All Day IPA

The Beer Stats:

• Beer Name: All Day IPA

• Brewery: Founder's Brewing Company (Michigan) 

• Style: Session IPA

• ABV: 4.7%

• IBU: 42

• Pour Color: Golden straw color easily seen thru

      The Face poured it and we found it was a nice see thru gold color. The carbonation seemed rather high as bubbles are seen all over the glass. The head sat at about a inch and hung around for a good while. The lacing went down the whole glass. The scent off the top was a piney/earthy combination. Much stronger and bolder then most session IPAs. The taste came through as a piney grassy taste. The malts, unlike alot of founders beers, stayed very mellow. It comes across as almost a wheat beer flavor.
      Normally I expect a session ale to be rather light and boring. Although in the vein of most craft beer types they just are too mellow to really be a everyday pick up. I find this one to be different. The hops that a IPA lover is looking for is strong in this beer. Both scent and flavor you get a nice kick. Although since the ABV is lower you can drink two or three of these and still golf. You really might have a hard time doing the same with two or three breakfast stouts! It's definitely worth spending all day with this IPA!

Rating: ****1/2

Breakfast Stout

The Beer Stats:

• Beer Name: Breakfast Stout

• Brewery: Founder's Brewing Company (Michigan) 

• Style: Imperial Stout

• ABV: 8.3%

• IBU: 60

• Pour Color: Black through and through!

      The pour came out a deep black that even held up to light you couldn't see. The head wasn't anything spectacular, it was half a finger. Not much of a match for the mustache. The scent is a deep roasted scent. You also catch a slight coffee chocolate mix off the top. The coffee and the chocolate come through very bitter on taste. Strong smokey roasted flavors are complimented with a nice earth hop flavor. You also get a strong flavor of the alcohol in this one. Over all really delicious!
      They call this a breakfast stout. The coffee flavor works that way easy. I can't see myself drinking this in the mourning though. It's got a nice thick body, like you would want from a early drinking day, but way to strong. With the high ABV you're not gonna drink to many in a day. The taste of alcohol makes it hard to drink early too. I think as a night cap though, PERFECT!

Rating: ****1/2

Dirty Bastard Ale

The Beer Stats:

• Beer Name: Dirty Bastard

• Brewery: Founders Brewing Company (Michigan)

• Style: Scotch Ale

• ABV: 8.5%

• IBU: 50

• Pour Color: A brown color on pour that turns a nice red in the light. Can't see through it though.

      This caramel color in the glass is just amazing. A glowing red color as light fights to pass through this darker ale. The head really was just a island and around the edge of the glass. The scent off the top is a sweet caramel malt scent. Slight hint of fuityness to the bouquet too. Upon tasting I'm wondering where the 8.5% alcohol is. This is a great balance to a beer and leaves it really easy drinking. You get nice roasted and sweet caramel malts that mix to make a really nice scotch ale. A light raisiny taste comes through too. The 50 IBU level doesn't seem the case while tasting this one.  You get a nice earthy hops flavor but no real bitterness to me. Overall one of the best scotch ales I've ever had!
      This was one that I was waiting to find and try. Anytime I mentioned any other scotch ale, to those who know, they always asked me if I had a Dirty Bastard. Another one from founders here that really was worth the wait. This is the best scotch ale I have tasted so far for this review. Macbubba is good, Old Chub is great, Dirty Bastard though is BETTER!

Rating: *****

Dry Hopped Pale Ale

The Beer Stats:

• Beer Name: Dry Hopped Pale Ale

• Brewery: Founders Brewing Company (Michigan)

• Style: American Pale Ale

• ABV: 5.4%

• IBU: 35

• Pour Color: A nice golden color, Slightly hazy but light travels through.

      Right away on the pour you can see the hazy dots floating in the pale. A nice sign that this one was dry hopped! The head on the top of the beer was fairly lack luster. Came up slightly and disappeared quick. The smell off the glass was quite malty. A sweat wheat scent. The hops scent was slightly grassy. On taste the malts have a slight toasty taste. There is a mix of bitter flavors in this pale. A nice pine and almost lime citrus flavor. The bitter isn't deep but you know it's there! Overall a really good pale.
      Another beer from founders and another good one. The malts are done in a decent way but the hops are the star of this one. Seems more bitter then the 35 it says on the bottle. The dry hop taste comes through nicely on this one and brightens everything up. A really refreshing beer for a summer or winter day.

Rating: ****1/2

Red's Rye IPA

The Beer Stats:

• Beer Name: Red's Rye IPA

• Brewery: Founders Brewing Company (Michigan)

• Style: Red Rye IPA

• ABV: 6.6%

• IBU: 70

• Pour Color: Slightly hazy red color to this one. Light travels through easy

      The head up top this one was big and came up just over two fingers. Nice and thick for a few sips. It would hang out at the edges for the rest of the glass. The color in the glass was a transparent red. It had a haziness to it too. Just dots suspended in the liquid. A malty hoppy scent off the top. Very sweet caramel scented. You still get a nice earthy aroma from the hops though. The taste is really well ballenced. A strange flavor packed sip in the mouth and a strong taste but a nice clean finish. You get a nice spicy taste in the mouth prolly from the rye kick. It also has a nice citrus hop kick to it. The bitter plays off the sweet too well in this one. A delicious balance that surpasses most beers that I have tasted!
      Founders just recently started poping up in my area of NY. I had heard of it for awhile but never could get it. Well worth the wait though! This is another great example of hugely hoppy red ale. I would say this along with cascazilla are some of my favorite red ales out there. I love the caramel character and hopping that out is a real treat for anymustache. Go get one of these now!

Rating: *****

Vanilla Java Porter

The Beer Stats:

• Beer Name: Vanilla Java Porter

• Brewery: Atwater Block Brewery (Michigan) 
  

• Style: Java Porter

• ABV: 6.0%

• IBU: 12

• Pour Color: A brown color once poured in the glass.

      Once opened and poured this one gives off that great coffee scent. A nice tone of chocolate comes off the glass too. The head didn't really come to fruition but left a creamy foam on the top of the beer. As it splashed up the vanilla was all I could taste at first. A strong taste of extract more then anything. After the first few sips the coffee and chocolate taste come forward with a nice roasted smoke. The vanilla really is the only down side of this nice full bodied beer. 
      Michigan checks in with this one. Really bold flavors and a thick full bodied beer. I found the vanilla to taste to extract like though. Maybe if it was toned back it wouldn't have almost a maple end to it. Pretty good overall if your looking to drink one. Two or Three may get a little heavy on a mustache.

Rating: ***