Sandy Paws
Heater Allen Brewing in McMinnville, Oregon, United States 🇺🇸
Porter - Baltic Winter|
Score
7.39
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When Rick started the idea for the brewery he was living at the beach. When trying to come up with a name for the Holiday beer he pictured his dog coming back from the beach with her paws covered in sand. Thus the name Sandy Paws was born. Sandy Paws is typically a Baltic Porter, rich and malty with slightly spicy notes. This is one of our beers that we will change the recipe from year to year, it is also one of our beers that can be aged and is usually better after a year. In 2015 we switched the yeast we were using on the Sandy Paws; rather than using our house lager yeast, we decided to try fermenting it with the German Ale yeast we use for our Kolsch-style and Sticke Alt, which is probably more historically accurate for a Baltic Porter anyway. Also the TTB decided to not allow us to use the term "Baltic Porter" on our label, so although the 2015 is done in the style of Baltic Porter the label says "Dark Lagered Ale." (2015 Sandy Paws: 1.024 FG, 7.25% ABV, 36 IBU, 28.6 SRM)
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7.3/10
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Appearance 7
Aroma 7.5
Flavor 7.5
Texture 7
Overall 7
Dark brown. Not much head. Lots of chocolate, quite dry. Light toffee, this is actually a very dry take on the style, maybe leaving some complexity on the table to get there.
Tried
from Can
on 17 Jan 2026
at 08:03
7.8/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 7
Overall 7.5
Clear, bright, very dark brown color with a small brown colored head; aroma of brown sugar, hint of jam, chocolate; balanced flavor with a long, light bitter sweet finish; well done
Tried
from Can
from
New Seasons Market - Fisher’s Landing
on 17 Jan 2026
at 02:08
7.9/10
—
Appearance 7
Aroma 7.5
Flavor 8.5
Texture 7
Overall 8.5
Can from Tavour. Pours very dark brown with a moderate tan head. Aroma of dark toffee. Med body. Flavor is dark toffee, light anise, note of chocolate. Not bitter. Not dry, but not sweet. Nice flavor.
Tried
from Can
from Tavour
on 22 Dec 2025
at 01:53
8/10
Nice clean porter, tasty notes of chocolate and roast. Wish I had gotten a golden retriever can 😞but Penny is cool too 👍
Tried
from Can
on 16 Dec 2024
at 19:16
7.4/10
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Appearance 10
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 7.5
16oz @ Ryan's (thx for the beer, man!). Appearance: black with a beige head. Aroma: roasted malts, coffee, dry, some roasted seeds. Taste: along the same lines, good body, a bit crispy, roasted malts and seeds. Finishes with hoppy bitterness. Overall: pretty good.
Earlier Rating: 5/21/2022 Total Score: 3.6
16oz on Alex's porch. Appearance: brown with a tan head. Aroma: lots of caramel, some dark fruits and roasted malt. Taste: along the same lines, with quite high bitterness. Overall: ok.
Earlier Rating: 5/21/2022 Total Score: 3.6
16oz on Alex's porch. Appearance: brown with a tan head. Aroma: lots of caramel, some dark fruits and roasted malt. Taste: along the same lines, with quite high bitterness. Overall: ok.
Tried
on 06 Mar 2024
at 07:36
7.5/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 8
Texture 6
Overall 8
Poured from 473mL can (thanks mcberko; canned 11/13/23; 7.8% abv). Very dark brown with beige head. Nice mild roast malt, hint of chocolate, simple, but enjoyable.
Tried
from Can
on 06 Mar 2024
at 07:20
7.8/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 6
Overall 8
Aromas are roast, dark malt, cocoa with some molasses and a hint of coffee. Flavors are similar to nose, add in some tart and bittersweet. Very well balanced overall. Maybe a touch thin in body. Good drinking beer.
Tried
from Can
from Tavour
on 05 Mar 2024
at 22:26
7.8/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 8
16 ounce can from Tavour. Dark brown color. Rocky tan head. Sweet roasted malt aroma hints at brown sugar. Flavor mirrors nose. Dark roasted malt , brown sugar, dark dried fruit, dark chocolate and resiny pine hops. Rich and decadent. Smooth and flavorful.
Tried
from Can
on 06 Feb 2024
at 04:34
8/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 8
16oz can from Tavour. Dark brown pour, rough pour yields a two finger fluffy beige head, which settles out to a filmy tan covering, ring around the glass, lacing. Beautiful so far Aroma is chocolate, licorice, roasty malts, woody, sweet. Taste is woody, roasty, chocolate, licorice subsides a bit, sweet but not overly so. Creamy feel, nice heft. So damn good...
Tried
from Can
on 04 Jan 2024
at 06:18
7.2/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 9
From Good Times Oakland, canned November 13th 2023.
It pours black but not pitch black, small off white head of foam that disappears quickly, no lacing.
The smell is roasted malt, dark chocolate, hint of coffee, chocolate of the sweeter kind.
The taste is roasted malt, has some nutty notes, toffee, dark chocolate, pretty well balanced between bitter and sweet.
Mouthfeel is okay; not much carbonation here but not flat.
Super delicious Baltic Porter.
It pours black but not pitch black, small off white head of foam that disappears quickly, no lacing.
The smell is roasted malt, dark chocolate, hint of coffee, chocolate of the sweeter kind.
The taste is roasted malt, has some nutty notes, toffee, dark chocolate, pretty well balanced between bitter and sweet.
Mouthfeel is okay; not much carbonation here but not flat.
Super delicious Baltic Porter.
Tried
from Can
on 10 Dec 2023
at 15:39