Beer For Breakfast featuring Sunup Brewing White Russian Imperial Coffee Stout
April 10, 2026·8 min
The Beer for Breakfast segment opens on a Friday morning with Mahoney introducing the Sunup Brewing Company White Russian Imperial Coffee Stout. Sunup is a 20-year-old brewery, and the specific beer won a bronze medal at the Great American Beer Fest approximately seven years prior. At 9.3% ABV it qualifies as an imperial stout, and the can features Soviet-era propaganda-style artwork that Mahoney praises. Mahoney pulled the beer from the fridge 40 minutes before tasting to bring it to optimal imperial stout serving temperature — not too cold (which would dull flavor) but not warm. The nose on cracking is described as strongly boozy and malty. First sips produce surprise at the intensity of chocolate flavor, described as richer than expected. Dave reports warmth in his belly and finds the beer creamy overall but objects to a dark chocolate bitterness on the aftertaste. Audrey, who was identified by Mahoney as the target audience because of her love of Kentucky Bourbon Stout and white Russians (she drank 32-ounce white Russians when she started bartending), also finds a persistent tanginess she cannot move past. Chris says the beer does not taste as strong as 9% but the flavor profile overall is not for him, noting he expected more white Russian character. Mahoney at intervals finds the chocolate and booze working together as a mood beer. The episode's peak moment comes when Mahoney suggests aerating the beer by slurping; one host gets an apparent mouthful of concentrated alcohol from lower in the can and nearly vomits on air. The group theorizes the beer may have separated in the can with chocolate sitting on top and raw alcohol below, and suggests the beer would be better served on nitro tap or at minimum poured into a pint glass. Mahoney ultimately rates the beer 3.7 out of 5, which the others contest given the mixed reactions. The segment runs as a standalone Friday feature on the Dave and Mahoney podcast.
