KBS - Espresso
Founders Brewing Company

KBS - EspressoKBS - Espresso
Beer Geek Stats | Print Shelf Talker
From:
Founders Brewing Company
 
Michigan, United States
Style:
American Imperial Stout
Ranked #184
ABV:
12%
Score:
98
Ranked #415
Avg:
4.42 | pDev: 6.11%
Reviews:
276
Ratings:
775
Status:
Active
Rated:
Mar 11, 2024
Added:
Jul 15, 2019
Wants:
  29
Gots:
  69
KBS gets its coffee fix in the very first variant to come from our beloved bourbon barrel-aged stout. Yes, KBS may already be brewed with coffee, but it gets some extra oomph when it’s aged on espresso beans after being removed from barrels. The result is a fresh and snappy coffee twist on our classic barrel-aged beer. Who says you can’t start your day with a barrel-aged stout?

KBS stands for "Kentucky Breakfast Stout"

ABV varies by batch.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by Peach63:
Photo of Peach63
Reviewed by Peach63 from New York

4.54/5  rDev +2.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
Pours deep mahogany with a 1 1/2 inch beautiful, thick, foamy tan head, which lasts. Heavy lacing to the end.

Strong aroma of coffee, chocolate, roast malts.

Taste is bitter coffee, cocoa, bourbon, oak.

Full bodied, thick and oily. Light carbonation. Dry, astringent finish.

One of the best coffee flavored stouts out there.
Dec 15, 2020
More User Ratings:
Photo of The_Snow_Bird
Reviewed by The_Snow_Bird from Michigan

4.55/5  rDev +2.9%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
Pours very dark with a small light colored head on top that goes away quickly. Smells of espresso, chocolate and a hint of barrel and something else sweet. Strong taste of espresso and barrel.
Mar 11, 2024
 
Rated: 5 by RBorsato from Virginia

Feb 17, 2024
Photo of Lanoke12
Reviewed by Lanoke12 from Michigan

4.6/5  rDev +4.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
Look is dark black. Smell is of bourbon, chocolate and coffee. Taste is slightly bitter coffee mixed with bourbon. Feel is thick and full bodied. Great KBS variant and coffee beer.
Dec 22, 2023
 
Rated: 4.29 by petrusek23 from Ohio

Aug 27, 2023
Photo of SpaceCamp
Reviewed by SpaceCamp from Virginia

4.34/5  rDev -1.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
L: Pours a dark, thick hickory, forming a thin chestnut head. Fades at a moderate pace. Nice ring of soapy lacing around the snifter and a lasting effervescence in the middle with a scattered, thin lacing of retention. Held to the light, this beer has a near-black, dark cacao hue. Zero visibility.

S: Bourbon barrel, coffee beans, cacao nibs, and roasted malts.

T: Espresso, dark chocolate stout base, roasted malts stand out in the beginning. A hint of vanilla and burnt sugar expresses towards the middle, followed by spicy oak from the bourbon barrel and light char. A flourish of cherry towards the finish.

F: Full-bodied, rich and silky. Has a fair amount of carbonation.

O: Another good entry from Founders and nice take on the original KBS. No weak spots, probably not the best KBS iteration but it's a strong beer in its own right. Coffee lovers' delight.
Jul 10, 2023
 
Rated: 4.21 by mdaschaf from Indiana

Jun 18, 2023
Photo of Orca
Reviewed by Orca from Washington

4.35/5  rDev -1.6%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
12oz bottle (bottled 8/19/2021) into a tulip. Pours a rich opaque black with a nice nut brown head.

Aroma is big dark roasted malt, bitter chocolate, and coffee. Really nice nutty character when the glass is swirled.

Taste follows nose. Rich and complex, bitter, roasty. Espresso, chocolate, a hint of bourbon and oak, a touch of vanilla. Nicely warming as it goes down.

Mouthfeel is velvety smooth, full bodied, finishes semi-dry.

Overall a very nice KBS variant and a tasty coffee stout.
Apr 20, 2023
Photo of wanmei_xiatian
Reviewed by wanmei_xiatian from Washington

4.21/5  rDev -4.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Look: dark
Smell: The smell is extraordinary. It has a pleasant aroma of sweetness, chocolate and coffee beans.
Taste: Not as good as the smell. Very clean, light coffee and chocolate flavor. But I hope its flavor can be stronger and has more depth of flavor.
Apr 09, 2023
Photo of sglooney316
Reviewed by sglooney316 from Texas

5/5  rDev +13.1%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5
Pour onto a beer glass from a 12oz glass bottle, date of bottle Aug 19,2021. 12%ABV

LOOK: Dark brown with 1/4in head

SMELL: Coffee and chocolate

TASTE: Coffee and chocolate

FEEL: Well balanced flavors.

