Founders Curmudgeon Old Ale

Brewed by Founders Brewing Company
Style: Old Ale
Grand Rapids, Michigan USA

12oz fresh stubby. Pours a dark orange, Barleywine-esque color, with a steady but small off white head. Hazy, muddy color. Aroma is surprisingly unique and interesting. Very floral, potpourri noticeable. A sudden memory smacks me as I smell this. Something very distinct, very singular jumps out. I try very hard to pinpoint it. Sushi? Wasabi? No. Blue cheese. Distinctly blue cheese. Stilton, Roquefort. Crazy how accurate that descriptor is right now. Pungent and cheesy. Also some dark/red fruit aromas, similar to a Flanders Red are apparent though subtle. Taste is similar to the aroma, though sweetness is very muted. This tastes a little young, not from apparent alcohol but it seems muted, non-complex; it needs to open up a little and I think age will do the trick. Very clean and the alcohol is very well hidden, especially for the ABV and age. Mouthfeel is silky and smooth, bitterness is very low. This is nice and I can’t wait to see what some time does for it.

Whiskey cider aroma. murky sienna beer with no head. whiskey malt honey cider coriander mom’s spice rack old saltyballs and fruity flavors. lasting tasy finish. superb.

Pours a deep dense hazy red-amber color. No head but a few bubbles that make a white sparse film on top of the brew. Aroma has a light floral and citrus hops character, very heavy caramel nose, a lot of rich toasted malt (Vienna or Munich) that contributes to the overall fruity and sugary profile for the brew and a very smooth light alcohol note. Flavor starts with a rich toasted malt note, light orange citrus note with it finishing with a very sweet caramel candy and toffee flavors. The feeling of the beer is very dense with a heavy sugary feeling, a moderately high fine carbonation, lots of alcohol that is hidden pretty well and a light dry finish. Nice lacing on the glass from the thin film of the beer. A great long lasting flavor and the beer as a whole is very well done and follows the style superbly. Excellent brew.

Had the bottle in my fridge for a good while. Poured small, smooth tan head that mostly diminished, no lacing, minimal carbonation, semi-transparent, and an orange brown hue. Aroma was of oak, caramel,vanilla, malty, sweet, alcohol, and earthy. Flavour was malty, caramel, vinuous, vanilla, and sweet. Dangerously smooth, tasty beer. Too bad I only had the one.

Curmudgeon has a hazy dark red pour, there are hues of burnt orange, ruby and brown in this brew, pour gave a thin covering of tiny bubbles, looks viscous and syrupy in the glass, left tiny bubbled lacing on the glass, aromas of brown sugar, toffee, caramel, dark malt, dark candy sweetness, faint aroma of tobacco in the background, reminds of opening the glass jars of tobacco in pipe shops and taking a whiff… interesting, lots of malt flavor, has a big malt sweetness, brown sugar, chocolate, light berries and candy, some hops but not a big bite, maybe this bottle has been laying around and the hops tapered off some? Alcohol warmth felt at the first sip, alcohol warmth soothes your palate, throat and all the way down to your tummy, thick mouth feel, coats the tongue and warms the palate, this would make a great sipper for a Cold Winter Evening.

Opaque tan-orange with a moderate white head. Nose has sweet vanilla and bourbon, but also a very odd creamy scent: earthy, clean, almost like mud after a rain or orange without any of the citric bite. Flavor is very similar, almost exact in fact, except even more passive. Watery palate, finish is moderate in bourbon. Overall unique but rather bland, I cannot understand what the intent was here, just really odd.

2006 version. Dark reddish brown pour with a diminishing off white head. Aroma is very strong in bourbon with not much else. Lots of bourbon flavor throughout the taste. A lot like doing a watered down shot of whiskey. Will aging do this beer well? I hope so. I think this beer needs have other flavors come out to taste more like a beer and less like whiskey. I enjoy beers with a touch of bourbon, but to have it dominate as it has in this beer, it is out of place.

Serving: 12 oz. bottle. Appearance: Deep, slightly hazy amber with a small, foamy, light tan head. The head is gone very quickly, leaving a very still pool of brew. Aroma: Earthy with a touch of paper, a bit of bourbon, slight perfume notes, and a little nuttiness. Flavor: Big boozy wood notes, some bourbon, a solid back bitterness provided by herbal hops, and then very sweet with malt. Heavy and rich. Palate: Medium, smooth carbonation with a rich, malty mouthfeel and a long, boozy finish. Suprisingly smooth given the alcohol level. Overall: A potent potable! Better have this one at the end of the night as you night will surely end after a few of these. Very rich and heavy with the booze. Not bad at all.