Founders

Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

boostsr20

Well-Known Member
Joined
Feb 5, 2010
Messages
804
Reaction score
16
Location
Michigan
So I just left there and I've never been let down by this place or a single beer they have produced. The limited taproom only beer selection is phenomenal and the food is first rate. The regular beers are better than when bottled and the one offs keep me coming back. I wish all of you had the chance to sample this first rate world class brew.:ban:
 
IMHO, Founders is the best brewing asset Michigan has. And we have some good brewers here.

Jolly Pumpkin is great too, but a bit more niche.
 
Soon as all this ice and snow melt, I got a trip planned to check it out. Prolly in March, since my sat morning BJCP classes end then. Also should put me in the time window for KBS. :)
 
Yea I can't wait to get out there and visit. So far everything I have had from them is great.
 
Soon as all this ice and snow melt, I got a trip planned to check it out. Prolly in March, since my sat morning BJCP classes end then. Also should put me in the time window for KBS. :)

Try to plan it for their black party. You will not be disappointed. Just look up the offerings they had last year. I believe it's in April.
Fav tonight was the kaiser curmudgeon. Old ale aged in maple barrels.

I agree, founders is the best Michigan brewer hands down. That says a lot when we have bells, shorts, JP, dark horse, kuhnhenns, etc...
 
Founders has the best beer IMO. But I've been to the taproom twice when it's just packed. Both times I've ended up going to Hopcat instead and that's a nice place too. No you don't get the special beer there, but their food is great and beer selection is huge.

I wish Founders would make more room for customers now that they've grown up a bit.
 
Homercidal: you really need to go at the right times. The taproom is a popular hangout for people who work in the area, both for lunch and after-work. The weekends are also quite full in the evening.

They are expanding their brewery about twofold right now. I suppose that's a bigger priority than that taproom, which, to be fair, is already pretty big. It's almost a beerhall.

But Hopcat is quite the boon to beer-lovers as well. '#3 beer bar in the world' after all! And right around there we have Graydon's Crossing, and now Brewery Vivant....I think Grand Rapids might be better than Portland for beer. Srsly.

boostsr20: I would mention North Peak as being a great example of that 'etc.' New Holland also has its moments.
 
They just did a remodel after Christmas. The floor space towards the stage is pretty much the same but where you'd go to order food has been pushed back and there is a lot of seating all the way down to where the bathrooms are.

I've had a few good beers from North Peak, but its mostly when I go in there. The stuff they bottle so far, except for the IPA hasn't been as good as I hoped. New Hollands kinda the same way. They have a few awesome beers, but the rest are just lacking.

EDIT: I've never been to hopcat.... Its tough for me to drive to GR and not go to Founders. The wife and I love the food and all the beer is world class and you know something special will always be on tap. Also, I've heard a lot of people complain of hopcats high prices for beer. Founders beers are $2 more than what they go for at founders. Someday I'll make it in there. I'd also like to hit up the Kalamazoo Beer Exchange someday. Brewery Vivant looks really nice too. Can't wait to try some at the fest.
 
I'm not a big fan of North Peak. I think they have decent beer, but their bottles are average at best, and the beer on tap is usually pretty good, but nothing knocked my socks off so far. It's been a while and I should probably go back and try them again, but with Right Brain right next door...

Brewery Vivant looks exciting! We went on opening weekend and the place was nearly packed. Found a place to sit and THEN remembered that they didn't take cards. After hunting briefly for an ATM, we said screw it and went to Hopcat.

I like the look of the place and the beer sounds intriguing, but I just got a tweet that said they were going to add a TV (powered by a bike). So IMO that clashes with the atmosphere they were trying to achieve. I'm not putting down the desire to compete with other places for the Superbowl (although I think the kind of people who dislike the Superbowl are the kind of people who would enjoy going to Brewery Vivant if nothing more than to avoid the crowds at the sports bars), I just think that a classy place like that adding a bike-powered TV is gimmicky.

The music was a bit loud for me there too. I sort of expected it a bit quieter, so you could chat with friends and new friends you meet there. Maybe I'm just an old fuddy duddy.
 
They just did a remodel after Christmas. The floor space towards the stage is pretty much the same but where you'd go to order food has been pushed back and there is a lot of seating all the way down to where the bathrooms are.

I've had a few good beers from North Peak, but its mostly when I go in there. The stuff they bottle so far, except for the IPA hasn't been as good as I hoped. New Hollands kinda the same way. They have a few awesome beers, but the rest are just lacking.

EDIT: I've never been to hopcat.... Its tough for me to drive to GR and not go to Founders. The wife and I love the food and all the beer is world class and you know something special will always be on tap. Also, I've heard a lot of people complain of hopcats high prices for beer. Founders beers are $2 more than what they go for at founders. Someday I'll make it in there. I'd also like to hit up the Kalamazoo Beer Exchange someday. Brewery Vivant looks really nice too. Can't wait to try some at the fest.

