Founders Dirty Bastard - Founders Brewing Company

Broman

Ohio

4.69/5  rDev +15.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75

Appearance- Rich dark brown, almost black color. Moderate foamy head atop lingers around for a bit, then settles to a few spots. Decent lacing throughout.

Smell- Malts, coffee, caramel. Some other less obvious tones as well.

Mouthfeel- Medium to thick body on the palet. Just a slight hint of carbonation hits the tongue. Somewhat chewy the longer it is allowed to linger.

Taste- Somewhat heavy. Coffee and caramel on the front. Malts are what primarily make up this beer. Has a somewhat smokey flavor to it. Leaves a bit of alcohol on the end. Aftertaste leaves a somewhat bland stale flavor. Burly is the word that comes to mind when drinking this beer.

Overall- Very nice beer. Even nicer is its availability, at least here in Cleveland. Basic flavors surround this beer and seems to fit well to its style. Overall a good drink for the seasoned beer drinker, may ward off those who aren't.

Serving type: bottle

05-24-2013 04:57:12 | More by Broman

BrianScottK

New York

4.36/5  rDev +7.4%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Poured from a bottle into a tulip glass. Light scents of honey, molasses, and cloves. The color is a beautiful, deep reddish-brown or mahogany. Tastes of burnt-sugar, sourdough, toasted marshmallows, and currants on the fore. Lemongrass, oranges, and piney on the finish, with a nice, light hoppiness and a slight taste of alcohol. A wonderful beer through and through. Very well-balanced. If I had to say that it left anything to be desired, perhaps I'd enjoy a tad more hops on the finish, but that would really be nit-picking.

Serving type: bottle

05-23-2013 01:57:25 | More by BrianScottK

Bauzen

New York

4.33/5  rDev +6.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4.25

Dark fruits, caramel, brown sugar, earthy molasses, but a super-clean finish. My only gripe is an apparent lack of carbonation. I drank two bottles and both were very flat. The bubbles appear to stick around in the center of the glass instead of floating up. It's actually quite bizarre.

It's another outstanding offering from Founders. A great beer.

Serving type: bottle

05-20-2013 04:04:48 | More by Bauzen

vcoggins

Texas

3.84/5  rDev -5.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

12 oz bottle
Served in a pint glass

A - Pours a dark reddish brown with a 1 finger off white head. Decent lacing.

S - Sweet malty caramel smell. Slight fruity maybe prune aroma.

T - Malty molasses sweetness but not as much as I expected. slight hop bitterness on the finish.

M - Smooth and fairly light body with medium carbonation.

O - A very good beer. Probably my 2nd favorite of the style.

Serving type: bottle

05-20-2013 00:30:00 | More by vcoggins

J_Dub

Texas

4.64/5  rDev +14.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

A-Deep reddish copper pour. A nice amount of head with really good lacing as well

S-I smell malt right away. Dark fruit and molasses as well. You can almost smell a certain sweetness in it. Wonderful smell

T-Like the nose, I was assaulted with malt at first. However, after a few sips I really started to note a lot more flavors. Dark fruits, brown sugar, some hops at the end. Very "earthy". There was a lot of bitterness at first but as I had a few sips the bitterness faded. Absolutely fantastic.

M-Not too much carbonation. Feels as if it going to be syrupy on your tongue but surprisingly clean finish.

I'm happy to finally have Founder's in Texas. I actually confused this brew with backwoods bastard and was a little disappointed at first when I realized my mistake. However, this beer does not disappoint. It was fairly harsh at first but I think that was just because it was my first beer of the day. This beer is just wonderful. Beautiful pour and aroma. The taste is similar to the aroma but even more complex. I can't really compare this to other Scotch ales as I haven't had many but Dirty Bastard is good no matter the category. Buy it and don't look back.

Serving type: bottle

05-18-2013 20:42:08 | More by J_Dub

tviz33

New York

4.21/5  rDev +3.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

12 oz bottle served in a Duvel tulip

A- Pours a dark brown with some orange hues with a short tan head.

