Recipe: Santa’s Little Helper

As part of our San Diego Homebrew Summer program, every Monday from June through August, San Diego Beer News has published homebrew-scaled recipes for beers professionally produced by craft breweries throughout the county. This week, award-winning brewer Tomme Arthur is presenting instructions on how to brew up one of San Diego’s most enduring beers, Santa’s Little Helper, an imperial stout that has enjoyed great fanfare for over a decade. You can always find it at Port Brewing and The Lost Abbey‘s tasting rooms in San Marcos, San Elijo and Cardiff-by-the-Sea (and come year’s end, downtown San Diego’s East Village), but if your craving for this deep, rich, chocolaty stout dictates you have it on tap at your place, this early Christmas present will make that possible. Scroll down to download the recipe, the ingredients for which are available at Home Brew Mart in Linda Vista, making it easy for you to try your hand at making this beer from the comfort of your own home-slash-garage.

Santa’s Little Helper Imperial Stout

Q&A with Port Brewing / The Lost Abbey Partner & Director of Brewery Operations Tomme Arthur

Why did you decide to share this particular recipe?

It’s a great beer and one that homebrewers can easily recreate at home. This recipe dates back to my homebrewing days and was one of the first recipes that I ever scaled up commercially.

What are some tips you have for homebrewers brewing this beer?

I would say there are three things. Use the best hops you can get your hands on. While this version of an imperial stout is not as hop-forward as many, there is still a judicious amount of bittering and flavoring to be had. Second, yeast health is paramount. It’s really important to grow a ton or repitch fro a prior fermentation. Last, the recipe really shines with imported crystal and roasted grains. Yes, you can use domestic without any concerns, but we have always had an affinity for the more robust imported things and prefer them in the beer.

Please share a memory from your homebrewing days?

One of the first imperial stout recipes that I ever attempted to brew was crazy high on original gravity (OG). I did an awful job in calculating the grain contributions and, as such, my OG was many points higher than anticipated. The recipe ultimately became Old Viscosity, and it still gets made to this day.

How did homebrewing lead you to want to make brewing your career?

I dabbled in homebrewing before getting my first brewing job. Those batches were malt extract only and not very good. Once I got my first brewing job, I set out to learn and master the process of making beer at home, and learned quite a bit along the way. I would say that homebrewing affirmed my love of the process and showed me that I could be a confident brewer.

San Diego Homebrew Summer is brought to you by our partners at Ballast Point Brewing, and you can find all of the ingredients to make this pair of beers at Home Brew Mart.