If you make the trek down to Ellicottville and walk into 12 Gates of EVL, the secondary taproom of Williamsville’s 12 Gates Brewing Company, you’ll find any number of the brewery’s core and flagship brands on tap and in cans, but you’ll also find something lurking on the draft board that you won’t see anywhere else – Peruvian Porter.
Made with organic Peruvian coffee beans from the neighboring Ellicottville Coffee Company, Peruvian Porter is 12 Gates’ first exclusive beer to be tapped at 12 Gates of EVL. This beer is light-bodied and full of flavor with roasted coffee flavor with a subtle hint of chocolate.
According to head brewer Matt Gordon, the brewery aimed for a lighter “summer” porter that focused more on the chocolate notes, while the beans bring all of the roast and coffee flavors. Although dark in color, as a true porter should be, it remains very easy drinking.
The new collaboration was born out of a mutual admiration between 12 Gates and Ellicottville Coffee.
“We love being able to work with local shops to bring new flavors and fresh ingredients to our beers while promoting both locations,” Gordon says.
As 12 Gates’ Tom Kirchmeyer explains, Ellicottville Coffee Company owner John Rounds is both a fan of support of the brewery, and 12 Gates are big fans of their coffee, so it would make sense to work together. And that’s not to mention the simple fact that they are neighbors in Ellicottville, so it made things that much easier.
“John Rounds is the owner of Ellicottville Coffee Company and they are located right next door to our Ellicottville location,” Kirchmeyer says. “John has always been a big supporter of our brand. He knew we had a coffee porter already and he said he wanted to do a collaboration with his coffee beans from Peru. The best coffee in Ellicottville is their coffee, so why not brew a beer with the same Peruvian beans they use? The resulting new coffee porter Matt Gordon brewed is more of a summer porter, using light to medium roasted Peruvian beans from next door.”
Peruvian Porter is on draft now.
12 Gates of EVL, located at 14 Washington Street in Ellicottville, opened this past January. The brewery says they chose EVL because it has become “a vibrant community with a thirst for craft beer with an adventurous lifestyle.”
Brian Campbell is co-founder and Brand Manager of the Buffalo Beer League, and writes the weekly Buffalo Beer Buzz column. If you have beer news that should be included in the Beer Buzz, Brian can be reached at brian@buffalobeerleague.com, on Twitter (@buffbeerleague), Instagram (@buffalobeerleague), and Facebook (@thebuffalobeerleague).
