Sea Monster Imperial Stout
Ballast Point Brewing Company

Sea Monster Imperial StoutSea Monster Imperial Stout
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From:
Ballast Point Brewing Company
 
California, United States
Style:
American Imperial Stout
ABV:
10%
Score:
90
Avg:
4.02 | pDev: 9.95%
Reviews:
525
Ratings:
1,889
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Dec 24, 2023
Added:
Nov 28, 2008
Wants:
  177
Gots:
  434
Our Sea Monster Imperial Stout explores the darkest reaches of the traditional oatmeal stout. This bold, rich brew first lures you in with roasted coffee notes, then grabs hold with hints of bittersweet chocolate and currant. Backed with a perfect hop balance, you’ll soon discover this is one monster of mythic proportions.
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Ratings by bobhits:
Photo of bobhits
Reviewed by bobhits from Kentucky

2.76/5  rDev -31.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.75 | overall: 2.75
The pour is a touch thin for an imperial russian but still big black dark beer with a tan cap of foam. Nice lacing and given the short time the head is retained I'm a bit surprised.

Light and subtle nose that brings out the dark malts with some coco nibs. Hard to really discuss with much detail as it is faint.

The flavor starts out very dark and over roasted fading into dark chocolate and then we get to a tart sharp alcohol and something else bite and then the after taste is lingering coffee. I'm seeing others getting fruits and perhaps that's what I'm getting in the middle of this beer, but the end result is this beer comes off hot and hard to drink...and I like my scotch neat and smokey as hell.

This is a big stout but it doesn't really take on any of the desirable elements some can bring on. It's carbonated and has body but the carbonation isn't right for the style and the body somewhat suffers from this. Add in my complains above and I find it a bit difficult to enjoy drinking it.

The more I drink the less impressed with this one I am. It's not awful but this is a pretty competitive style and when there are beers like Narwal that per oz are about half this one in price I think Ballast Point might have to consider upping their game or dropping their price.
Jun 16, 2013
More User Ratings:
Photo of ryan1788a5
Reviewed by ryan1788a5 from Massachusetts

4.07/5  rDev +1.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
22oz bottle poured into a snifter. Best before date is 6/3/13, so I believe it to be about 11.5 years old at the time of consumption.

A: Jet black in color. Beige head stands at about an inch after a fairly aggressive pour. It dissipates after a bit. Thin and wispy lacing is left on the glass.

S: It does smell its age, with a lot of mustiness and old newspaper scent up front. Fat, round aroma of plum and raisin dark fruit. Starchy oats are very apparent, too. Tootsie rolls, fudge, and cocoa. Very slight whiff of spicy alcohol.

T: The mustiness up front gives way very quickly to a deep woody char and a nice black cocoa powder flavor. Chocolate truffles and German chocolate cake. Bit of jerky and smoke. Dose of starchy oats. Blackberry ganache and overripe plums. More heavily roasted malts, french roast coffee beans and soot. Amazingly, there is still a background hint of piney hops. The finish is all soot, smoke, and oat starch with background musty oxidation.

M: Full and round in texture with that nice oaty silkiness. It is weighty, but velvety and lithe rather than sludgey. There is still a perfect amount of carbonation left. It prickles and lifts, and adds just a touch of its own carbonic bite.

O: This one really surprised me. It's a back of the cabinet beer that was forgotten for many years. I assumed it would be far past its prime and less than desirable to drink, and was prepared to drain pour it after tasting what I assumed would be the more negative aspects of age. To be clear, it does seem a bit past its prime, but nowhere near as much as I expected. This is an 11.5 year old beer that probably only peaked 1-3 years ago, in my general estimation. The nose suffers, but really nothing else. In particular, I am genuinely surprised as how much hop flavor and carbonation is intact. Beyond my surpassed expectations relative to age, this is just a great beer. It feels like something from a bygone era. Right up there with Hoppin' Frog BORIS. It's a very well put together Imperial oatmeal stout. All the great starch and silky oat texture complexity, and a relatively easy drink for its size. All the malt nuance a stout lover could ever hope for is packed into it. I really wish the industry would pivot back to recipes like this. No need to cram ten different dessert items into a beer, just write a great and straightforward recipe and execute it well.
Dec 24, 2023
Photo of stevoj
Reviewed by stevoj from Idaho

3.5/5  rDev -12.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Bomber from Albertsons. Oily black pour with a beige fluffy head, fades to skin. Aroma is straight​ up roasty, taste brings a little sweetness, chocolate, gentle lingering bitterness. Pretty mild for a 10% beer..
Nov 12, 2023
 
Rated: 4.1 by LesDewitt4beer from Minnesota

Oct 19, 2021
Photo of Sigmund
Reviewed by Sigmund from Norway

4.25/5  rDev +5.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
650 ml bottle, Cardinal Pub & Bar, Stavanger. ABV is10.0%. Black colour, large tan head. Pleasant aroma of roast malts, oats, chocolate and mild coffee, hints of fruity hops. Roasty flavour, notes of roasted barley, strong coffee, dark bitter chocolate, liquorice, hints of fruity hops, moderate bittering hops.
Dec 14, 2020
 
Rated: 4.25 by jmbeerdude91 from Arizona

Feb 02, 2020
 
Rated: 4.1 by Eyedoc27 from Illinois

Oct 02, 2019
Photo of GuyFawkes
Reviewed by GuyFawkes from Illinois

3.75/5  rDev -6.7%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
From old, undated notes. Poured from the bottle.

Black liquid.

Tan head; strong lace.

Black licorice & pepper nose; hint of booze.

Thick mouthfeel.

Black licorice & pepper flavor.

Creamy but not to my taste.
Sep 15, 2019
 
Rated: 3.64 by tjg584 from Tennessee

Aug 18, 2019
 
Rated: 4.3 by Unclevince from West Virginia

May 20, 2019
 
Rated: 3.86 by LXIXME from New Mexico

May 15, 2019
Photo of Oh_Dark_Star
Rated by Oh_Dark_Star from Washington

1.61/5  rDev -60%
look: 3.75 | smell: 2 | taste: 1.25 | feel: 1.5 | overall: 1.25
Drain pour. I think I even blocked out why it was so bad.
Apr 30, 2019
 
Rated: 3.76 by jimpyle48 from Virginia

Mar 05, 2019
Photo of iguanodon
Reviewed by iguanodon from Utah

4.35/5  rDev +8.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
Bomber. Pours opaque dark brown with a thin brown head. Aroma is molasses, roasted malt, chocolate. Taste is sweet caramel, malt, chocolate, coffee, a hint of booze. Excellent imperial stout.
Jan 21, 2019
 
Rated: 4 by cuy50 from Virginia

Dec 22, 2018
 
Rated: 5 by tp1962 from Illinois

Dec 13, 2018
Photo of csmrx7
Reviewed by csmrx7 from Canada (AB)

3.79/5  rDev -5.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 3.75
This is a good Imperial Stout. Heavy on the bitterness and a real taste of.dark chocolate. Not.of the faint of heart and pretty one dimensional in flavor.compared to a lot of what is out there these days.
Oct 16, 2018
 
Rated: 3.25 by krome from Illinois

Aug 10, 2018
 
Rated: 3 by jgunther71 from Illinois

Aug 03, 2018
 
Rated: 4.06 by rsquared59 from Indiana

Jun 25, 2018
Sea Monster Imperial Stout from Ballast Point Brewing Company
Beer rating: 90 out of 100 with 1889 ratings