S- Wow... molasses. And some caramel and dark fruits.

T- The taste follows the nose and some roasty flavors poke through. This is solid. Very balanced and extremely enjoyable.

M- Solid medium body with light carbonation. This still has a really good mouthfeel for some reason.

O- It's just a good brew overall. The only way to really get a good feel for it is to get one for yourself. Highly recommended.

Serving type: bottle

05-16-2013 23:15:23 | More by tviz33

obrike

Texas

4.11/5  rDev +1.2%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Bought a 6 pack at Specs in Round Rock for 8.99...quite a bargain I must say.

Poured a very deep amber/dark brown in color...a bit of red... with a thin off-white head.

Lovely smell of caramel, some vanilla, and a lil bit of peat. Also getting some spice and a bit of butter scotch and booze. I like.

Big time malty sweetness coming through...some caramel and roasted coffee, and a hint of booze. This is a well crafted bastard all right. Smooth and syrupy; just the right amount of carbonation make this one a real winner.

I'm not a normal drinker of the wee heavy style...but I really enjoyed this one. A great price for a sixer makes this one a no brainer when i want a break from IPAs and stouts. Give it a try folks.

Serving type: bottle

05-14-2013 02:09:16 | More by obrike

smooth_aleing

Pennsylvania

4.34/5  rDev +6.9%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

Pours a rich, murky, copper color akin to an old suitcase. Head is slight, maybe a finger or slightly less, but the lacing stays throughout. Nose is strong of molasses, raisins, prunes, and a bit of Scotch smokiness. Taste is well-balanced, with molasses and figs coming through most prominently. Overall a great beer, as Founders is want to make, and a great example of Scotch ale.

Serving type: bottle

05-09-2013 22:42:54 | More by smooth_aleing

Abbbp

Texas

4.48/5  rDev +10.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Founders is here, Founders is here TX... Man I tell you this brewery has good stuff, and the first guy I tried came thru. After a long beautiful hike and Rockledge I was craving and made my way to the Meddlesome Moth and order this beauty.

Gorgeous old dark leather wallet color, deep brown with transparency and hints of red. The mouthfeel was very smooth easy feeling, with a nice crisp taste. All and all very satisfied I'd give this sucker a solid 93.

Serving type: on-tap

05-09-2013 02:46:46 | More by Abbbp

Goldopelgt

Ohio

3.96/5  rDev -2.5%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

A: Pours a deep, coppery brown with a decent tan head that clings to the glass.

S: Sweet, dark, sugary nose up front...biscuits and a nice malty backbone followed by some grassy hops. A lot going on here, but very nice.

T: Simiar to the nose...sweet maltiness initially followed by an earthy bitterness that balances everything out very nicely.

M: Surprisingly light bodied, that coats the mouth ever so slightly with a bitter sweetness (if that makes any sense) that begs for another taste. Very nice.

O: By far one of the best examples of the style that I've had. Definitely worth a try, and a few revisits! Cheers...

Serving type: bottle

05-08-2013 21:06:13 | More by Goldopelgt

JMad

Texas

4.39/5  rDev +8.1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25

The beer pours a dark reddish brown color with a soapy tan head that clung to the glass.

The aroma is dominated by sweet molasses and raisin with some earthy hops in the background. It tastes of roasted malt, caramel and it has a nice herbal bitterness. It has a lighter feel than what I was expecting with low carbonation and a slightly dry finish.

This is a great beer, I think it may be my favorite scottish ale, I'm glad Founders is finally available in my area.

Serving type: bottle

05-08-2013 17:51:23 | More by JMad

MisSigsFan

California

4.03/5  rDev -0.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours a dark, cloudy red/brown with a thin, white head. Smell is sweet with a big alcohol presence. It's not very strong, and not exactly pleasant. Let's just say the smell alone would probably turn me off. Taste is sweet and malty with a slight sting and bitterness. The alcohol aftertaste lingers. Mouthfeel is medium to full bodied. A lot of carbonation that dissipates over time. Overall, this is an alright brew. I don't think I'd go out of my way to get it again though. I guess I'm just not much of a Scotch Ale fan.

