Grand Teton Wake Up Call Imperial Coffee Porter
Grand Teton Brewing – Grand Teton Wake Up Call Imperial Porter – 750 ml. bottle poured into a tulip –
Product description: Wake Up Call Imperial Coffee Porter has a distinct and robust coffee flavor that blends harmoniously with the roasted malts. Caramel, chocolate, and black malts give this ale its dark color and overtones of caramel and a cocoa-like sweetness. Only very gently hopped, the addition of coffee shines through, providing a delicious accent to this brew.
We used well over a pound per barrel of Moonshot Espresso beans from Caffe Ibis Coffee Roasting Company in Logan, Utah. This classic three bean blend has loads of caramel with a fine sugar sweetness and a smoky but smooth finish. While the focus has been on finding the perfect mate for this seasonal porter, it is no coincidence that the choice of beans also supports social justice and sustainable agriculture.
I sampled this from a 750mL bottle poured into an oversized Tripel Karmeliet snifter/tulip glass. The beer is a clear, deep sepia color that sits firmly opaque black once in the glass. A massive coffee-colored head erupts with excellent retention. Multiple layers of thick lacing adorn the sides of the glass.
The aroma is bright and savory with acidic coffee at the forefront. Assertive grilled lemon accentuates the acidic coffee roast nose. Hints of black crayon and Marmite add savory notes. The flavor nicely matches. It is coffee-forward with lemon acid and robust roasted malt throughout. The beer really is complete and pulls off the coffee profile well. There is no “green pepper” off-character from the large dose of coffee nor is the beer gritty, earthy, or too acidic. Bitterness is restrained as is the sugar and alcohol. In fact, this one is much milder than I was expecting with the “imperial” moniker given that 7.5% these days might as well be regular strength for some breweries.
Overall, this one hits all the marks for an A+ coffee porter. The body is balanced but still powerfully coffee-forward. Sugar and alcohol are absent making way for a coffee-centric experience. This was top-notch and is highly recommended.
