Founders Imperial Stout

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

Bottle. Aroma ashy, smoky, cream, sort of weird. Flavor brings on more ash and burnt malt with bitter chocolate. Finish is again very ashy. Despite the shaky aroma start, and a somewhat unusual go at things, quite enjoyable.

pours very thick and black...this is why marlin calls stouts "oil for your body!" nice deep caramel head with decent retention. aroma is milky with dark fruit and a bit of alcohol. flavor is pretty complex...dark fruit, bitter chocolate, coffee, and burnt molasses...citrusy hops dry out a roasty warming finish. thick and sticky mouthfeel. nice imperial.

Bottle thanks to JCB (thanks Jason!). Pours black with a small ring of brown head. Aroma of roasted malt, smoked meats, also kind of an odd smell I can’t identify (sweet perfumy?). Flavor is rather roasty with some dark chocolate bitterness and some burnt notes in the finish. Quite nice. 7/4/8/4/15 (3.8/5)

Aroma: Roasted malts, coffee, dark fruits, hopspice. Appearance: Dark brown with a sturdy 1/4 inch brown ring of suds. Flavor: Coffee, dark chocolate, licorice, burnt malts. Mouthfeel: Silky almost buttery with fizzy carbonation. Overall: Quite lovely, my kind of impy.

Bottle, pours a solid black beer oil. Aroma is super sweet with a lot of roast and malt. Flavor is sweet alcohol and roast. End is hoppy and a little bit bitter. Very good impy stout

Tap. Poured black with small brown head. Aroma of roasted coffee and chocolate. Lots of coffee in this. Some chocolate. Roasty. Warmed me up.

Bottle into snifter. Pours motor oil black with just a bit of translucent brown around the very edges of the glass. A little foaming action going on, but very little. Nose is dark chocolate and dark fruits, a bit of a roasty coffee note underneath, with a slightly acidic hop character that’s floral and just a bit citric. Some alcohol heat comes through. An excellent balance. Taste is rich and chocolatey - malt forward at the start with a molten super-dark chocolate note that hints at roasty coffee and dark fruit, with a resiny, citric hopping note coming through louder towards the finish, alongside a bit of warming, spicy alcohol. Finish is drying, roasty, warming. More dark fruit. Brash and young, and absolutely full of potential - this would be one of my sure fire verticals if I could get it on a regular basis. Mouthfeel is slick and viscous, thick, with a light, sharp carbonation underneath that makes an effort at lightening things up a bit. Surprisingly drinkable, mainly due to the fact that it’s freakin’ delicious. Top notch stout.

12oz bottle. Pours pitch black with a large, frothy mocha head that laced my snifter nicely. Aroma of roasted malts and rich chocolate with hops. Initial flavor is bold hop bitterness with some roast and coffee. As it warmed, more complexities began to hit the tongue: chocolate, dark fruit, vanilla, and a touch of bourbon alcohol. Full-bodied, incredibly smooth, and slightly syrupy. Bitter hops and dark chocolate aftertaste. Fantastic.