Stout Season is upon us! Founders Brewing Company
As the days get shorter and the nights get longer, we approach my favorite season of beer. Stout Season is beginning now and I am so excited, for all the different stouts out there. Tonight I am trying a brew that has always been on the list and something I always look for during this time of year. But first let's explore the brewing company that makes the stout. Founders Brewing Company is the brewing company that brews the stout for tonight. I am trying their Breakfast Stout. Founders was started in 1997, by Mike Stevens and Dave Engbers both started off with steady jobs, then deciding they needed to follow their passion into beer they quit their jobs and focused on the brewery. They immersed themselves figuring that if you going to do it, you need to live it. On the verge of bankruptcy, the Founders crew decided to brew beer that made them interested in beer to begin with. They focused on complex, in your face ales, with huge aromatics, bigger body, and tons of flavor. The Founders family is a passionate group of beer enthusiasts the grew around a simple thought. "We don't brew beer for the masses. Instead our beers are crafted for a chosen few,a small cadre of renegades and rebels who enjoy beer that pushes the limits of commonly accepted taste. In short, they make beer for people like them"
Founders Brewing Company Breakfast Stout
Imperial Double Chocolate Coffee Oatmeal Stout
Founders Brewing Company is located in Grand Rapids, Michigan. They have evolved into one of the highly recognized breweries in the United States. The beer for tonight is Founders Breakfast Stout. Breakfast Stout has an alcohol by volume or ABV of 8.3% and an IBU or bitterness of 60. This stout is an Imperial Double Chocolate Coffee Oatmeal Stout. The image of the front of the bottle is genius. It is a kid having his bowl of cereal for breakfast, which this brew is like having breakfast in a beer. You have your oatmeal, chocolate and coffee/espresso notes to this beer. The label makes me think of my inner child and how much I enjoyed breakfast.
Label for Breakfast Stout
On to Breakfast Stout.
Pouring this beer into the glass I noticed its rich dark color appearance. As it filled the glass I began to notice the color more and the color of the foam at the top of the glass. Breakfast Stout has a deep dark black colored appearance, almost like a black coffee appearance. The foam has a tan tint to it almost like a cinnamon colored head. The head of the beer lingers around the edge of the glass, but leaves a thin layer in the middle of the glass. Aroma of this beer is out of this world. I notice right away that there is a coffee aroma that has a hint of bitterness to it. Followed by a chocolate aroma. The chocolate and the coffee aroma pair in the bitterness aroma in the beer, Almost like the use of dark chocolate in the beer. The beer has a very complex aroma. First you get the bitter aroma, followed by roasted aroma notes. The last aroma note is a soft smooth oatmeal aroma that ties it all together.
Appearance of Breakfast Stout
Taste is where I am eager to try this brew. I took my first sip and I am in heaven. The first thing you notice is the light to medium body. It starts light and moves to a complex medium body. As I took my next sip and finished it, all I could think about was the bitterness throughout the stout. Not in a bad way, the flavors are full flavors that bring out each note. The first thing I notice flavorwise was the bitter coffee note, like having your first sip of a black coffee. Paired off of this note is the bitter dark chocolate notes in the beer, almost like you are looking for a higher percentage of cacao in your chocolate. The bitter note then transitions to a mild sweet note to combat the bitterness. Perhaps like you wanted to add creamer into your black coffee or a milk chocolate piece. The bitterness still lingers and gives way to a spice note in the beer. Tries to warm you up by giving a subtle but noticeable hint of heat paired with a subtle vanilla note. The last thing I noticed in this beer the more I take sips of it, is the smoothness and the oatmeal notes in the beer.
Check out Founders Breakfast Stout
Check out Founders Brewing Company and stay updated with their social media:
No comments:
Post a Comment