Feature Beer Friday: Founders 2017 Kentucky Breakfast Stout

By Eric Ducote

Good morning everyone on this Gameday eve, and welcome to another edition of Feature Beer Friday!  Today I'm headed up to Michigan, in the figurative sense, to try the 2017 version of the Founders Kentucky Breakfast Stout.  Founders Brewing has been around in Grand Rapids, Michigan since 1997, making it pretty old and established in the world of craft beer.  Technically Founders is no longer considered a 'craft' brewery as they are 30% owned by San Miguel's parent company, but in my opinion that's a far cry from the breweries that have sold out 100% to AB-Inbev.  

One of Founders' most successful and popular beers is the subject of this review, the Kentucky Breakfast Stout.  It's a big imperial stout brewed with a lot of coffee (hence the 'breakfast' in the name) and chocolate.  It's then aged for a year in bourbon barrels before being released once annually each spring.  It can be found on tap, in 12 ounce 4-packs, and in 750ml bottles.  The bottle I have today is a 12 ounce bottle from the 2017 release, so at this point it's getting close to 2 years in the cellar.

Founders 2017 Kentucky Breakfast Stout

The pour is dark rich brown, almost black, with a couple of fingers' worth of frothy tan head.  The aroma is strong with bourbon and coffee, with a bit of roasted malt bitterness.  The taste is smooth, especially considering this beer is just over 12% alcohol, with more coffee and bourbon notes but also some sweet tones from the chocolate and still a hint of bitter roasted malt.  The mouthfeel is silky smooth, this is a dangerously easy drinker, and I think I'm going to have to stop after one and switch things up!  This still reigns supreme as one of the best barrel-aged imperial stouts in the world, so this Spring, if you see some of the 2019 release on the shelves, make a purchase.  Cheers!   

Feature Beer Friday: Mikkeller Beer Geek Breakfast Brunch Big Blend

By Eric Ducote

Good morning everyone!  Today's Feature Beer is the perfect option for a morning beer, the Beer Geek Brunch Big Blend from Mikkeller.  The name is a mashup of the two founders' names, Mikkel Borg Bjergsø, and Kristian Klarup Keller, who started as homebrewers in Denmark before launching Mikkeller and becoming one of the pioneers of gypsy brewing.  Gypsy brewing is a concept where the brewing company doesn't own a physical brewery, but instead uses other breweries for production when space is available and also collaborating with various breweries.  

Mikkeller's first huge beer hit was Beer Geek Breakfast which was an imperial stout with coffee that has been brewed many times since, but most of their beers are one-off special releases and variants.  Since starting the Mikkeller brand has established new locations worldwide, primarily bars but some like in New York City have brewing facilities attached.  This particular beer is one that I found locally at Robert Fresh Market on Highland Rd., the Beer Geek Breakfast Brunch Big Blend.  The original Beer Geek Brunch was also an imperial oatmeal stout with even more expensive coffee, but this one is a special version that's blended from six different aging barrels.  It's a combination of beer aged in bourbon, cherry wine, cognac, tequila, brandy, and whiskey.  I know, bourbon IS whiskey, but I don't know exactly what type the second one is, but I'm guessing that it's a scotch as they released a version of Beer Geek Brunch that was labeled as "Islay Edition" and a version of Beer Geek Breakfast labeled as a "Speyside Edition" so maybe they just got the spelling of whisky associated with scotch wrong?  Enough wondering though, how's the beer? 

Mikkeller Beer Geek Breakfast Brunch Big Blend

As you can see, the head is massive on this one, with an excess of carbonation.  Other reviewers had the same issue, so this isn't just a localized storage problem, but a full batch problem.  Hopefully though, it's not infected and the flavors are still intact.  Past that, the beer itself is a rich dark brown as expected from this 8% stout.  The nose is rich, with all the various barrel agings coming through but none as strong as the coffee from the base beer.  The bourbon is probably the strongest barrel on the aroma, but there's also a definite fruitiness from the cognac, brandy, and wine.  On the taste there's a hint of tequila, but it's the least present barrel flavor, and again the coffee and bourbon are coming through the strongest.

All in all, a very interesting beer, but if anything there is too much going on.  It's absolutely worth a try, but be ready for some heavy carbonation and a multi-pronged assault on the taste buds.  Cheers!

