Founders Brewing KBS is one of the Grand Rapids brewery’s most sought after and most beloved beers. The bourbon barrel aged stout often sells out quickly in every retail establishment in which it is available and craft beer fans count down the days to each release. Today, we are told that Founders Brewing is expanding on its KBS beer with a new version: KBS Espresso, a beer aged a second time on espresso beans for an even greater coffee emphasis.
Founders Brewmaster Jeremy Kosmicki says he and his team tested several ingredients to use in the creation of a KBS variant, but espresso won in the end.
“We’ve had some fun aging KBS in different barrels like maple syrup, which worked out great, and hot sauce, which didn’t quite work out,” said Kosmicki. “But, for our first ever ‘official’ variant of KBS, we decided to amplify a flavor that’s already at the heart of this beer – coffee. And not just any coffee, it’s the dark, roasted goodness that can only come from espresso beans, roasted by our Grand Rapids neighbors, Ferris Coffee & Nut,” Kosmicki added.
KBS Espresso kicks off Founders 2020 Barrel- Aged Series and will be followed by six other barrel- aged beer releases throughout the 2020 year. KBS will, of course, be one of the releases, as will Backwoods Bastard. Craft beer fans will need to wait patiently for news on the other four barrel- aged brews.
KBS Espresso weighs in at 12 percent alcohol by volume and will be available in 4- packs of 12 oz. bottles; 750 ml bottles; and on draft with an official launch date of November 15 in the Grand Rapids, Michigan taproom. It will be available throughout Founders distribution footprint through February of 2020. The only distribution limitations are in Utah, where it will not be sold on draft and in Mississippi, where it will not be available at all due to state restrictions.
We at Great Beer Now are huge fans of KBS and we love coffee beers in general. The thought of adding even more coffee goodness to KBS through aging on roasted espresso beans is enough to make us send a special request to Founders, asking that Jeremy and crew set up a permanent tapping system from Grand Rapids to our Texas home. It’s a beer we can’t wait to try and a beer almost certain to join the large and growing list of Founders classics.
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