DuClaw "For Pete's Sake" Imperial Chocolate Peanut Butter Porter

Here's the thing about these chocolate peanut butter porters and stouts: they're all pretty much the same, aren't they? I'm not trying to paint with too broad of a brush, but it seems to me that the chocolate and peanut butter tend to overwhelm all of the natural aspects of the beer. That said, the base beer often makes it stand out. I may be just talking nonsense.

The very deep brown beverage needed quite a bit of coaxing to get any head at all - it's very much like a bourbon barrel beer in that respect. The minimal head that it gets is a medium tan, and it has enough staying power to make things interesting, but we aren't even looking for lacing from this. The aroma is lovely; chocolate, smoke, peanuts, and charred oats.

First sip is a lot more than the log-as-heck name would lead you to believe. The chocolate and peanut butter have hit a wall of charred oats, scored wood, and sweet vanilla extract. It's a full sip, and it might be too much for the sip to contain. Yes, my transitions are getting a little tired, aren't they? I'm going to swig.

Tip-in is peanuts, mild carbonation tingle that builds, charred oats and chocolate. The middle expands into a carbonation free-for-all with the peanuts, smoke, chocolate, a bit of alcohol, and those charred oats. The finish is where the bitterness of the chocolate comes forward, joins a bit of coffee, and trails off with smoke.

Bottom Line: Complicated name, but a simple result: good.

3.5/5