Feature Beer Friday: Crown Valley's Imperial Pumpkin Smash Stout

By Eric Ducote

Good morning everyone, it's finally starting to feel like Fall for more than a day at a time, and as everyone knows, Fall means pumpkin EVERYTHING.  Beer has never been an exception to this trend, as pumpkin beers have been popping up ever since craft beer started its renaissance.  Generally I'm not a huge fan of pumpkin beers, but most are lighter styles with bland pumpkin seasonings... not the case with this offering from Crown Valley.

Crown Valley Brewing & Distilling is located in rural southeast Missouri, in an area known primarily for wineries.  They produce a range of flagship beers and ciders, in addition to seasonal and high abv beers.  I very rarely see their flagship beers in our market, but occasionally spot the ciders and every year their Imperial Pumpkin Smash Stout hits shelves.  This beer is a high-abv imperial stout base, with 10.6% alcohol and 48 IBU.  It's loaded with rich dark malts and balanced out with some noble hops as well as Chinook which is known for a piney character.  

Crown Valley's Imperial Pumpkin Smash

The beer (a fresh 2018 version) pours a dark chocolate color, as an imperial stout should, with a lighter than expected head but great retention.  The nose is a combination of bitter roasted coffee notes, sweeter chocolate malt notes, and an undeniable pumpkin flavor blended with the spices always associated with pumpkin desserts.  The taste is a beautiful follow through on the nose, with complex malt flavors that work extremely well with the pumpkin and spice.  My favorite thing about this beer is that it still tastes like an imperial stout with pumpkin on top rather than it tasting like I'm drinking a glass of pumpkin pie.  

This remains one of my favorite pumpkin beers alongside the Saint Arnold Pumpkinator, and I'll almost certainly be buying some more before the season is over.  Cheers! 

Feature Beer Friday: Eel River's Raven's Eye Imperial Stout

By Eric Ducote

Good morning everyone on another beautiful Friday!  Today's feature beer is coming from Eel River Brewing out of Humboldt County, California.  Eel River operates two facilities out there, a brewing and packaging facility as well as a brewpub and tasting room.  Eel River Brewing has been around for a good while, over 20 years, and has been distributed locally in limited quantities for many years as well.  I've never seen any of their flagships pop up, but I do often see the Raven's Eye Imperial Stout on shelves and used to drink plenty of it, always finding it to be one of the best offerings of the style regularly available.  I saw bombers of the 2018 Raven's Eye and the 2018 Triple Exultation Barleywine at Rouse's for $5.99 each, I didn't hesitate to grab one of each.  You can probably guess now what next week's feature beer is going to be... 

The Raven's Eye Imperial Stout is listed at 9.5% abv and 28.5 IBU, described by Eel River as, "Bold and creamy, with hints of dark chocolate and espresso, this roasty brew is balanced by aromas reminiscent of molasses and plums. Warm, festive and strong, Raven's Eye is also quite smooth."

Eel River's Raven's Eye Imperial Stout

The pour is exactly what an Imperial Stout should look like, a viscous dark brown with a frothy off-white head.  The aroma is boozy with chocolate flavors and hints of plum.  The taste is similar, roasty with more chocolate notes and definitely dark fruit flavors.  (I actually wrote those tasting notes in my phone before I looked at Eel River's own description!)  This is a full-bodied full-flavored fantastic Imperial stout at a great price.

If you see this one around town, don't hesitate, and if you see it at as good of a price as I found, you might want to buy one or two to age as well, as I could see this getting even better over time.  Cheers! 

Feature Beer Friday: New Orleans Beer Tour Edition - Wayward Owl, Port Orleans, NOLA, Urban South

By Eric Ducote

Greeting beer lovers!  This past weekend I had the opportunity to join Jay Ducote, Matt Moscona, and Lee Feinswog on a Magical Brewery Beer Bus Tour of four New Orleans breweries.  The itinerary was set out as leaving from Tin Roof in Baton Rouge, then hitting up Wayward Owl, Port Orleans, NOLA Brewing, and Urban South prior to making out way back to Baton Rouge.  I have been to NOLA and Urban South a few times before, but I had never been to Wayward Owl or to Port Orleans, so when Jay gave me the invite I was happy to accept.  

