Founders Kentucky Breakfast Stout (KBS)

Bottled, thanks Marsblursi! Black as a November night in hell. Pale brown head. Strong coffee aroma. Sweet and a bit syrupy. There are lots of coffee - vanilla and oak is there to a lesser extent. The mouthfeel is clean and the sweetness quite severe, which limits my enjoyment. The bourbon is balanced, but I find the the malt structure not really to be up to the very high rating.

Crushed with TheDude. I’ve been looking forward to him bringing me this one. Nice, motor oil pour. Jet black, with no head, just a ring around the glass that clings and laces. Aroma is coffee, then some chocolate, all with a boozy bourbony undertone. Flavor is sweet, chocolatey with lots of coffee. The bourbon is very understated and lovely, lends a nice vanilla and oak character. Absolutely loved this one.

Bottle, received in a trade. Black pour, very inactive with no head. Aroma is ginger root, licorice, strange wood, bourbon w/ light vanilla, and roasted malt. Flavor is somewhat sweet caramel and chocolate malt, roasted malt, woody alcohol and the same ginger / licorice component from the aroma. It’s a pretty good BA beer.

Pours black with a tan head. Heavy aroma of bourbon, coffee, roasted malt, caramel, and vanilla. Taste is bourbon and coffee up front, with roasted malt, caramel, and oak. Mouthfeel was very thick and sticky. More like boozy syrup than beer.

Thanks to a very generous Surly Darkness Day attendee whose handle I can’t remember at the moment. What an awesome beer. I think the only thing preventing a better score is my bias toward Goose Island BCS. Aroma is heavy bourbon, molasses, coffee, vanilla bean and oak. Pour is deep black with an alluring thin tan head. Flavor is smooth bourbon, oak, coffee and big complex malt. Sweat up front and slightly bitter finish. Keep it a little chilled though, as mine is getting warmer the alcohol is shining through.

All I can say is WOW! What an awesome brew. Poured into a chalice a deep thick black color, nice carbonation, nice little fizzy tan head, some little oil slicks and sticky lacing around the edges. The nose is malty, oaked, slightly roasted, vanilla, bourbon, and some coffee/caramel. The taste is awesome, hit you in the face malts/oak/coffee/bourbon. There’s the sweetness of the vanilla that comes through, then a nice little bitterness finish. The alcohol is almost non-existent. Medium body, very well rounded brew. Very drinkable, definitely highly recommended.

Pours pitch black into a snifter. Thin, wispy tan head disappears faster than the stock market’s value. Big coffee & bourbon on the nose. A quick swirl leaves a thin sheet on the sides of the glass, and allows notes of vanilla, chocolate, fig, and leather to appear. Coffee and bourbon dominate at cellar temp, but warming brings an incredible bouquet of flavors, with more chocolate, vanilla, and tobacco. Thick and full bodied, but not too syrupy or viscous. Silky smooth, this goes down incredibly easy, with only a light alcohol burn in the long finish. Absolutely incredible. Nectar of the gods. Beer like this makes me happy I’m alive.

Strong aromas of bourbon, oak, earth, roast, and mild dark chocolate. Pours black with a tan head that settles into a ring. Good amount of oak and bourbon, roasted and burnt malts, light chocolate too. Lingering oak and dark roast. Creamy smooth with nice warming effects from the bourbon. Delicious.