Stellar Void Stout: A Great Way to Say Hello to Halo Brewery 

I just moved to a new neighbourhood in the Junction Triangle area of Toronto. There’s lots of perks — more room in the house, great view of a highly aesthetic water tower, and one of my favourite breweries in the city (Halo) is two minutes away. While there’s any number of beers I could rave about, with the cold well set in, and the Holidays practically underway, there’s one that stands out in particular — Stellar Void stout.

There comes a point every year, maybe a week before Winter Solstice, where my tolerance for the very rich, sweet and unctuous grows exponentially. In this spirit, when I found myself staring at the chalkboard at Halo, I gravitated toward the Stellar Void. With sarsaparilla, vanilla, chocolate AND lactose on the can, this beer is like a black milkshake — perfect for the season.

Here’s what to expect

Stellar Void Beer Review

Before diving in, lemme just give one more quick shoutout to Halo — a truly charming little brewery squarely set in a residential area churning out wonderful beers. Definitely worth a trip from any part of town but an absolutely must-visit for anyone on the West End.

On to Stellar Void, and the stout you’ll want to be sipping slow for the season. It pours a pitch black with a fairly loose brown head and active carbonation. The aromas are potent and you’re hit with scented-candle-tier levels of vanilla as you pour. It’s not a shy beer, and lays it’s cards on the table right away.

After a sip, you can tell the Stellar Void offers some refinement as well. The texture is rich and the body is heavy with a great hit of toasty malt, chocolate with a backbone of sweetness provided by the lactose. The sarsaparilla is pretty subdued but plays nice background notes. Everything is pretty well-balanced and it makes it easy enough to go for number two (if you’re not already moving on to spiked egg nog).

Stellar Void finishes very sweet (tending towards cloying) but really — is it any different than the four Lindors you just ate? For any time of year but especially this one, I can enjoy this stout from start to finish,