Founders sells out morning filled with music, beer, breakfast

This past Saturday morning at 9 a.m., the weather was anything but delightful. It was cold, windy, and a steady rain was falling from the sky. That did not deter the 300 dedicated attendees from waiting outside in line to get into Founders Breakfast Stout Breakfast.

“I think part of the draw is the exclusivity,” explains Ben Otis, of Founders. "People love that they get the taproom to themselves for a morning to hang out, drink really great beer and eat awesome food catered by The Gilmore Collection.”

And that they did. Clad in various types of pajamas, attendants got in the breakfast spirit and gathered together with friends and family of all ages (above 21). From the second one walked in the door of the taproom, they were greeted with a commemorative mug, which was soon filled with Breakfast Stout by the Founders employees flanking the entrance. 

The breakfast was created years ago to celebrate the seasonal favorite Breakfast Stout. Brewed with both Kona and Sumatran coffees along with oats and chocolate, the imperial stout goes hand in hand with breakfast foods such as eggs, bacon, oatmeal and french toast. 

As people settled into eating the hearty meal, Shawn James and the Shapeshifters played two musical sets while roaming around the taproom. Described as a mix of folk, blues and a little rock, they fit perfectly within the ambiance of the event.

An hour into breakfast, a joyous cheer rang through the taproom: KBS was tapped. Within moments, almost everyone in the taproom was ordering a glass of the imperial stout aged for a year in bourbon barrels.

Sold out in only a few days, the breakfast is a highly anticipated event every year for Founders fans. Many of the attendees Saturday have been coming ever since the first breakfast was held at the old location in the Brass Works Building back in 2006.

“My buddies and I have been coming for years,” said a breakfast patron, who wished to remain nameless. “Breakfast Stout Breakfast is sacred,” he joked. “What happens here stays here.” 

No matter if they were a first time attendant or a habitual patron everyone in attendance shared one thing in common: they all love Breakfast Stout.