All About Beer Magazine

Beer Talk

Kona Pipeline Porter

Available: WA, OR, CA, AZ, NM, MT, ID, WY, HI, CO

• Stephen Beaumont

  I love the freshly roasted coffee bean aroma of this ebony ale, but that said, the forcefulness of the java nose doesn’t leave much room for anything else. The body is a little more even handed, but not much, with some dark chocolate and sweet toffee notes creeping under the blanket of coffee flavors, and some dry roastiness lingering in the finish. If you like coffee, you’ll love this with a truffle or two after dinner, but if you like the idea of beer flavored with coffee, you may be disappointed in the lack of balance here.

• Charlie Papazian

  A massive and extraordinarily fresh roasted coffee porter! Starbucks — eat your heart out! Coffee brewed beer as good as it gets. Do not serve this beer ice cold! Best at a refreshing 50-55 degrees. Why? You don’t not want to miss out on the full malt and coffee character, demolished at cold temps. A fantastic beer with dessert. And if you are watching your weight, skip the “with” part of dessert: order up some whipped cream to top off this porter and call it a Piped Latte (send royalty/trademark checks to Charlie Papazian).

• Garret Oliver

  The beer is black and raises a small tan head. The aroma is brilliant; you don’t doubt for a second that there’s real coffee used here. The palate is dry and firmly hopped, with roasted malts adding to the bitterness. There’s a nice burst of caramel, fruit and complex coffee through the center, and the finish is clean and dry. Such ideas often go awry, but this coffee porter is executed with admirable style and precision — everything falls into place. Very nice. Now where’s that cheesecake?