You know the drill. Make some beer, quit your job, start a beer business. It’s what Mike Stevens and Dave Engbers did when starting the Founder Brewing Company out of Grand Rapids, Michigan in 1997. The road to greatness wasn’t easy. The duo came face-to-face with bankruptcy before they ditched the unremarkable craft beers switching to flavor-packed, complex brews that are Founders’ signature today. Soon enough, Founders became recognized on the national and international brewing scene, with accolades from Ratebeer, Beer Advocate and the World Beer Cup. Flavorful, complex, and often stronger than your average pint, Founders’ beers aren’t for everyone, and they don’t claim to be. Instead they make beers for themselves, and we can respect that. Today, Peaks and Pints offers a flight of Founders that we call Craft Beer Crosscut 2.20.18: A Flight of Founders Brewing.

Founders Solid Gold

4.4% ABV, 20 IBU

As mentioned above, Founders built its brewery on craft beers the owners and brewers wanted to drink, including its new Solid Gold premium lager brewed with lager yeast, corn and Lemondrop hops. The new lager is a revamped version of a beer that has been pouring in the Founders taproom “for years” and will be a year-round release. On the nose, expect corny sweetness/cream of wheat graininess with a zesty touch of Meyer lemon citrus and even a little bit of vanilla. On the palate, crisp, grainy flavor is paramount, with corny sweetness and a lingering, doughy/bready finish. Lemon citrus and lightly floral hops tie things together in good balance.

Founders Porter

6.5% ABV, 45 IBU

Founders Porter it’s a near-perfect example of American robust porter. The nose is sweet with strong chocolate and caramel malt presence. On the tongue, it’s smooth, roasty and balanced, but predominantly dry. Strong black coffee roast, bittersweet chocolate and hints of residual sweetness — it’s well balanced with hints of hoppiness. No absence of hops gives Founders’ robust porter full flavor; an example of how Founders brewers took the style of porter and made it their own.

Founders Dirty Bastard

8.5% ABV, 50 IBU

Close your eyes, take a sip from our taster and off you go to your grandfather’s gentlemen’s club as smoke, leather and the very apparent scent of alcohol fill your nose. Open your eyes to discover a mounted buffalo head on our wall and a murky, mahogany Scotch ale with a much stronger hop flavor and bitter profile than most other strong Scotch ales. Other flavors to note are vinous wine taste and ripe raspberry and cherry flavors. Dirty Bastard offers a flavor and body pleasantly lighter than expected resulting in a very well-balanced accompaniment to our little lodge.

Founders Centennial IPA

7.2% ABV, 65 IBU

Hello Centennial. It has a hazy red orange color with a medium to light tan-white head, and the aroma speaks immediately to the slightly caramel-sweet malt backbone of the beer, but with a light citrusy quality. We’re basking in the glory of the frothy head’s floral bouquet. The beer is finished with all Centennial hops, so there isn’t competition for dominant hop character other than the base. It’s a dry-hopped beer, and the initial drink first brought the malts an earthy tone, followed quickly by the citrus accents with a dry, crisp finish and moderate bitterness. This one’s sweet, yet balanced. Malty undertones shake hands with the hop character for a finish that never turns too bitter.

Founders Azacca IPA

7% ABV, 70 IBU

In the world of American agriculture, Azacca — formerly known as #483 (a way lamer name) — is a hop with big citrus and tropical fruit tones and excellent aromatic qualities, which have quickly made it a go-to hop for late and dry hop additions in varying styles of beer, and the focus of Founders Azacca IPA, obviously. Azacca IPA includes caramel malt to provide a sweet backbone to the citrus, mango, guava and dried garlic notes. Low but very clean bitterness does its best to balance the bready notes, but the balance still leans toward the malt.