Founders was started by Mike Stevens and Dave Engbers in 1997. They took a huge risk by quitting their comfortable day jobs and taking out massive loans (like many other upstart breweries) to start turning out their beers. According to company history, the brewery was near bankruptcy after producing an entire range of well crafted but unremarkable beers. This, after all, is an industry and a culture that prides itself on pushing boundaries. As a hail mary play, the Founders team decided to start making beers that really excited them; strong, aromatic, in your face ales. This new-found inspiration led them to their philosophy of not brewing for the masses, instead choosing to brew for the select few and hoping that it pays off. This philosophy is apparent in the motto that guides their brewery to this day: "Brewed for us. Enjoyed by everyone." The change of direction has payed off marvelously for Founders. Today they are a powerhouse regional brewery with a strong presence throughout their distribution range in the midwest and Mid-Atlantic states. They have become an immensely well respected brewery that does a great deal of their business on a stable of expertly crafted and affordable beers that include their Centennial IPA, Dirty Bastard Scotch Ale, Curmudgeon Old Ale, and Red's Rye Pale Ale. Most breweries would be overjoyed to have a collection of beers this good. Founders was not. In addition to their regular offerings, they produce some very special (and at times, exceedingly rare) beers that make beer geeks and hunters like me get all giddy. They've produced Blushing Monk (an over-the-top raspberry beer fermented with Belgian yeast), Canadian Breakfast Stout (brewed with coffee and aged in maple-bourbon barrels), and Kentucky Breakfast Stout (brewed with coffee and aged in bourbon barrels). Their extensive lineup of specialties also includes their Devil Dancer, a beer that they bill as a triple IPA.
While this beer would most closely fall into the category of Imperial/Double IPA, I have to say from the outset that to think of this beer within those boundaries would be to do it a disservice. While it is insanely hoppy, it also has a massive malt bill and a hefty abv of 12%. These facts taken together might place it more accurately into the realm of a supremely hoppy barleywine, especially if you drink the Devil Dancer with 6 months or more of age after its had some time for the hops to quiet down. I'll be drinking a fresh sample so whatever IPA character they were aiming for should be intact. I have an additional bottle that I may drink and review down the road for the sake of comparison.
The beer is presented in Founder's distinctive squat 12oz bottle. After a strong pour of half the bottle into my trusty Libbey Poco Grande glass, I am left with a beautifully clear reddish amber beer with a quarter inch khaki head that recedes quickly into a loosely bubbly ring with a couple patches of carbonation floating in the center. Looks like a run of the mill amber ale or barleywine, but I know from experience that its anything but. Appearance: 13/15
I give the glass a swirl to wake the beer up and I'm greeted by a very unique collection of aromas. This beer really does smell as though an extremely potent double IPA and a hearty barleywine had some sort of deranged love child. Huge piney hops bite my nose, the pungent aromas of alpha acids making a bee line for my unsuspecting nostrils. Dancing right in behind the hop parade are the aromas I would expect of a good barleywine. I smell dark, ripe fruit, reminds me of cherry and red grape. Fruity esters from the copious yeast used are also present. If ever there were a beer that contained a smell for everyone, this would be it. The contrast is great. Nose: 23/25
On the palate, the beer presents more IPA-like, but still a far cry from your average IPA. Huge piney blasts of flavor run roughshod over my tastebuds and delicately singe the roof of my mouth and soft palate. This beer doesn't mess around. The hop profile is also deeply resinous. I doubt I'll be able to properly taste anything for the remainder of the evening. There is a bit of a harsh, boozy burn on the back end that punctuates the beer while some of those sweet barelywine aromas in the nose struggle to be heard over the screaming hops. There's also something a bit spicy and herbaceous, probably more of the hops expressing themselves. Truly a complex beer and, at times, difficult to dissect. Palate: 47/50
The mouthfeel is precisely what I would expect from a beer of this magnitude but it is nothing that really puts a signature on the beer or makes it otherwise stand out. Mouthfeel: 8/10
OVERALL: 91/100
This beer is really great, though I do prefer by a wide margin the bottles I've had with some age on them. When fresh, the flavors and aromas are a little too discordant to really make this beer one of the very best. While it is a great beer worthy of the Founders name, if I'm going to pay super-premium prices ($6.50 per 12oz bottle), I want super-premium quality. If this beer cost 3-4 dollars a bottle, it might have rated a bit higher. It is one of those frustrating beers on the precipice of greatness for me; luckily, my memory tells me that the precipice is easily crossed by 6 months to a year of aging. For now, only time will tell. Cheers!
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