Founders Breakfast Stout

Brewed By: Founders Brewing Company in Grand Rapids, Michigan 
Purchased: Single bottle (12oz) from a 4-pack bought at Binny's in Illinois; 2011
Style/ABV: Imperial Stout (American), 8.3%

Founders is the holy grail of Michigan brewing. Based out of Grand Rapids, Michigan, Founders was founded in 1997 and produce some of the best beer in the world. Tonight I am drinking their Breakfast Stout. Although "Breakfast Stout" is not an official categorization yet, many craft breweries are brewing breakfast themed Stouts that feature flavors like coffee, maple syrup, bourbon, bacon, oatmeal, and chocolate. 

Founders Breakfast Stout is brewed with flaked oats, bitter and imported chocolates, and Sumatra and Kona coffee. According to Founders this beer should have a "roasted java nose." Clocking in a 8.3% ABV and 60 IBUs, this is a big bad Stout. A big bad Stout with a baby on the bottle eating cereal. I think the bottle art captures Founders' eccentricity, and Founders make some amazing beer, so let's get down to business.

Founders Breakfast Stout, this is a Divine Brew

This beer pours a nice menacing black color that seems to be pretty close to ink-black or jet-black. There is a nice one-finger coffee/brown head on top of the beer. There is some lacing on my glass, and the head holds up during the duration of a drinking session which leads me to believe that there is solid carbonation. It is hard to assess how much carbonation there is due to the dark body.

My first love was coffee, way before beer. This beer is unreal. You smell HUGE coffee notes on the nose. Rich, dark, thick coffee; freshly ground coffee; big coffee beans; that huge aromatic coffee note you get when you open a fresh package of ground coffee. Really impressive stuff. There are also some giant bitter-sweet chocolate notes on the nose as well as pulls towards vanilla. Fantastic.

This is a life-changing, revolutionary beer that will change everything you thought you knew about beer. There are huge boutiques of bitter dark chocolate, coffee, roasty malts, huge vanilla and sweet chocolate, espresso, coffee with cream, oats, and definitive brandy notes. This is a giant beer with lots of layers of flavors that attack your palate in different waves. Since this beer packs 60 mean IBUs, you get lots of bitter flavors. You also get a lot of sweet and warm flavors from the chocolate, as well as complex earthy tones from the oats. At 8.3% ABV, you also get some play from the alcohol including a nice warming sensation on the back. 

This is super complex, if only because there are multiple waves of flavor that hit your palate every time you take a sip. I'm not even sure I can accurately describe the front, middle, and back of the palate. The front end is carbonated, bitter, and coffee. The middle rolls into dynamite chocolate notes, and the back end is sweet, vanilla, and drying. But that was just one sip. A few sips later, and the front end is a little sweeter, with a huge warming brandy-vanilla-bitter-chocolate wash on the back end. This is just an incredibly delicious, complex, sipping beer. The mouthfeel is smooth and carbonated, and this is relatively drinkable at 8.3%. I will say that this beer is pretty bitter cold, and seems to open up some vanilla notes as it warms up. I would call this beer medium-heavy, with an emphasis on sipping/enjoying it. This is a special occasion beer. Drink this with dessert. Or once a year, make a big gourmet breakfast and serve this beer instead of coffee.

Rating: Divine Brew 

Score: 92%

As someone who drinks 6+ cups of coffee daily, I have to say that I am in love with this beer. If I didn't love coffee, I might not rate this beer as high.

There is a lot of love in this craft beer. The way the bittersweet chocolate notes play with the coffee and oat notes is incredible. The booze in this beer compliments the big flavors, and the 60 IBUs are much appreciated and compliment the coffee well.

If you can get your hands on this beer, pick it up!!!! This beer has sparked a new sense of urgency to get my hands on Founders' more rare Stouts. Check this beer out if you can find it, and double so if you like coffee.

PS, According to the 2008 BJCP, Founders Breakfast Stout is a Spice, Herb, or Vegetable Beer. I have to assume the inclusion of coffee is why it was categorized this way. I disagree with this categorization. Given the recent increase in "breakfast styled" beers, I'd like to see a "Breakfast" category. Beer is supposed to be fun, and nothing says fun like a breakfast beer.