Thirsty Thursday knows that the weekend is almost here, and that the classy members of the Destructoid community may want some tasty beverages that don't come from the “big three” brewers. Here's your weekly look at the world of craft beer.
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Founders Kentucky Breakfast Stout
Founders Brewing Company

Style: Imperial Stout
IBUs: 25
Color: Black Unfiltered
Alcohol by Volume: 10 %

From the Brewers:
A bit of backwoods pleasure without the banjo. This stout is brewed with a hint of coffee and vanilla then aged in oak bourbon barrels. Our process ensures that strong bourbon undertones come through in the finish in every batch we brew. We recommend decanting at room temperature and best enjoyed in a brandy snifter.

The Experts:
The beer pours out black as night and looks to be as thick as molasses. It poured with almost no head, just leaving a dark tan ring around the top. Stouts often have hints of coffee. This beer reeked of coffee. Starbucks only wished they could smell this good... To drink it while cold is like drinking a cup of strong cold coffee, and it was bitterly cold, with an emphasis on bitter. This is definitely a beer that gets better as it warms up... And as it warms up, the coffee bitters give way to caramel, toffee, and other roasted scents. The taste mellows. And as it continues to warm, the bourbon flavors really begin to stand out... The complexities of the beer's characteristics are fascinating. It's the type of beer that could please many varied tastebuds. If you love the bitterness of coffee, drink it while cold. If you love the taste of bourbon, drink it at room temperature. If want a mix of both, drink it at a temperature somewhere between. - Hoosier Beer Geek

Inky, murky black. It blocks all the light in the room, put it that way. This brew also features a dark espresso coloured head of foam that lasts and leaves massive legs/sheets of lacing. Aromas are all roasted malts, espresso, green/acidic hops, bourbon and oak! Taste is more of the same. The espresso notes are fantastic on this beer and the bourbon and oak flavors are well meshed and meld this one together into a fantastic drink! One of the best stouts I've had in the past few months, a real knockout. Mouthfeel is thick, and chewy. Drinkability is almost perfect, the abv and intense flavors top this from being an all 5er in my book though. - francisweizen, BeerAdvocate.com

My Take:
Finally, a combination of two of my favorite things: Bourbon and beer. After covering some beers from the left and right coasts over the last two weeks, I figured it was time for a midwestern brew. Pours a coal black color, with a nice mocha-y head. You don't get much variance from what is advertised in the nose, as the beer smells of coffee and bourbon, with some hints of oak and vanilla. Flavor is coffee in the front and bourbon in the back. Really nice chocolaty flavor in there too from the malts. Really remarkably drinkable, and a great mix of complementary flavors. As a stout lover, the beer hits all the marks in color, flavor and smell. As a whiskey lover, the beer knocks it out of the park in ABV and drinkability.

Recommended if you like: Stouts or liquor. If you like stouts (say, Guinness) and haven't had an Imperial or Breakfast stout before you're in for a nice surprise. You get a fuller body and mouthfeel than with regular stouts, and I certainly can't complain about the alcohol content.

Availability: Good luck. Going by BeerAdvocate's beer locater, Founders is available in Wisconsin, Massachusetts, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Pennsylvania, and the brewers home state of Michigan. Other than that, check your local beer shop. Founders is fairly good about getting their beer out, so you may be able to get it shipped to your store.

Enjoy While Playing: Burnout Paradise. Kentucky Breakfast Stout gives you a chance to combine the excitement of traditional beer-fueled drunk driving with the aggression brought on by southern liquor. Win-win(-win).

Previously:
Dogfish Head 60 Minute IPA
Alaskan Smoked Porter

[If cocktails are more your speed, check out Excremento's C-Blog and his excellent “Look, I drink” series]