North Peak isn't really exciting, but I think all the beers they make are really solid. Not so with New Holland, that's why I said they 'have their moments.' They make a few impressive beers, the rest are meh.

It's strange to me that people would complain about Hopcat prices. They charge similar prices to any other restaurant in the area, and the selection can't be beat. If you just want Founder's beer, by all means go to Founder's; they have more of them and can sell them for cheaper, as theres' no middleman there. If you want a greater diversity of beers in general, Hopcat is the place to go.

I'm not a big fan of North Peak. I think they have decent beer, but their bottles are average at best, and the beer on tap is usually pretty good, but nothing knocked my socks off so far. It's been a while and I should probably go back and try them again, but with Right Brain right next door...

Brewery Vivant looks exciting! We went on opening weekend and the place was nearly packed. Found a place to sit and THEN remembered that they didn't take cards. After hunting briefly for an ATM, we said screw it and went to Hopcat.

I like the look of the place and the beer sounds intriguing, but I just got a tweet that said they were going to add a TV (powered by a bike). So IMO that clashes with the atmosphere they were trying to achieve. I'm not putting down the desire to compete with other places for the Superbowl (although I think the kind of people who dislike the Superbowl are the kind of people who would enjoy going to Brewery Vivant if nothing more than to avoid the crowds at the sports bars), I just think that a classy place like that adding a bike-powered TV is gimmicky.

The music was a bit loud for me there too. I sort of expected it a bit quieter, so you could chat with friends and new friends you meet there. Maybe I'm just an old fuddy duddy.

The bike thing is pretty weird. This is the first I hear of it, but I'm not sure why you would put something like that in such a beautiful building.
 
I had Founders KBS last weekend and it was really good. Very rich with a nice warming effect from the alcohol. Also had Founder's Centennial-good beer.

Any other Founder's beers you guys would recommend?
 
I had Zyrp of Doom last summer. Maple Oak Bourbon IIPA. (I think. My memory is a bit fuzzy...)

Double Trouble is a very good IIPA.

Pretty much all Founders beer is great. I only dislike their fruit beers, but that's me.
 
I normally make it to founders once or twice a year. But it is hard to choose brewery to hit up in Michigan. I head to MBC alot but thats because it is in lansing.
 
I'm up for a trip to Founders anytime. I was a mug member there for a couple years. I think I will head over there early next week since I need to stop at Sicilianos for supplies.
 
Love Founders and hit it every time I'm in Grand Rapids, along with Sicilianos Market....
 
You guys have talked me in to it! I'm working in Niles MI. during the week and generally traveling home on the weekends. In a couple of weeks I'm staying in the area for the weekend so I think a road trip to Founders and an overnight stay in GR is in my future. I have visited Bells and enjoyed it but you all have me pumped to check out Founders.
 
I just went to Brewery Vivant for the first time. We've been discussing it off and on here, so I thought I'd mention it, but I'll start a separate thread about it as this is a Founder's thread. Try to post it tomorrow sometime.
 
You guys have talked me in to it! I'm working in Niles MI. during the week and generally traveling home on the weekends. In a couple of weeks I'm staying in the area for the weekend so I think a road trip to Founders and an overnight stay in GR is in my future. I have visited Bells and enjoyed it but you all have me pumped to check out Founders.

Founders is hands down a better taproom than bells. Don't be afraid to ask for tasters before ordering a beer. They give you like 4oz shots of anything. If your lucky they should still have nemesis on tap. Also, the beer cheese dip is awesome!
 
I just went to Brewery Vivant for the first time. We've been discussing it off and on here, so I thought I'd mention it, but I'll start a separate thread about it as this is a Founder's thread. Try to post it tomorrow sometime.

Looking forward to hearing your thoughts. The one thing that bothers me about the "abbey: is that they are cash only. I understand the theme they are going for but come on, you gotta take credit. Who carries cash these days?
 
Looking forward to hearing your thoughts. The one thing that bothers me about the "abbey: is that they are cash only. I understand the theme they are going for but come on, you gotta take credit. Who carries cash these days?

They take credit card. I used cash, but all my friends started tabs with credit cards.
 
I just posted my thoughts on Vivant in this section of the forums. I feel like Vivant has hijacked this thread enough.
 
Looking forward to hearing your thoughts. The one thing that bothers me about the "abbey: is that they are cash only. I understand the theme they are going for but come on, you gotta take credit. Who carries cash these days?

The cash only was only for the first couple of days when they started and didn't have the CC machines set up. They take cards now.
 
Back
Top