It's mid-March so that means that another of my Holy Grail beers is in season. That beer is Founder's Kentucky Breakfast Stout. I have never had it, but my friends Steve and Alex still talk about that fateful night a year ago when they found it at a local bar in PA. They still say that night was magical and the beer was one of the best they ever had. In case you don't know what KBS is, here is the Founders description of it:
"What we've got here is an imperial stout brewed with a massive amount of coffee and chocolates, then cave-aged in oak bourbon barrels for an entire year to make sure wonderful bourbon undertones come through in the finish. Makes your taste buds squeal with delight."
It's 11.2% ABV and 70 IBUs. And I have five bottles of it.
The Chase
I'm not usually a beer-chaser. I have only done it once, for Founders Curmudgeon's Better Half. I'm glad I did, but that was a much quieter release that Founders' KBS or CBS ever are. This year's KBS release at Founders tasting room didn't exactly go as planned. Founders had promised a case to everyone that showed up but, upon seeing the turnout, changed their minds and only allowed 12 bottles per person. They said next year they are making triple the amount that they made this year and implementing a lottery system on release day.
Anyway, back to my chase. The last 36 hours have been filled with a lot of emotions for me. I was hopeful that I would get some last night when the Total Wine near me got three cases of it. I left work at lunch time, only to pull into my parking spot as the last 4-pack walked out the door. Three cases were gone in 7 minutes. The distributor was inside the store when I got there and he said there was another Total Wine that was getting it this morning. I also had a Whole Foods trip queued up for the following morning, so I thought, why not?
This morning, I called Total Wine at 9:02 am (they open at 9) and they said they had some in stock. I wasn't prepared for this. I thought they wouldn't have it until later in the day. I hopped in my car and made the 30-minute drive, but was only able to score one bottle of it, as the store was limiting it to one bottle per person. It was a bummer, but hey, at least I had one bottle. The same distributor was at that Total Wine and he said he had already delivered it to the Whole Foods. I jumped in my car and booked it back to Whole Foods. I didn't see any on the shelf so I went to customer service. The nice woman there told me that they were all out... except for the 4-pack that was behind her on the counter, reserved for her. But wait, she said; the other Whole Foods might still have some. She called them for me and they said if I could get there within an hour, they would hold it for me. I hopped back in my car and traveled another 30 minutes to the other Whole Foods. They had my 4-pack waiting. The guy said they had seven left, but unfortunately it was one per person. Which was okay. I shouldn't be the only person to enjoy this beer. Five bottles is enough to have some now and age some.
The Tasting
I am literally tasting this as I am writing. I have a full glass sitting next to me that hasn't been touched yet. Here we go. The aroma has lots of chocolate and coffee notes, but there is definitely a hint of bourbon in there as well. First sip: wow, definitely lots of chocolate and coffee up front and a bite of bourbon. It finishes smooth and leaves the bourbon behind on your taste buds. It's really an extremely complex beer; there is so much going on in it. The more I sip, the more I taste the mounds of chocolate in this thing. The bourbon becomes almost an afterthought until you start feeling the beer leave your palate. The bourbon is what gets left behind, while the chocolate and coffee finish dry. Also, I wouldn't even have realized this beer is 70 IBUs if I hadn't read it on the label. No real hoppy notes at all, just lots of chocolate, coffee, and bourbon. Excellent beer, and definitely worth the trouble to get it.
I also want to post a homebrew update, but I don't have time right now. I'll post that soon. For now, I'm going to finish this amazing beer and maybe have some more.
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