The bus loaded up at Tin Roof, who was gracious enough to give us some low fills for the road, and the group (43 strong) made our way to I-10 East a few minutes ahead of schedule.  The tour package included two beers at each stop for everyone, but we were of course free to purchase additional beers and food along the way.  

Tin Roof for the ride.

Third Row representing!

Traffic was light for a late Saturday morning and we ended up rolling up to Wayward Owl a few minutes ahead of our anticipated arrival.  They were kind enough to open up early just for our tour and the drinking commenced!  Wayward Owl is a new stop for me, and my first impression was that they did a really excellent job with the space, an old theater that is now serving as both brewery and taproom.  I tried several beers here, including the You Drive Me Hazy DIPA, the Dance Between The Darkness Imperial Stout, and the Hopsurdity DIPA.  Probably not the best idea to start the tour with three beers over 7% abv, but these were the ones I really wanted to try!  

Wayward Owl's beer menu for the day.

Wayward Owl's space was originally the Gem Theater.

After a few rounds at Wayward Owl and a tour courtesy of Brewmaster Justin, it was off to Port Orleans, a relatively new brewery on Tchoupitoulas between Milan and Marengo.  This brewery is gorgeous, with a clean stylish taproom build out, an ample front porch with outdoor seating, and a large patio to one side with picnic tables and yard games.  It was too hot for anyone to really enjoy the outdoor spaces, but I know once Fall rolls around and the weather cools down, this place will be jumping indoors and out.  Being a bit of a hop lover I went for the Partly Cloudy With A Chance For Hops first, then moved on to a Blowout DDH IPA.  Of these two I preferred the Blowout, but the real hit was the third beer I tried, pour of their Barrel-Aged Offshore Chocolate Imperial Stout.  That one hit all the right notes with the richness of the stout, chocolate notes, and a boozy oaky vanilla flavor from the barrel aging.  

Port Orleans Brewing Company and Stokehold Restaurant.

Port Orleans' taproom.

The Port Orleans side patio, too hot for a crowd today.

Port Orleans is also home to the Stokehold restaurant, and some food was much needed.  After a quick browse I decided to get some mozzarella stuffed garlic bread to split with Jay, and it was amazing.  It was an excellent combination of buttery dough, garlic, mozzarella cheese, and a marinara for dipping.  This is without a doubt one of the best taproom food items I've ever tried, and I would probably order it again the next time I'm here.  

Mozzarella stuffed garlic bread from Stokehold and the Blowout DDH IPA.

After Port Orleans it was time for a quick jaunt just under a mile down Tchoupitoulas to NOLA Brewing, the elder statesman of the craft brewing renaissance in New Orleans.  I was especially excited to get to NOLA as I had heard great things about the No Strings Attached NEIPA that released last weekend.  It did not disappoint at all, hazy, juicy, hoppy and checking off every mark for a great NEIPA.  I also tried a Twins Basil, Twins! (that's an Austin Powers reference in case you missed it) which is a mixed fermentation sour with citrus and basil.  Although I did enjoy it, it was a little on the tart side for my tastes. 

NOLA Brewing Company

Like Port Orleans, NOLA also has a restaurant on premise, in this case McClure's BBQ, so Jay ordered up a BBQ sampler to split and we enjoyed some excellent ribs, brisket, chopped chicken, and pulled pork with some sides of macaroni and cheese and seasoned waffle fries.  Everything was delicious, but I think the baked mac & cheese stole the show a bit from the meats.  

The BBQ plate from McClure's and most of a No Strings Attached NEIPA.

After that bite and a crowler snag, it was time to continue another short distance down Tchoupitoulas to Urban South Brewery, a brewery making waves for itself with flavorful gose style ales and phenomenal NEIPA releases to go with their flagships.  Just like NOLA, Urban South released a hyped NEIPA the week before, so I was excited to get in and try some of the Soulstice, a collaboration with Parleaux Beer Lab.  Just like the No Strings Attached, this did not disappoint.  I finished off the evening with a Suitcase Full Of Sparks and then decided it was time to switch to water for the ride home, but not before snagging another crowler for later!

Urban South Brewery

Urban South's taproom was jumping this Saturday afternoon.

After a ride home full of Matt Moscona give-aways, it was back to Tin Roof and then back home, heavy a few crowlers and a souvenir glass.  

