No Founders up here?

I'd love to be able to get Founders Imperial Stout, Founders Porter, Bell's Expedition, and Bell's Black Note here. But mostly because of the format. Seems most good stouts and porters available locally come in 22s, and I'm finally coming around to @beertunes' thinking on those. Would also love to be able to get Two Hearted cans, maybe someday.

As for local alternatives, I had Snoqualmie Steam Train and Founders Porter not too far apart from each other quite a while back and found them to be reasonably equivalent. Black Butte and Obsidian have been mentioned. I've never really gotten what's so great about Founder's Breakfast Stout; good but not that good. A lot of the other ones mentioned in this thread aren't year round, which is kind of the OP's point. Maybe we do need more brown/black shelf beers, but maybe there's just not a market for them for some reason?

 

Including Founders' Breakfast Stout and Imperial Stout. Same goes for all of Bell's stouts except for Kalamazoo Stout, incidentally.

I'd love to have a good oatmeal stout option available year-round in 12-ounce bottles. (Sounds like it might be time for me to give Ninkasi Oatis another shot?)

 

Oh.

I've heard good things about Fremont Dark Star, available in 12oz cans. I'll be going on a beer run shortly, optimistically hoping to find a bottle of Holy Mountain The Goat ... think I might break down and finally pick up a Dark Star while I'm out. You know, for the Grateful Dead anniversary. And science.

 

Hmmm...I wonder if I can get that in Vancouver. Might be worth a beer run over the river. For science. As one does.

 

Those are all barrel aged beers. So for founders you can include KBS and CBS to make it fair...Ive never had either but seems like those two are pretty well thought of...and BBomb is a BA Strong Ale, not a stout/porter so you would have to exclude it to make it fair as well...

 

I have had and liked all of those except i have not had Smores or Roast Espress Stout and I didnt like Salted Caramel...too sweet for me...but good list for sure!

 

Obsidian is a great beer and I almost mentioned it being an amazing year round, readily available beer but I gave Founders Breakfast Stout and Imperial Stout both 4.5 so I rated them both a bit higher.

 

Regular Dark Star occasionally pops up at Vancouver Total Wine. You can check their website to see if it's in stock, cans and/or bombers at times. Real time inventory

 

Sadly, these are only in the hated 22oz format, but Flyers Pacemaker Porter will scratch that itch nicely. Skagit River Trumpeter Stout is a really nice beer, and it ages very well. I've still got a few '09s left and they're very nice indeed. The Boundary Bay Imperial Oatmeal Stout is another 22oz option that doesn't get a ton of attention.

It's not packaged (unless y'all sweet talk me into sending ya a growler) but a beer that has earned it's way into any discussion of PNW Stouts is Wanders Correspondent Stout. Not sure if kegs of that make it out into their distro system, but if you see it, you should try it.

 

Years ago I really liked Trumpeter when it was briefly showing up in Spokane-area bottleshops. I dropped a few hints to my brother when he was living in Mt.V. that a Christmas or birthday present that included it would be very welcome. These hints were disregarded. Next time I'm at TW, I gotta remember to look for it.

 

John answered your primary question in post #3, and since nobody was chiming in with peninsula-specific info, think of the other posts as suggestions to look for when you visit bottleshops. Silver City makes good beer, so I'd also suggest any porter/stout offerings from them. It's also possible that nothing will compare to Founders (for you).

 

Yeah, multiple conversational tangents and diversions are kind of a thing in the NW forum. Sorry about that.

 

You obviously don't know how NW forums operate.

 

I suggest Fremont Dark Star (I keep it in frequent rotation when in season).

 

Too bad you don't know anybody who would send you some.

 

The Flyers Pacemaker porter should be a shelf beer over there. Silver City's Panther Lake Porter should also be easy to find as well.












See, I can post without straying from the topic. If I have to.

 

I don't know if this helps any since it's just a one time solution, but if you're really jonesing for some Founder's, I'll be on Bainbridge Island in a week and will probably be around the peninsula a bit over that next week+. I have 1 KBS, 2 Backwoods, and 2 Imp Stouts sitting around, I'm pretty sure. I think Devil Dancer is actually available at a few places right now too, if you're into that. I could bring a few things up if you wanted to trade some local stuff. Whatever you thought was reasonable.

 

They're only really available in 22s but Sound Brewing in Poulsbo is doing some awesome stuff all around. Don't know where you're living in the Peninsula but Poulsbo is over near Kingston. Unfortunately for us stout lovers, there just aren't that many options available in six packs in stores regularly. Alaskan is pretty good. Velvet merlin is excellent but seasonal. Oatis and Cavatica are both good. A few others. Sigh.