Somehow between last month when I blogged about receiving Kona Brewing’s Pipeline Porter and now, I forgot to actually post, you know, the review. (I also missed two others I needed to post, but that’s another time.)

Pipeline Porter is the seasonal from Kona that (you may recall) is actually brewed here on the mainland but with 100% Kona coffee, imported from Hawaii. It sits at 5.4% alcohol and is available from September through March.

Appearance: Dark brown-black, opaque, with a light brown head.

Smell: Nice blend of roasted coffee and malts. A bit of dark chocolate—a cocoa powder thing going on—and a sense of smokiness.

Taste: Coffee (no surprise), roasted black malts that are dry but without any astringency. Creamy and slightly chocolaty… nice bit of bitterness from the malt. Hops are very low-key.

Mouthfeel: Smooth, dry, medium-bodied. A "soft water" feel.

Overall: A very nice porter, creamy yet dry and rich with coffee. Well done and enjoyable to drink.

On BeerAdvocate, it earns a solid B+ overall. On RateBeer, it scores 3.5 out of 5 and is in their 84th percentile.