Santa's Little Helper 2008
Mikkeller ApS

Santa's Little Helper 2008Santa's Little Helper 2008
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From:
Mikkeller ApS
 
Denmark
Style:
Belgian Dark Strong Ale
ABV:
11%
Score:
87
Avg:
3.9 | pDev: 8.97%
Reviews:
48
Ratings:
57
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Jan 02, 2019
Added:
Nov 20, 2008
Wants:
  2
Gots:
  2
Brewed at De Proef Brouwerij, Lochristi-Hijfte, Belgium.

Ingredients: Water, malt (pale, special-B and chocolate), flaked wheat, dark candy syrup, dark cassonade, hops (northern brewer, hallertauer, styrian goldings and simcoe), spices (sweet orange peel, coriander seeds, cinnamon and cocoa) and yeast.
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Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
 
Rated: 3.75 by brittanylicious from Indiana

Jan 02, 2019
 
Rated: 3.75 by heysuz from Indiana

Jan 01, 2019
 
Rated: 4.25 by afsdan from Colorado

Mar 21, 2014
Photo of WOLFGANG
Rated by WOLFGANG from South Carolina

4.25/5  rDev +9%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
4.25 Fresher
Carbonation is gone. Earthy nose is minimal. 1/12/18: Coffee, bitter chocolate and caramel. Better fresher. 3.25
Jul 11, 2013
 
Rated: 3 by BradleyR from Oklahoma

Mar 26, 2013
 
Rated: 4.25 by bismarksays from Iowa

Jan 15, 2013
 
Rated: 3.75 by t0rin0 from California

Oct 29, 2012
 
Rated: 3 by claaark13 from Indiana

Sep 11, 2012
 
Rated: 4 by sbricker from Illinois

Nov 14, 2011
Photo of Gueuzedude
Reviewed by Gueuzedude from Arizona

3.31/5  rDev -15.1%
look: 2.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
Sampled June 2011
Pours almost dead flat, with a deeply concentrated, brown body. The beer smells of Port Wine, nutty Sherry (though not overly oxidized as Sherry usually is). The beer is quite fruit laden in the nose with notes of raisins, prunes and concentrated figs playing quite a prominent role. There is perhaps a hint of alcohol towards the finish and there is also a soft mustiness to this beer that reminds me of a damp, limestone cave, or perhaps a slightly damp cellar. The oxidation and fruit character combine to form an almost umami like concentrated, oxidized-caramelized malt character here in the aroma; despite being flat the nose is actually quite complex, rich and enticing.

Flat feeling of course as it hits the tongue, and this makes the beer seem a touch lighter than it would otherwise be. There is a rich, nutty character to the finish that really lingers along with ample Sherry notes. The nuttiness in the finish gets quite toasted at times and there also seems to be a slight metallic note that I sometimes get from the skins that are found on some nuts. The middle has some viscous heft to it (this beer would feel more rich if it had some carbonation to it), this lingers for a bit on the palate in the finish, but then seems to disappear. The rich fruitiness from the aroma isn’t quite here in the flavor, though there are some slight dark fruit notes that come through.

This beer is really reminiscent of a Port or Sherry, especially due to being completely still. It doesn’t have the richness in the flavor to pull that likeness off though; the body isn’t viscous enough, nor is there enough fruit character to round out the complexity. The aroma, though, does have the proper balance and intrigue to be quite nice; too bad the rest of the beer didn’t live up to this. I wonder why this beer is flat, the synthetic cork was a pain to remove and I wonder if a synthetic cork, when compared to the real thing, is just quit inferior when it comes to retaining carbonation. If this is the case, then a big, rich beer like this should not be packaged with synthetic corks.
Aug 08, 2011
Photo of CampusCrew
Reviewed by CampusCrew from Florida

4.08/5  rDev +4.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4
appearance: deep dark brown nearly black, nice dark brown head retention

smell: coffee, loaded chocolate,

taste: tons of dark raw chocolate, balanced belgian yeast, nice belgo dark ale. I did not get any of the spices added though, subtle if any, maybe some of the citrus

mouthfeel: full bodied

drinkability: another solid offering from the master
Jul 14, 2011
Photo of aasher
Reviewed by aasher from Indiana

3.42/5  rDev -12.3%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
I had to open one of these on Christmas. It poured a think black with dark brown tints. It didn't have any head at all and looks pretty thin. The smell is only two fold, it smells like a stout with chocolate. It doesn't resemble a Belgian dark whatsoever. The taste is pretty blase for the style. Again it resembles a stout, a coffee stout with chocolate. The mouthfeel is far too light for my liking. This beer is just ok. It doesn't impress me in any form.
Dec 26, 2010
Photo of cbutova
Reviewed by cbutova from Massachusetts

3.42/5  rDev -12.3%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 2 | overall: 3
Shared by Chico1985, took a three man army to remove the synthetic cork, no pop once we finally got it.

A- Murky dark brown with no head but a strange foamy ring forming late. Some suds but no lace in sight. Chunky yeast throughout the beer.

S- Dark brown old ale sugar with a molasses feel. Cocoa is big with nutmeg and roast notes. Some alcohol.

T- Very nice cocoa nib flavor and roast spice (nutmeg). Dark brown sugar/molasses and roast malt. Nothing for hops. Orange peel for sure. No Belgian notes really.

MF- Pure water, flat as can be and the most watery feel possible. 11% is impressive here. Some heat but too much water feel.