Serving type: bottle

05-01-2013 04:30:39 | More by MisSigsFan

magictacosinus

California

4.2/5  rDev +3.4%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Poured into a tulip pint glass from a 12oz bottle.

Pours a deep, reddish brown color with a a large 4 finger head that eventually settles down to about a half ring. Carbonation is not too plentiful, but still great enough considering the high ABV. Lacing is decent, as well as the strong viscosity the beer maintains throughout consumption. Looks like a classic take on the style, except with a far deeper flavor to keep things different.

Definitely very different from your average Scotch ale at the aroma! Rather than an enormous smoked, peated flavor, there's a colossal range of malt varieties that pop out here. There's an initial toasted sweetness followed by a bittered bready character, and soon afterwards by a caramelized, toffee/caramel combo that stings the senses with the extra alcohol. Cardamom, pepper, and dried leaves soon follow. There's a grassy, almost herbal hop profile that goes with this, but the focus is clearly on all of the malts, that range to many different flavors in a way that is really experimental yet unique and different.

While I expected a malt bomb based off of the aroma, I instead got something more along the lines of how a DIPA tastes less bitter than a standard IPA - in this case, a malt-focused Scotch ale that tastes less malty than a standard amber ale or something. To be clearer, keep in mind that Founders' always strong hop backbone is working here, but the malts are really what make this so flavorful in the end! The front consists of syrupy, bready caramel goodness, combined with red apples, honey, maybe a little bit of grapes... Yet soon after the flavor changes into a caramelized brown sugary flavor combined with a deep, rich, near rye like breadiness. The caramel profile seems to last a while, too. Very rich in the way a top doppelbock is - especially with all the spices that follow such as clove, and also with the alcoholic, juicy malty notes. The syrupy flavor makes this a thickened experience, and while the alcohol makes itself noticeable, it's never distracting. Very tasty, especially according to style!

Wow, Founders really knows how to get styles and turn them upside down to the point where they're stylistically innovative and super flavorful as well! This is probably my new favorite malt-focused beer of its kind. Great stuff!

Serving type: bottle

04-30-2013 03:07:36 | More by magictacosinus

jjboesen

Maryland

4.76/5  rDev +17.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

This is another Founders beer to add to my list. It is truly a find since we have one of my favorite styles in cahoots with one of my favorite brewers. And, incidentally, this was quaffed at Rustico Ballston (Virginia), a favorite venue. Happy Happy Drinking Games! Now raise your goblets ….

The Dirty Bastard has a foreboding copper body protected on top by a shimmering cloud of foam that is, eventually, encrusts the glass with thick slabs of crusty lacing. The Dirty Bastard will punch your nose with a heavy fist of pine, molasses and almond and leave you reeling. As you continue to inhale this Highland miasma (where is the aroma of heather and wet wool one whiffs in Scotland?), the palate is trapped in a boggy blanket of plum, toffee and the aforementioned molasses.

The mouthfeel is superb as there is a subtle blend of toasted malt and dried fruit. The Dirty Bastard makes an exquisite quaff for any lad and lassie willing to experience a complex concoction of a style that is truly hard to get right. Founders really got this Dirty Bastard right and gave us an example of a wonderful Scottish beer that will bring out the Braveheart in all of us. Freedom!

Serving type: on-tap

04-15-2013 23:44:53 | More by jjboesen

hoosiersapper27

Indiana

4.61/5  rDev +13.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

What a GREAT Beer.

Dark Ruby Red color with a 1 finger head that dissipates somewhat quickly.

The smell this beer has is just MAAALT. Almost a fruity essence with the malt, berries?
A thick, almost stout like mouthfeel with this. Carbonation could be a little higher but overall good. No strong alcohol taste with this big 8.5% beer.

