I use puppy Linux all the time. Works great, on a fairly crappy USB stick. It saves files to the stick and saves user preferences and everything. Very recommended from my end.
I've used it once, in a porter. Toasted it lightly in a pan in the oven, didn't notice much oil/fat come off of it. Put it in a mesh bag in secondary and it tasted really great in the end. I did notice a slight decrease in head retention, but it wasn't awful. The taste made it worth it for me.