Bells Batch 7000 Ale

Formerly brewed at Bells Brewery
Style: Imperial Stout
Kalamazoo, Michigan USA

Oh, lordy. Shimmering black motor oil. We got some roast, we got some coffee, we got some spice and dark fruits. Don’t forget the silky smoothness hiding 12%.

This beer pours a bright vibrant stream of glowing dark brown from the bottle into my tulip that looks tremendously viscous. After a gentle pour, a swarm of tiny copper bubbles sluggishly climb up the sides of the glass through the midnight black beer to take part in the copper ball-bearing head. The head then fell to a thin film of dark tan and slowly made its way into a collar. A glance across the dimple in the bottom of the tulip shows only the faintest hints of port. A gentle whiff detects maple syrup, prune, red licorice and brown sugar sweetness with a burnt coffee, ultra dark chocolate and a bit of anise riding on top. There’s also an organic, dry, woody essence that’s hiding in the background holding back a sweet alcohol. A strong inhale through my nose amplifies this alcohol (too much?), but pulls with it a lot of dark fruit sweetness. Oddly, if I sniff slowly, the pleasant qualities are amplified. If I sniff deeply, I get my nose hairs singed by alcohol. My rating will have to stand as an average. Tastes initially of sweet milk chocolate and some light and easy dark fruits. It then picks up a light electric sting around the edges of my tongue and then crashes down into a mesquite roasted coffee. Along the sides of my tongue, there are little effervescing pockets of charred caramel blended with oak and grapefruit that playfully dance there, and then fade away. Nice. The main coffee flavor here is really stupendous. I normally look down upon an over reliance on coffee flavors, but this one is really exciting for my palate. Thankfully, this coffee then rides out into the finish, accompanied by some sweet maple syrup and lingering cocoa with a spot of oaky dryness. I’m diggin’ this! The mouth feel is phenomenally delicate and smooth, much like a silk lace that initially swarms with microscopic bubbles lending a pudding like feel, but then deflates, dropping off the dry coffee and a slight layer of creamy film. This change up is really impressive, appropriate for the style and does wonders for the dynamics of the flavor. Damn! What a trip! Over all, the alcohol got a little hot in the nose and the over all intensity slowed me down quite a bit (a little over an hour to finish), but I loved this one.

Bottle, with ClarkVV and Sully. Black in colour. Very full bodied and heavy. Lots of roasted malt, tar, charcoal, dark chocolate, licorice. Quite a sweet mouthfeel, but with quite a bitter roasted finish, quite hoppy aswell. Full bodied. I need more of this!

Just when I was losing faith in this brewery they throw batch 7000 my way and I must say it was worth the 17 dollars I paid for a six. Very strong nutty aroma, nice opaque black pour with a dark tan head. Nice malty flavor. This is one serious beverage my friends. I almost like this better than founder’s kentucky breakfast...almost.

Bottle courtesy of Brentfeesh: Poured a deep pitch-black color stout with a small dark brown head with minimal retention. Aroma of roasted malt is quite intense with some vanilla and coffee notes. Mouthfeel is very thick and enjoyable with nice roasted coffee notes; vanilla and mixed dry fruits such as figs and plums. Body is thick which fits perfectly the style with some limited carbonation. Another very good stout from this fine brewery.

Bottle. Pours very dark, with lots of coffee and chocolate aromas. Smooth taste, with a descent alcohol aftertaste. Solid brew

Bottle. Pours to an opaque black, like motor oil, with a marathon of an aroma: espresso, semi-sweet chocolate, green apples, maple, more fruits covered in chocolate. The taste is very, very sweet, like sipping from snifters of bourbon and syrup at once, maybe just a tad too sweet until the hops arrive with a bang. So creamy, thick and succulent in the mouth...incredible. Finishes in a flash of woody, smoky brilliance. CHEERS.

Pours dark brown with a light brown head. Smells of biscuits, licorice, juniper, some mellow hops. Taste is chocolatey with a fair amount of roasted malt present.