TGIF! I stopped on my way home and picked up a 4-pack of Founder’s Backwoods Bastard. It wasn’t cold yet, so I threw it in the fridge. It got me in the mood for a good beer and I decided to finally drink this one. It was sent to me by @BelgianExpert a while ago and I figure that at 12% ABV it might be good to put a little bit of age on it. The bottle says 18/6/2014, which I think might be a best before date.
Location: Poured into a TEKU pint glass at my home in Bloomington, IL
Numbers: 12% ABV, ~370 Calories
Appearance & Aroma: It’s a cloudy, dark amber color with bits of yeast floating in it. It has a ton of carbonation in it, but there’s only a ring of bubbles around the edge of the glass. In the nose, I get a good dose of CO2 from the carbonation, along with a mild maltiness and a bit of spiciness.
Taste & Feel: The body is medium, and feels surprisingly light for such a big beer. The mouthfeel is fairly crisp from all of the carbonation it it. The flavor up front is malty and toffee-like with some hints of dark fruit. In the middle, there’s some earthy-spicy bitterness and a bit of alcohol. The finish is mostly a yeasty maltiness with hints of dark fruit and peppery spiciness. The aftertaste is mostly malty-yeasty with a bit of alcohol warmth after a few sips.
Food Pairing: The malty yeastiness would be a great pairing with a steak or other beef dish, especially with the peppery spiciness mixing in with the flavors from the food.
Overall Impression: The maltiness was a nice flavor with some toffee, dark fruit and spiciness in the background. The earthy-spicy bittneress mixed nicely with it, and it went down very easily for being such a big beer. I really liked the alcohol warmth in the aftertaste. Overall, this was a good beer, and I think I may buy another one to see what it tastes like when it’s fresher.
My Rating: 
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