CBS (Canadian Breakfast Stout)
Founders Brewing Company

CBS (Canadian Breakfast Stout)CBS (Canadian Breakfast Stout)
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From:
Founders Brewing Company
 
Michigan, United States
Style:
American Imperial Stout
Ranked #16
ABV:
11.7%
Score:
100
Ranked #38
Avg:
4.64 | pDev: 8.19%
Reviews:
1,638
Ratings:
6,786
Status:
Active
Rated:
Mar 21, 2024
Added:
Feb 01, 2009
Wants:
  4,542
Gots:
  1,864
The legendary CBS returns! CBS is a bold imperial stout featuring chocolate and coffee that has aged in bourbon barrels with maple syrup. The sweet, but balanced, aromas of maple syrup and chocolate fill the air, while notes of toasted oak and vanilla become more profound with every sip – melding together in what can only be described as a transcendent drinking experience.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by Darkmagus82:
Photo of Darkmagus82
Reviewed by Darkmagus82 from Texas

4.99/5  rDev +7.5%
look: 4.75 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5
Poured from bottle into a snifter glass

Appearance – The beer pours a thick and viscous black color with a one finger of tan colored head. The head has a good level of retention, slowly fading to leave a moderate level of lace on the sides of the glass.

Smell – The aroma of the beer is of a huge and delicious coffee and roasted malt smell mixed with a strong showing of chocolate. Along with these big and robust darker aromas are strong notes of maple syrup as well as sweet darker fruit smells of raisin, fig, and plum. A decent amount of a bourbon and vanilla are there as well and seem to add a nice dimension of warmth to the aroma inviting one to come and sip the fine roasted nectar that awaits the tongue.

Taste – The taste begins with a sweet chocolate and roasted malt flavor with the sweetness being a fine balance of maple syrup, vanilla, caramel and the darker fruits that were detected in the nose. While quite dark and roasty upfront, it gains even more robustness in the roast being accompanied by some smooth espresso flavors matched by a faint smokiness. The sweeter flavors all the while stay strong, wonderfully balancing out the big tastes of the brew. Around the middle of flavor profile comes some bourbon tastes mixed with a bit of a woodsy flavor. These flavors, like their counterpart aromas did, bring a warming taste to the brew, bringing on just the right level of “heat”. Right at the very end, after the warm has hit the tongue, a slight surge in the maple syrup flavor is delivered, culminating the taste and leaving a wonderfully smooth and warmingly sweet and roasted, but balanced flavor to linger on the tongue.

Mouthfeel – The body of the beer is huge and thick with a lighter but creamy level of carbonation. The combo of thick body and subdued carbonation is magnificent for the big and bold blend of flavors in this dark roasty brew and truly create a fantastic medium for all the flavors of the brew a to bath the tongue in all the richness of flavor.

Overall – This is one amazing beer. One of the best if not the best stout I have ever had, and competes with the world wide I had run through the vanilla coffee randall. It is super smooth and approachable with a wonderful blend of flavors that make it a true pleasure to sit back and sip.
May 09, 2014
More User Ratings:
Photo of BubbleBobble
Reviewed by BubbleBobble from New York

4.49/5  rDev -3.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
2017 Vintage. Pours near black with a robust 2" head that settles to a solid cocoa cap, thin streaks of lacing. Nose is coffee grounds, cocoa, baking chocolate, roasted barley and malt; very light barrel and maple at this point. As it warms, a little more maple character, along with some light soy. Taste remains well balanced even after 6+ years - maple sweetness, malt/roast, tannic barrel; cola-like citrus sweetness. Remarkable how well this has held up. Feel is light for the ABV and compared to other adjunct stouts. Having had so many imitators, was expecting the original to pale in comparison; instead, it not only held up, but surpassed the competition.
Mar 21, 2024
 
Rated: 4.6 by soarinsteven from Illinois

Mar 09, 2024
Photo of moysauce
Rated by moysauce from Illinois

4.58/5  rDev -1.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5
2018 vintage, review from my untappd
Mar 06, 2024
Photo of defunksta
Reviewed by defunksta from Wisconsin

4.23/5  rDev -8.8%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
Appearance: Pours a completely dark color with a massive dark tan head that pillows and lingers. (4.25)

Aroma: Strong aromas of cocoa, coffee, bittersweet notes upfront. Balanced and complex. (4.25)