Overall this is probably one of my favorite Irish Red style beers so far, although I'm not very experienced in these styles of beers yet.

Serving type: bottle

04-15-2013 01:11:08 | More by hoosiersapper27

sbxx

Illinois

3.8/5  rDev -6.4%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

Appearance - Deep hazy brown. Bubbles shimmering as they rise. 2 fingers of nice, dense foam. Good looking beer.

Smell - Biscuity chocolate malt.

Taste - Chocolate hints with a bold, caramel malt smoothness.

Mouthfeel - Bold medium body, light/med carbonation, wet finish

Overall - One of my favorite Founders beers. A nice example of the style. Very comparable to Robert The Bruce. Maybe even better.

Serving type: bottle

04-14-2013 07:33:30 | More by sbxx

Heavymetallawyer

Illinois

4.33/5  rDev +6.7%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4.5

A: Pours a nice deep caramel. Looks very appetizing.

S: Smells rich and sweet. Detect caramel, a bit of alcohol and sweetness and some molasses.

T: Tastes almost as good as it smells. Detecting some vanilla sweetness and the caramel that was smelled. It's a little sweet and just a hint of rich alcohol like a bourbon. The aftertaste is almost dessert-like.

M: Feels very smooth and savory. Finishes almost like it's a coca cola.

O: Very very good beer. It's very strong but you would never know it from the taste. It's very smooth and leaves a taste that lingers in a good way. Definitely tastes like caramel/vanilla/bourbon, and goes down smooth. Will leave you wanting more.

Serving type: bottle

04-09-2013 03:13:18 | More by Heavymetallawyer

TrappistJohnMD

Mississippi

4.19/5  rDev +3.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Bottled 6/21/12.

Pours dark brown with off-white head that dissipates quickly.

Smell is cherries, caramel, toffee and malt.

Taste follows smell well with lots of caramel, toffee, chocolate and good bitter finish. Very complex.

Mouthfeel is slick and medium bodied.

Overall this was very enjoyable.

Serving type: bottle

04-06-2013 00:02:41 | More by TrappistJohnMD

polloenfuego

Ontario (Canada)

4.36/5  rDev +7.4%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

My first full review...please be gentle.

12 oz. Bottle purchased in NY and secreted across the border to Ontario.

I've read nice things about this beer and I am a fan of the wee heavy in general, so I was looking forward to this.

Poured into a 16 oz pint glass, with very little head forming.

The aroma is pleasant, but I cannot put my finger on exactly what is there. Perhaps figs?

I did find the taste pleasing. Oddly I found there was a bit of a molasses undertone. I am not sure if others would say this, but it was not unenjoyable. While I have read some reviews where people mentioned the booziness of this beer...I did not get this. I found it rather pleasant and comfortable.

Overall, after a winter of disappointing scotch ales, it is nice to have had this experience. I will be making the trip to NY again soon to acquire more.

Serving type: bottle

04-05-2013 20:25:12 | More by polloenfuego

YieldToNothing

New York

4.55/5  rDev +12.1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

12 oz bottle into a duvel tulip
pours a dark brown with zero head.
smells like a quad, dark fruits, maybe figs?
a little heavy in the mouth, not so much carbonation and a nice sweet aftertaste.
i know its a scotch ale, but it reminds me a lot of a quad.
not very boozy, abv is well hidden.
i like this a lot, not life altering, but a very solid beer.

Serving type: bottle

04-04-2013 03:25:41 | More by YieldToNothing

jondeelee

Massachusetts

4.06/5  rDev 0%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Dirty Bastard opens to a malty, yeasty nose with slightly sweet, peaty, smoky overtones. The grains and sugars are especially noticeable here, the former bringing floury baguettes, yeasty rising wheat dough, toast crust, and cracker, and the latter adding loads of brown sugar and caramel, as well as berry, orange, apricot, cherry, and fig fruit esters. All of this is accompanied by a light rind of smoky peat, which adds a woody note that brings to mind barrel aging. As a whole, the nose is excellent, and while there may be a slight imbalance in having the sugars so heavily outclass the smoky peats, there’s still a decent sense of nuance in here, and an obviously skilled hand at picking and blending ingredients.

