Andrew and Eric: When a bar has 15 taps of Founders, you go. When one of those taps is pouring Founders Kentucky Breakfast Stout, you put your life on hold and drink it. That’s what happened at Founders Brewery Night at The Jeffrey.  The Jeffrey, a new-ish bar on the lower Upper East Side (on East 60th Street between 1st and 2nd Ave) has a long copper bar, 30 taps, tons of stools, a back dining area, and an even further back outdoor bier garden (heated in the winter). If that wasn’t enough, there’s a separate storefront for coffee and espresso, and 10 taps for growler fills. Their state-of-the-art tap system ensures each beer is perfectly poured.

bar

The food is well priced and comes out incredibly quick and fresh. The roast beef sandwich ($12) featured moist beef with a nicely spiced chipotle aioli, caramelized fennel, and chipotle cheddar on toasted sourdough. It came with some tasty house-made chips and a crisp pickle.

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And now, the beer…

Founders Kentucky Breakfast Stout is their Breakfast Stout aged in bourbon barrels. What makes KBS special is the balance. A lot of similarly aged stouts are overpowered by bourbon flavor, but KBS has just the right amount of it, letting the coffee, chocolate and roasted malt shine simultaneously. All the flavor components play nicely together rather than fight each other. It’s best to take your time with this beer, as it will open up and present new flavors. You’ll get vanilla and a roasty depth that isn’t as prominent when you take your first sip of it cold. The mouthfeel becomes even more viscous and velvety. Some even say oily. A great stout should coat your whole mouth and linger with chocolate and coffee aftertastes. KBS is the king of this, and possibly the king of all stouts. It’s like the waves of flavor never end.

KBS

Founder’s Nitro Pale Ale is their standard Pale Ale infused with nitrogen.Nitrogen gives beer a creamy, thick texture, as opposed to the bubbly, carbonated bite from carbon dioxide. This beer had one of the best tasting, creamiest heads, and an amazingly savory, bitter aftertaste.

Nitro

The Jeffrey Craft Beer and Bites (311 E 60th St, New York, NY.‎ (212) 355-2337. (http://thejeffreynyc.com/)

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• Founders – KBS (brewfacekillahs.com)