(512) Brewing Company is a prominent, 100% independent microbrewery located in Austin, Texas. Founded in 2007 by Kevin Brand, it stands as one of the city’s oldest and most respected craft breweries, named after Austin’s historic telephone area code.
Brand, a ’96 UT grad, along with his wife, Sara Brand, are the co-founders of 512. Sara Brand’s education and business acumen includes a list of impressive credentials…BA, UT, Mechanical Engineering, MA, UC Berkeley, Mechanical Engineering, and founder of VC firm True Wealth Ventures. Additional background information about Kevin and Sara can be found here.
512 Highlights
- Organic & Sustainable Practices: Brand is dedicated to utilizing high-quality ingredients and purchases more organic malt than anyone in Texas.
- Flagship Beers: The brewery is known for its original Pecan Porter, ubiquitous (512) IPA, Juicy IPA, and lightly spiced Belgian-style Wit.
- Draught-Only Focus: For much of its history, the brewery operated as a self-distributing, draught-only facility to maintain strict quality control. While remaining draught-focused, they have since expanded to offer select styles in packages and retail stores.
- Expansion: Brand expanded the brewery into a $6 million project on Promontory Point Drive in Southeast Austin. This facility provided the space needed to boost production and host visitors and tours.
About 512 Pecan Porter
The 512 Pecan Porter is a staple of the Texas craft beer scene and the defining flagship brew from 512 Brewing Company.
- Style: Pecan Porter – 512 transitions a standard porter into a pecan porter by incorporating actual organic pecans to introduce earthy, nutty, or dessert-like flavors into the dark, roasted malt base.
- ABV: 6.2%
- IBU: 30
- Hops: Balanced utilizing Glacier hops.
- Malt: Organic American 2-row, Crystal, Chocolate, and Black Malts.
- Appearance: Pitch black and almost opaque with a thick, frothy head.
- Flavor Profile: Deep malty, earthy, toasty, and chocolatey.
- Aroma: Dark chocolate, malty, nutty, with a touch of an essence of espresso.
- Food Paring: BBQ & smoked meats (a Texas tradition), duck, lamb. and rich sausage.
Overall Impression: Solid Porter with organic Texas pecans added to boost the base flavor and move it into a position where you say, “this is different but a damn good Texas home-grown Porter that reflects all that is, Texas. Creamy, chocolate-driven nose and front-end, nice lacing, a touch on butterscotch and chocolate on the down side. Nicely done while skipping the emphasis on organic.
Hopinionated Rating 4.0/5.0
Sip or Skip – Sip
Community Reviews & Comments
Overall Consensus & Ratings
- Score: The beer holds an outstanding reputation across platforms, earning a score of 92 (Outstanding) on BeerAdvocate and averaging around 4.14 out of 5 with a near-perfect rating on Total Wine & More.
- The Verdict: Reviewers on BeerAdvocate generally agree that it is a dense, highly comforting, and well-crafted specialty brew that masterfully balances a dessert-like richness with traditional earthy roastiness.
- The Brew Adventures: I’d be lying if I didn’t confess that this is the beer that made me want to do a whole month of porters. If you want more like this dense and comforting drink, check out (512) Brewing out of Austin, TX, or look for them where you purchase your suds. They have much to offer, but if you’re looking for something to warm you on a cold December night, I suggest the Pecan Porter.
- Get U Some: Cant get enough of this wonderful stuff !!!
- steve60beer: One of the best beers on the planet!
- malakatim: Just a great coffee-pecan porter. So thick yet smooth, the pecan comes through in balance with the coffee, and then finishes with a touch of sour. Probably my favorite “normal” ABV stout!
- Braunmeister_1943: This is a world-class winner!
- Tom-O-Bedlam: Fantastic beer. Pecan flavor is pronounced but not overwhelming. You taste the 6.2% ABV. I wouldn’t call it “well-hidden,” but that’s not necessarily a criticism.
- rDev: There is a lot of chocolate in this beer, and it’s a dark chocolate. Roasted and toasty tasting. Hints of caramel in the mix. There’s a hint of pecan, but it’s not a lot in this beer. There is a hint of smoke in the flavor. The body is decent for the style. Smooth feeling. Tasty and delicious overall.
Explore Similar Beers to 512 Pecan Porter
- Sky Pie Pecan Porter by Pondaseta Brewing Co.: A highly sought-after Texas English porter conditioned with vanilla and pecans for a true “pecan pie in a glass” experience.
- 1919 Pecan Pie & Coffee Porter by Cypress Creek Southern Ales: An alternative that focuses on the sweet, nutty combination of pecan and coffee.
- Porters and stouts that share similar chocolate, coffee, and nutty characteristics.
- 8th Wonder Rocket Fuel: A Vietnamese Coffee Porter brewed with locally sourced coffee that offers a similar dense, roasty, and slightly sweet flavor.
- Rogue Hazelnut Brown Ale: Though a brown ale, it delivers an incredibly rich, nutty, and malty profile that hits many of the same taste notes as a pecan porter.
- If you enjoy the fuller body and sweeter malts of (512) Pecan Porter, these popular dark craft beers are worth checking out.
- Breckenridge Vanilla Porter: Smooth, creamy, and balances roasty dark malts with a touch of sweet vanilla.
- Founder’s Breakfast Stout: A world-class imperial coffee oatmeal stout that hits high marks for deep, complex chocolate and java flavors.
- Samuel Smith’s Taddy Porter: A classic, dry, and balanced English porter for those who appreciate traditional, clean robust malt profile.
Have you tried 512’s Pecan Porter? If so, let us know what you think about it and we’ll include your comment in our Community Reviews and Comments section.
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Cheers!
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