Founders Breakfast Stout

Brewed by Founders Brewing Company
Style: Imperial Stout
Grand Rapids, Michigan USA

bottle at the Hampton tasting - mmm... coffee. Pours thick and black with a long lasting, tan head. It smells strongly of roast malts and of course... coffee. It tastes much the same. As others have said, you better like coffee. Now I don’t like cold or iced coffee, but I liked this beer a lot, so don’t worry. Full bodied and delicious with a pleasant finish, this is an excellent beer. I really thought it would be considered an imperial stout given how heavy it is, but no matter.

Bottle: Poured a black road tar color with a huge long lasting brown head. The aroma was spices, chocolate, and roasted coffee. The taste is rich coffee bean and dark chocolate.

Firstly, yes, this is Founders Breakfast Stout, but immediately under that on the label reads "Double Chocolate Coffee Oatmeal Stout". If that’s not an impressive and delicious-sounding designation for a stout, I don’t know what is. Aroma is fittingly roasty and full of true coffee nuances, some light cream, hazelnut, sugar and vanilla touches along with background notes of semi-sweet chocolate and caramel. Utterly opaque black color, bottle-conditioned, with a subsiding, medium brown head. Flavor profile is sweet and strongly chocolatey to start, quickly becoming overcome by the undeniable presence of well-roasted coffee beans, some silky oatmeal character noted, and finishing with a blend of dry, roasty, nearly-charred malt and lightly bitter, earthy hops. Palate is surprisingly smooth and mellow, body is medium-full. Almost certainly caffeinated. Nicely done, well integrated and plenty of coffee character. Thanks a bunch to TAR.

London Gathering Nov 05: Nice coffee and chocolate. Very soft oily feel. Easy drinking. Vanilla notes there too. Black with a brown head. Nice.

Bottle courtesy shigadeyo. Pours opaque black with a massive, fluffy tan head. Sweet chocolate aroma. Medium-full body, moderate carbonation. Coffee and chocolate taste. I probably should have tried this little guy before his big brother, rather than immediately afterwards.

Sampled on draft at Smokin Joes in Pittsburgh PA this beer poured a pitch black color with a a large, creamy and exceptionally dark brown head - absolutely lovely. The aroma was fairly mediocre dry roasty coffee with not a whole lot more going on. The flavor was an incredibly rich and complex mix of sweet chocolate, cream, toasty malts, marshmallow, malted milk and light sweet coffee. The finish was exceptionally long and smooth with sweet toasty chocolate and malted milk. The mouthfeel was thick and smooth. Very complex with a whole lot going on. Incredible!

Finally after all these years I get a chance to taste this stuff on tap at the Vintage Estates Octoberfest Beer Tasting in Boardman Ohio. Black opague pour, looks like used motor oil out of my shovel head. Very thin oily head. What head there is is like chocolate mousse. The smell is freshly brewed strong coffee. I think I’m gonna ask for some creamer! Taste is rich quality black iced coffee. That is all that can be tasted, it even covers the alky flavors and at nearly 9%, that is a tuff thing to do. No carbonation can be detected probably due to the single mindedness of this brew. If your a coffee lover, you gonna like it. Otherwise, if you you can’t appreciate coffee, forgettabouttit. Bitter lingering strong black coffee finish. IMHO the aroma and appearance of this brew is what keeps it above average. Otherwise, would not buy again.

GABF '03 I'm not a cofee drinker but I love stout and roasted character.This beer has alot going for it.