Kona's Pipeline Porter, seasonal beer that it was, has gone away. There's some suggestion that it will reappear next spring. I very much hope so. In the meantime, the Pipeline Porter slot in the store where I've been buying beer of late has been taken by six packs of Pyramid's Rollick Amber Lager. Pyramid began as a brew pub in but has now expanded to two breweries (Seattle, across from the Mariner's Safeco Field, and Berkeley, CA) and five pubs. In 2008 Pyramid Breweries won the mid-size Brewery of the Year award at the Great American Beer Festival—and three gold medals.

Pyramid is offering Rollick Amber Lager as a special seasonal spring beer.This is a light copper colored beer, definitely a lager, but it's a bit more bitter than I expected. There's a definitely malty quality (Rollick is made with 2 Row, Munich 20L, and Carafa 2 malts). There's no question about the hops, either (according to Pyramid, Rollick was bittered with Summit, and finished with Tettnang). The hops are particularly noticeable in the finish. While very drinkable, and I like the beer, this is one that really would be better with food. I think it's a good beer to go with a burger, and will be better still when the days are a bit warmer. I am, thus far, atypical compared to my fellow beer drinkers; Rollick is not faring terribly well in terms of beer reviewers' reactions, but I notice that my local store has completely sold out of Rollick.