Founders Breakfast Stout

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

A deep and viscous stout with a thin moka head. Strong aroma of Nestle Quick, and cappuccino coffee, fresh cereals, intense and pungeant. In mouth, a silky fruity stout, with coffee grinds, espresso, roasted cereals, smooth and silky, lots going on in mouth in this one. Rich and silky.

Head is initially small, frothy, brown, mostly diminishing. Body is black (seemingly opaque, but not flashlight tested). Aroma is heavily malty (coffee, coffee, coffee, burnt grain, chocolate), maybe some smoke. Flavor is moderately sweet, lightly acidic, lightly bitter. Finish is lightly sweet, lightly acidic, moderately bitter, slightly husky. Medium to full body, velvety/oily texture, lively carbonation, lightly alcoholic. This is a nice beer, to be sure, but it isn’t quite top 50 material IMHO. The aroma is at first eye-opening with coffee (out the wazoo), but as you go through it you don’t find much else. Similarly, the finish is a bit rough-edged and husky, and the mouthfeel is not as rich and luxurious as expected/hoped/desired. This could be an awesome beer with a little more fine-tuning, but I can see how it’s be good enough to float most people’s boat as-is. Nice stuff.

12 oz bottle, a freebie thrown my way by Mr. JPDIPSO, all praises to him...inky/oily black in color with a small brown-sugar hued head that dissipates to a thin ring...extremely strong, assertive tarry/smoky burnt coffee nose with much licorice swirling underneath and a touch of blackberries...flavor is just as potent, but more than a little overpowering, one-note almost and that note is coffee, coffee, coffee, bitter Turkish coffee with hints of nutmeg and just barely any sweetness upfront, with a finish that’s extremely dry and bitter. I can understand the praise, but personally I’ve finally met a coffee stout that’s too coffeeish for me to want again soon...

Nutty and roasty aromas for certain. Also contains chocolate, coffee, and a mild pleasant cereal graininess. Opaque black body is topped with a very strong dark brown (!!!) head that lasts and recedes slowly with some lacing. Hugely roasty coffee flavour with plenty of chocolate and some light notes of alcohol. Full-bodied, thick, rich and luxurious mouthfeel has a creamy texture. Bottle enjoyed with MartinT and Rastacouere. Thanks, Silphium!

Sampled again in 2009. A solid heady thick brew. I stand by my previous rating. Thin reddish head that goes away quickly. Black body. The aroma is coffee and oatmeal with a little molasses and alcohol. The body is nice and smooth. Tastes of coffee, pancakes, vanilla and some raspberry. The beer is very viscous and sticks to the glass. Breakfast is the perfect descriptor for this beer. Solid. Thanks milkmandan.

Bottle received from Brad: (I like coffee, I like stouts, I like chocolate...so you know where this is going.) Deep and complete blackness with an initial huge creamy tan head and very good lace, settles to a small but lasting ring. The aroma is huge with a over-the-top espresso character, big ole mocha, caramelized and burnt malts, floral hops, prune, walnut, and dusty yeast esters. The taste start with a large dose of bittersweet chocolate and subdued oat/grain qualities before...you find yourself running head first into a Kona Plantation! You want coffee, you got it! This is close to an iced coffee drink. The finish does display a touch of bitters and some nutty quality. The feel is lively and refreshing for something so big, could still stand a bit more oatmeal feel. I could drink this all the time. Right up there with my all-time favorite coffee stout, it may be the best of it’s genre. YUMMY, get ya some.

Bottle at Toms Glasgow tasting 2 ... Deep black... very fruity odd smokeyness in nose ... huge coffee coffee coffee , some roast malts ... bit too much for me but still pretty good.

Nov, 2005. Kilburn Palace Bottle Fest. Sweet Camp Coffee aroma. Easy drinking beer. Very soft. Like a chocolate flavoured instant porridge (ReadyBrek). Oddly pleasant with attractive honey notes. I could drink a lot of this. Well, at 8.3% maybe not a lot, but plenty enough.