A couple of beers for later.

Souvenir glassware, never a bad thing! 

This was a really great time, I enjoyed hanging out with Jay, Matt, and Lee, and of course it was fantastic to see some new breweries and try some new beers all while having transportation taken care of.  There are plans for a repeat event in early 2019, so be on the lookout, and grab your spot before they are gone!  

Feature Beer Friday: Fremont Brewing's Bourbon Barrel-Aged Dark Star Imperial Oatmeal Stout

by Eric Ducote

Hello everybody, and welcome to the first Bite and Booze edition of Feature Beer Friday!  This is a reprisal of a segment I used to write (nearly) weekly for my old beer blog, BR Beer Scene.  Basically every Friday I'll be featuring a new beer with some background information, a review, and if I'm sharing it, what my friends think about the beer.  I used to score each one based on a 100-point scale focusing on 4 critical aspects, but this time around I think it'll just be a general review.  There is never a shortage of beer laying around the Bite and Booze HQ, so look for an eclectic mix of beers both locally and from around the world.

Today's choice is one from the Bite and Booze cellar, the 2015 Coffee Edition release of their Bourbon Barrel-Aged Dark Star Imperial Oatmeal Stout from Fremont Brewing out of Seattle, Washington. I recently hosted a baby shower (good times ahead!) over at the Bite and Booze HQ, and Jay was more than willing to break this one out for everyone to try! If you think there's a lot going on in that lengthy beer name, you're absolutely right. This stout features layers upon layers of flavor.  The base beer is their Dark Star Imperial Oatmeal Stout, which is then aged for up to 18 months in bourbon barrels, before being blended with barrels of different ages and bottled with coffee added.  Fremont Brewing releases this specialty once a year around the middle of October.

First thoughts on the appearance is that there is minimal head, but that's not really surprising for a 2+ year aged beer that clocks in at 14% alcohol.  As long as it's not flat it should still be good to drink, and this one was perfectly carbonated for an aged imperial stout.

The nose on this one is crazy complex, with roasted chocolate notes coming through from the base beer, coffee present but not as strong and the bourbon aging dominates giving a bright oak and vanilla overtone to the richly dark base.  If I was still keeping score this would earn a nearly perfect mark for the aroma.

The taste is more of the same, just a well layered complex imperial stout where all the flavors play well but also compliment each other.  The bourbon barrel aging is still the star of the show, but the coffee and dark malts support it extremely well.  A bourbon barrel aged beer without a strong and flavorful base can start to taste too much like whiskey without body, and this beer's base more than supports the bourbon flavors imparted upon it.  It finishes smooth, the 14% abv is well concealed by the stronger flavors, maybe too well as this is an easy sipper!

Fortunately I had a few friends to share this beer with, or the strong abv and amazing flavors would have combined to sneak up on me.  If you are ever up in Seattle or see some Fremont Brewing beers on the shelf elsewhere, give them a try.  And if you see some of their Dark Star series, bring me one!  Cheers!

Beers with Chuck: Share This O.C. from The Bruery

by Chuck P

I’ve been a big fan of The Bruery from Orange County, California ever since they began distributing here back in 2013. Their bourbon barrel aged beers are some of my absolute favorites. And now I’ll be adding the Share This: O.C. Imperial Stout made with orange zest, cacao nibs and vanilla to that list as well.

This addition to the Share This series is in partnership with Food Forward, a program that donates fresh produce to hunger relief agencies throughout southern California. These fruits and vegetables from backyard fruit trees, farmers markets and orchards where most would normally go to waste. For every bottle sold The Bruery donates $1 to this great cause.

The aroma hits the senses with with bits of orange, chocolate, vanilla and a light roastiness. A great balance of the cocoa and citrus comes through as well with a bit of the booziness lingering. The taste is fantastic with the orange zest coming first giving way to hints of chocolate and vanilla creeping in along with some light coffee notes. The orange fades to give way to some tartness and the alcohol of the imperial stout that finishes smoothly with minimal burn considering it comes in at a pretty big 11%.

The O.C. is a great imperial stout with a nice balance of citrus and chocolate notes that brings together the tart and sweet ingredients perfectly. Make sure to grab a bottle and enjoy while also donating to a great organization in Food Forward.