DB- Very, very strange beer. The mouthfeel is very distracting but the taste is pretty good. Cocoa is the best part about this.
Dec 20, 2010
Photo of Chico1985
Reviewed by Chico1985 from Massachusetts

3.47/5  rDev -11%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Found a couple of this vintage on clearance for $5 a few months ago. Damn rubber cork was nearly impossible to extract, when we finally got it out it barely popped.

Pours about black, small fizzy beige head quickly turns to a ring. Thick floaties very obvious. Age is probably to blame but this wasn't very appealing looking.

Cocoa, caramel, and orange/coriander in the scent. Pleasant but faint.

Huge milk chocolate/cocoa that lingers for a long time. The orange peel and coriander is definitely there but faint. Much of the spice and hops listed in the ingredients have seemingly disappeared.

EXTREMELY light for 11%, this thing literally drinks like watery chocolate milk. Booze is barely there, pretty low carbonation.

The chocolate taste is great in this beer, but I gotta ask, where's the Belgian in this? A 11% BSDA that drinks like a 5% porter. Not sure if aging is complimentary to this beer.
Dec 19, 2010
Photo of Arenbeer
Reviewed by Arenbeer from Connecticut

3.91/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
750 Cork And Caged Bottle Into A Snifter

A- Pours a really dark murky brown that appears pretty much pitch black. Absolutely no head on this sucker at all, just a few bubbles on the edge that pop pretty quickly.

S- Really nice dark malts with a sweet milk chocolate not that's very inviting. Definitely a slight bit of alcohol in there but not to bad. Not to much spice left though, just straight malts and cocoa.

T- Much like the smell, really nice darker roasted malts with a good amount of sweet milk chocolate in the finish. Definitely has a nice tart Belgian sourness to it from the yeast and a slight bit of hops and spice that comes out with it. Not as much alcohol as I would predict, barely noticeable and really smooth.

M- Full bodied with pretty much no carbonation and a nice tart sour like finish that is only a little bit dry.

SkÅL!

M-
Nov 14, 2010
Photo of Sammy
Reviewed by Sammy from Canada (ON)

3.97/5  rDev +1.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Bottle at Volo's. Chocolate black with a little white head. Complex, the taste is mostly Belgian chocolate, with alcohol in the finish. Understated hops, sugar, hint or orange. A tad of cherry mid-sip, and other spice: cinammon. Above average mouthfeel. Good drinkability,
Nov 14, 2010
Photo of mulder1010
Reviewed by mulder1010 from Australia

3.77/5  rDev -3.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
A 750 ML bottle poured into a tulip. 23/10/14 best before date
Cork and Caged.

A-- Poured a very syrupy dark brown with a lot of ruby in it. In the glass it was a coke syrup color with traces of dark ruby on the bottom of the glass. Did not think there was a head until the 300 ML mark, then a light kakhi colored head erupted and became one finger, finally settling to just light brown film that left a lot of lacing. Very little visible carbonation.

S-- Very spicy and sweet. Nutmeg, Coriander, Cinnamon, Orange peel, coffee, and some sweet chocolate. Almost Christmas in a nutshell. No noticeable alcohol smell with this.

T-- Spicy, sweet and syrupy. All the above mentioned flavors in the smell are in the taste but almost ramped up. Almost reminds me of the Chouffe N'Ice with the taste. There is a slight bit of an alcohol burn with this.

M-- Has a slight Pine or candy cane hop feel at the end. It helps cut through the sweetness and leave a fresh feel that pine or peppermint would with a candy cane. A bit syrupy though. Low carbonation and medium feel.

D-- I love winter seasonal beers, so this should be up my alley. it is good because it carries the smells and feel of winter but it is a little too sweet. Even though the pine hop feel really works well with it. Get a little bit of the 11% ABV but not a whole lot. Pretty well hidden, except in a few spots. Something about this I like though and would very much buy and drink again. I would think of cellaring this longer and see if the sweetness does drop off more. Could easily become a Christmas staple for me.
May 24, 2010
Photo of armock
Reviewed by armock from New York

3.63/5  rDev -6.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
A - Poured a dark brown color with a tan head that leaves lacing behind

S - Is of chocolate and spice scents

T - Starts off with roasted malt that give off chocolate and coffee then the spices and some fruit come out

M - This beer has a medium body with light carbonation to it

D - This is a good enjoyable Christmas beer most it has a good interesting flavor thats pretty easy to drink worth trying the series.
May 21, 2010
Photo of mdfb79
Reviewed by mdfb79 from New York

3.58/5  rDev -8.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5
From 3/27 notes.

a - Pours a dark brown with an inch of white head.

s - Smells sweet, of dark fruits, some spices, cinnamon, and sweet fruits.

t - Tastes of dark fruits, sweet fruits, some spices, and yeast.

m - Smooth, medium body and low carbonation.

d - Thought this dark ale was ok. Lots of smells and flavors that mixed together pretty good. Wouldn't seek out to have again but worth checking out.
Mar 30, 2010
Photo of illidurit
Reviewed by illidurit from California

4.22/5  rDev +8.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5
Bottle shared at Woodshop 5.0. Pours very dark brown with visible sediment and a light tan small head. Very fruity aroma as well as some coffee-like stout notes (the cocoa is very evident, unlike the hops). Some stone fruit ester notes and even some berries. Flavor is peachy with caramel, cocoa, ginger, and a dry, light, bitter finish.
Feb 24, 2010
Santa's Little Helper 2008 from Mikkeller ApS
Beer rating: 87 out of 100 with 57 ratings