OVERALL: Outstanding beer. Highly recommended
Mar 27, 2023
Photo of catlady540
Rated by catlady540 from Michigan

5/5  rDev +13.1%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5
Smooth. Creamy. Rich expresso flavor. Beautiful creamy head. Lucky to score a small keg of this. Spoiled for other stouts.
Mar 11, 2023
Photo of brentk56
Reviewed by brentk56 from North Carolina

4.21/5  rDev -4.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
Appearance: Pours fudge brown with a thin tan film that fades to a collar; speckles of lacing

Smell: Chocolate, vanilla and espresso with an underpinning of Bourbon

Taste: Milk chocolate forward with the espresso flavors developing; through the middle, the Bourbon arrives to complement and contrast with the sweet elements; slightly boozy finish

Mouthfeel: Full bodied with moderate carbonation

Overall: It has been a while since I have had KBS and I think this is a bit sweeter than I remember but, then again, Stouts have gotten sweeter and they may have tweaked the recipe to get into the glidepath; still, quite good
Feb 24, 2023
Photo of aleigator
Reviewed by aleigator from Germany

4.34/5  rDev -1.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
Yields a jet black color with a mohagony colored medium sized head, which vanishes immediately.

Aromas are full of smoky, chocolate covered espresso beans, topped off by glazed caramel and spicy oak.

The body of the beer is viscous and complex, with a late effervescent spark, making this quite well balanced with a nice refreshment to it.

Tastes of a well nuanced, powerful blend of fresh pressed coffee, together with a good amount of caramel, hazelnuts and a hint of meaty Sherry within spicy and warming oak barrel. Has a soft and creamy middle part, with dryer turning coffee, developing a pleasant bitterness, which gets easily balanced by sweet coconut blossom sugar. Finishes with a well accentuated dry- and spiciness, amped up by salty molasses, calming bakers chocolate and maintaining, complex appearing coffee beans.

This is outstandingly well done, with a fantastic complexity, balance and top notch mouthfeel to it.
Feb 12, 2023
 
Rated: 4.25 by bacher468 from Pennsylvania

Jan 27, 2023
Photo of MadMadMike
Reviewed by MadMadMike from France

4.59/5  rDev +3.8%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
2021 vint, 12 ounce bottle into a Founders Brewing snifter at 53°.
Generous brown foam rises as darkness falls. Aroma of a colada of Cuban coffee forces its way into the room. No doubt about where this is going.,.
Tastes like as good of a Coffee Stout as I’ve ever had. Big roast malt.,. meet big roast coffee. Put a drizzle of dark chocolate on it, add a dried black cherry and a short horn of bourbon. All day.
Feel is velvet with a sweet little bite. Mid to low carb. Smoove.
Overall, Founders nails the art of the nipple pinch with a Stout that is as good at 10 AM as it is at 10 PM.,.
Jan 15, 2023
Photo of flagmantho
Reviewed by flagmantho from Washington

4.44/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
Poured from 12oz bottle into my BeerAdvocate teku. This was bottled 10/21/20, so it has a little age on it, which should be just fine for a 12% stout.

Appearance: totally black with a thick finger of creamy tan foam atop. Looking damn good!

Smell: richly sweet with plenty of coffee and chocolate. The bourbon is prominent, but not overdone, and the coffee, while for sure present, is subtle in a welcome way. Rich and interesting.

Taste: sweet, complex malt, with hints of date, raisin, tobacco, and cherry. The coffee is way more subdued at this level than in the aroma; perhaps it's getting lost behind all those lovely malt flavors. The bourbon adds some heat toward the end, but this is balanced by the (admittedly heavy) sweetness. I think it's great.

Mouthfeel: big, rich body with a good level of carbonation and a wonderfully smooth creaminess.

Overall: this is a rock-solid beer. The underlying stout is so good that the espresso and bourbon aren't gimmicky -- they really all work together to create something delightful.
Nov 23, 2022
 
Rated: 4.68 by joran from Kansas

Nov 20, 2022
 
Rated: 4.5 by FLBeerGuy from Florida

Nov 20, 2022
 
Rated: 4.75 by chiefz1 from New York

Nov 12, 2022
 
Rated: 4.77 by RoyalKaiju from Kentucky

Nov 06, 2022
KBS - Espresso from Founders Brewing Company
Beer rating: 98 out of 100 with 775 ratings