On the tongue, the beer is immediately yeasty and bready, the rising wheat dough and yeasty baguette drifting to the surface, joined by what is here a larger smoky peat presence that brings to mind wood-fired cooking stoves filled with pitchy pine. The sugars are still huge, with berry, cherry, apricot, and orange fruit esters, as well as loads of brown sugar and caramel. A thin lacing of pine and grapefruit from the hops adds balancing bitterness. In subsequent sips much of the yeasty bread notes are unfortunately lost, and the sugars largely take over the flavor profile. The aftertaste is heavy on grapefruit rind and pine hops, with lots of sugars and even a few breads remaining, and at least the hops linger on the tongue for a good while. Mouthfeel is medium, and carbonation is medium.

Overall, this is good beer, though the smoky peats could have been stronger, and the sugars somewhat lighter to achieve a better sense of balance. The hops were also rather strong in the aftertaste, for while the malts could largely overcome the heavy 50 IBUs in the main mouthful, they lose to them in the aftertaste. Still, the beer is highly drinkable, and quite delicious.

Serving type: bottle

04-02-2013 20:09:21 | More by jondeelee

RoamingGnome

Wisconsin

3.49/5  rDev -14%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5

Founders Dirty Bastard

Poured from a 12 oz bottle into a CBS snifter. Served chilled...

A) Brown with red tint when held to light. A little over a finger of dirty white head. The head settled to a wispy dusting. A bit of lacing.

S) I had to let this warm to room temperature to fully appreciate the malty sweetness. Caramel and butterscotch, kind of a faint turtle sundae thing going on here.

T) Not nearly as sweet as the nose indicated. Quite earthy, with some grass. The alcohol was pretty noticeable as well. Lingering aftertaste... Where did the sweetness go???

M) Medium body with a pretty good dose of carbonation. This could have been smoother for my liking.

O) I really like Founders, but this is not doing much for me. If I'm looking for a Scotch Ale brewed in Michigan, it is going to be Scotty Karate 100% of the time.

Serving type: bottle

04-01-2013 22:33:42 | More by RoamingGnome

2Cents

Nebraska

4.69/5  rDev +15.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75

Poured in a standard beer glass at about 50 F.

A: Rusty, ruby with a small beige head and decent lacing.

S: Butterscotch, peat, slight chocolate, malts, Phenol alcohol and slight yeast esters.

T: Malty goodness with a hint of chocolate, butter scotch caramel and a slight hop bitterness.

M: Medium mouth feel, moderate but adequate carbonation and a slight alcohol bite.

O: This is the best We-Heavy that I have tried, there may be other great ones out there but this one is a winner!

Serving type: bottle

03-26-2013 04:35:27 | More by 2Cents

dar482

New York

4.48/5  rDev +10.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.5

I remember not liking this beer, but I had it recently after my palate changed from craft brews.

It pours in a black dark color with a little head.

It smells of breadiness and sweet malt. There's some woody and earthy notes in the aroma. Burnt raisin.

The flavor is deep, earthy, and dark fruit. There are big rich flavors in there. It's a true "bastard" with the alcohol, resin, wood qualities. There arThere's a bitter end.

The mouthfeel is like a porter. It's surpsingly easy to drink despite the ABV.

Serving type: on-tap

03-25-2013 04:44:41 | More by dar482

stumac

Texas

4.36/5  rDev +7.4%
look: 3.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.75

Just got back from my friend Kat's wedding. This brew pours up mahogany with light off white lacing. Aroma is malty, caramel, molasses, red apple peel, subtle kiss of hops. The taste is subtle smoky, caramel, vagina, little bittering hop background. Full bodied, nice crispy carbo bite. I'm Scottish and I gotta say, this is a damn fine wee heavy

Serving type: bottle

03-25-2013 03:57:23 | More by stumac