: $15 for a six-pack
The Beer:
This 10% ABV imperial porter was brewed to pay homage to the late “gonzo” journalist Hunter S. Thompson. It’s known for its balanced flavor profile featuring Caramel, Black, and Chocolate malts as well as Northern Brewer and Cascade hops. It’s fermented with two different yeast strains: American ale and English ale.
Tasting Notes:
On the nose, you’ll find heavy aromas of dark chocolate, roasted malts, and floral hops. It’s very inviting. The palate is a mix of roasted malts, bitter chocolate, vanilla beans, coffee, and a nice kick of bitter hops at the finish. The last sips are dry and a nice mix of bitterness and vanilla sweetness.
Bottom Line:
This is a unique beer for a very unique character. It’s well-balanced with roasted malts up front and a kick of hops at the finish.
7) Evil Twin Lil’ B
ABV: 11.5%
Average Price: $20 for a four-pack of 16-ounce cans
The Beer:
Lil’ B is a collaboration with the well-known brewery Westbrook. There’s not much information about the ingredients in this beer. But it’s known for its sweet, mellow, almost creamy flavor profile without much bitterness. It’s as mysterious as it is delicious.
Tasting Notes:
The nose of this beer is very chocolate-centric. There are also some roasted malts, but chocolate takes center stage. The palate is loaded with baked bread, dried fruits, molasses, licorice, and vanilla. The finish is smooth, sweet, and lightly bitter.
Bottom Line:
This is a classic American porter. It bridges the gap between sweetness and bitterness perfectly. It’s not overflowing with flavors and aromas, but it doesn’t have to.
6) Beachwood Mocha Machine
ABV: 9.2%
Average Price: $14 for a six-pack
The Beer:
With a name like Mocha Machine, you should have a pretty good idea of what you’re getting yourself into when you crack open one of these bad boys. Spoiler alert: there’s a lot of chocolate. This complex porter is brewed with a mix of German and British malts before being infused with locally sourced roasted coffee and then aged on Ecuadorean cacao nibs.
Tasting Notes:
A lot is going on with this beer’s nose. There’s a ton of cocoa powder, dried fruit, caramel, and freshly brewed coffee. This continues onto the palate where you are treated to flavors like dark chocolate, roasted malts, dried fruits, espresso beans, and butterscotch. The finish is dry and gently bitter.
Bottom Line:
This beer is called “Mocha Machine” but it’s absolutely a porter for coffee fans. There’s a lot of chocolate flavor, but more coffee.
5) Pizza Port Bacon & Eggs
ABV: 8%
Average Price: $19 for a four-pack of 16-ounce cans
The Beer:
As if we needed an excuse to drink a porter during breakfast hours. Regardless, the aptly named Pizza Port Bacon and Eggs gives us a reason to. This flavorful, robust porter gets its morning flavor from the addition of cold-pressed coffee from Bird Rock Roasters in nearby La Jolla, California.
Tasting Notes:
On the nose, you’ll find scents of dark chocolate, roasted barley, vanilla, and a wallop of fresh coffee. There’s more of the same on the palate as coffee beans take up much of the flavor. It’s not the only flavor as roasted malts, vanilla, dried fruits, and toffee also make an appearance. The finish is creamy, and sweet, and ends with bitter coffee beans.
Bottom Line:
Coffee seems to be the name of the game when it comes to flavored porters. This one is like drinking a cold brew in beer form in the best way possible.
4) Kane Sunday Brunch
ABV: 9.2%
Average Price: Limited Availability
The Beer:
While some of the other breakfast-themed porters stop at coffee, Kane takes it one step further and adds maple syrup into the mix. On top of that, this brunch-like porter also has coffee, cinnamon, and lactose. It’s brewed with a mix of Pilsner and English Crystal malts.
Tasting Notes:
The nose is a mix of maple candy, freshly brewed coffee, vanilla beans, and dark chocolate. The palate is a symphony of toasted vanilla beans, caramel, maple syrup, cinnamon sugar, chocolate, and bold, robust coffee. The finish is lightly smoky, and creamy, and has just the right amount of bitterness.
Bottom Line:
This beer was crafted to taste like a stack of maple syrup slathered pancaked or French toast and a cup of freshly brewed coffee. It accomplishes this.
3) Cellarmaker Best Fiends
ABV: 8.2%
Average Price: Limited Availability
The Beer:
This 8.2% ABV imperial porter comes from San Francisco’s Cellarmaker. It’s released in limited quantities a few times per year. If you miss it, you’re pretty much out of luck. It’s known for its bold, roasted malt aroma and flavor and balance. While it contains no adjuncts or added flavors, it’s beloved for its notable flavors of chocolate, dried fruits, vanilla, and graham crackers.
Tasting Notes:
A complex nose of roasted malts, dried cherries, fresh mint, toffee, and coffee beans greet you before your first sip. The palate has a ton of chocolate, graham crackers, vanilla, and raisins. But surprisingly, the finish is loaded with bitter, hoppy pine.
Bottom Line:
This beer is like a chocolate and roasted malt-flavored IPA. It’s a very unique beer, to say the least and we’re here for it.
2) Ballast Point Victory at Sea
ABV: 10%
Average Price: $18 for a six-pack
The Beer:
There are very few imperial porters as well-known as Ballast Point Victory at Sea. This shipwreck, skeleton-adorned bottle (or can) contains a 10% ABV beer that begins as a simple imperial porter. Vanilla and locally sourced coffee beans turn the aroma and flavor up to eleven.
Tasting Notes:
A lot is going on with this beer’s nose. There are notable aromas of toasted vanilla beans, chocolate fudge, licorice, caramel candy, raisins, and a ton of freshly brewed coffee notes. The palate continues this trend with a nice kick of coffee surrounded by vanilla cookies, oak wood, licorice, roasted malts, candied almonds, and a pleasantly bitter, espresso finish.
Bottom Line:
There’s a reason this is one of the most popular imperial porters. The roasted malts, chocolate, coffee, and vanilla all work together in perfect harmony. The Boyz II Men of beers.
1) Jack’s Abby Framinghammer
ABV: 10%
Average Price: $13 for a four-pack of 16-ounce cans
The Beer:
Massachusetts’ Jack’s Abby might be most well-known for its lagers, but it didn’t stop the brewery from releasing one of the best imperial porters on the market. Framinghammer is a Baltic porter known for its mix of roasted malts and bitter hops. It gets added flavor due to long conditioning before canning.
Tasting Notes:
Breathing in the nose, you’ll find notes of vanilla beans, oaky wood, freshly brewed coffee, roasted barley, dried fruits, and bitter chocolate. Sipping it reveals chocolate fudge, coffee beans, more roasted barley, toasted vanilla beans, sweet treacle, dried fruits, and a crisp, dry, semisweet finish that leaves you craving more.
Bottom Line:
Jack’s Abby Framinghammer is a complex, flavorful imperial porter. It’s the kind of beer that requires multiple samplings to find every aroma and flavor. We’ll gladly drink it all winter to find them all.