Flavor: Strong flavors of cocoa and chocolate upfront that balance with coffee. Then a sweet and rich chocolate, bourbon, and maple flavor follow. Sweet with a mild coffee roast off the finish. (4.25)

Feel: Heavier-bodied, strong carbonation. Mild roast. Smooth, heavy, but balanced and not too sweet. (4.00)

Overall: First try at this World-Class rated Stout. Founders doesn't make bad ones so have high expectations. The pour is beautiful. Aromas are spot on. Chocolate, coffee, yet with a complexity you can't describe. Backs it up on the flavor with the addition of some maple, honey, and bourbon sweetness. Still complex with a balanced finish. Not sure why they held this one back and why it's not easy to find, but this could easily be an annual release. I've learned to try every stout from Founders without question. (Rating: 4.23)
Feb 23, 2024
Photo of NickSMpls
Reviewed by NickSMpls from Washington

4.62/5  rDev -0.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75
Deep, rich pour. Nose is maple and bourbon, chocolate. First sip brings up the coffee and bourbon, dark chocolate follows close behind. Long finish. It's beer heaven.
Feb 15, 2024
Photo of tt100
Reviewed by tt100 from Ohio

4.64/5  rDev 0%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.75
I always find it hard to believe they can make this taste aged when it's freshly bottled. Years ago the maple would be strong unless you waited on it. The last few years the maple is perfectly blended. Magical...
Feb 08, 2024
Photo of Cdriver0414
Reviewed by Cdriver0414 from Kentucky

5/5  rDev +7.8%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5
I don't know what to say about this vmbeer that isn't already known. Founders makes some amazing stouts and this is one of their best. I cannot recommend it enough.
Feb 07, 2024
Photo of PaulMayer
Reviewed by PaulMayer from Illinois

4.88/5  rDev +5.2%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.75
This is sublime. I lack the experience or vocabulary to call myself a connoisseur or expert rater of beers, but at the moment I’m drinking this, it could be the most delicious beer I’ve ever had, even better than the Belgian quads I love so much. And when you get right down to it, any beer — or any food, any experience — that is this transcendentally satisfying deserves to be thought of as one of the best.
Jan 29, 2024
 
Rated: 4.79 by BLVBBERGIXLL from Arizona

Jan 13, 2024
 
Rated: 4.9 by SeanP99 from North Carolina

Jan 11, 2024
Photo of highdesertdrinker
Reviewed by highdesertdrinker from Arizona

4.5/5  rDev -3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
Pours a deep brown with ample tan head. It smell like chocolate, dark malts, maple. The taste is chocolate, maple, a little coffee, some wood, barrel, a little dry with some hops.
One of my favorite beers and certainly stouts and it is a smooth beverage that is dangerous drinkable, cheers!
Jan 07, 2024
Photo of LeRose
Reviewed by LeRose from Massachusetts

4.67/5  rDev +0.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.5
This is a 2018 vintage bottle.

Pours opaque dark brown to black but with red and amber highlights on the edges when held up to light. Hefty khaki head that persists, falls to a modest cap, but foam coats the glass beautifully.

The aroma is great, but maybe subdued by age. Coffee and sweet chocolate, bourbon barrel and vanilla, base stout and very faint maple as if warms up.

Taste - coffee, chocolate on the sweeter side, just a touch of bourbon, some vanilla and the maple shows up late but blends jn smoothly. All on top of roasty base grains and the OG stout. Superb, smoothly integrated.

Feel is thick but not syrupy or sticky. It's not highly carbonated. Luxurious and smooth.

Tremendous beer - not much more thst one can say about it.
Jan 02, 2024
 
Rated: 4.34 by sewerchewer from New York

Dec 31, 2023
 
Rated: 5 by Oktoberfest from Ohio

Dec 30, 2023
 
Rated: 4.53 by guzzleacoldone from Ohio

Dec 16, 2023
Photo of FRANKHAZE
Rated by FRANKHAZE from Florida

2.5/5  rDev -46.1%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5
KBS is superior in all aspects and costs about 10$ less than a CBS 4-pack.. makes absolutely no sense to purchase this beer. KBS > CBS.
Dec 06, 2023
 
Rated: 4.88 by BeerJesus from South Carolina

Dec 02, 2023
 
Rated: 4.74 by RalphStanley34 from French Polynesia

Nov 29, 2023
 
Rated: 4.75 by Nyoder

Nov 26, 2023
CBS (Canadian Breakfast Stout) from Founders Brewing Company
Beer rating: 100 out of 100 with 6786 ratings