French Press Coffee Porter - Saint Arnold Review

Texas’ Oldest Craft Brewery is not stuck in the past but is always innovating and bringing us something new. That means wheel-outs of great beers and thought-provoking seasonals. The seasonals are often our favorites.

This week we’re looking at Saint Arnold’s French Press Coffee Porter. First offered in December 2018, Saint Arnold packs the body in with a malt bill of 2-row, double roasted crystal, pale chocolate, and golden naked oats. They add some hop character with East Kent Golding hops, and they top it all off with, arguably, the most important ingredient in a coffee porter: the coffee, and they use Java Pura’s Espresso blend to bring it all together.

Sounds like the perfect marriage for a blog dedicated to beer and coffee, so let’s see how it stacks up in our…

First Impressions:

• On the Eyes--Dark as night and crowned with a milk chocolate head.

• On the Nose--Coffee and fudge, promising a lot of malt sweetness, coffee bitterness, and a full body.

• On the Palate--Bitterness from the coffee balances the sweetness of the malt, and French Press finishes with a pinch of dry chocolate. A touch of floral hops (that become more prevalent as I drink) lend a hand to the balancing act of malt and coffee. The ABV is high, but not terribly noticeable on the tongue, which I believe is a testament to a well-crafted Imperial beer. The mouthfeel is full and French Press goes down smooth, making it an exceptional sipper, as a good cup of coffee should be.

Food Pairings: With breakfast, of course, and any of your favorite chocolate desserts or heavily spiced dishes like chili.

Final Thoughts:

If a brewery is gonna go for something like a coffee porter, in our humble opinions, the coffee needs to be king, and in French Press it is. The coffee is most prominent in this beer, followed by the fantastic malt selection providing us with a pleasant body and mouthfeel. But, most importantly, the coffee doesn’t become dulled by the presence of a lot of chocolate, as can be the case with many beers of this style, and because the coffee is so forward, it distracts from the high ABV, making the beer all the more sippable. For the price (around $10), there really aren’t many better options for a coffee flavored beer.

Cheers!

Mr. Brew