Bells Batch 7000 Ale

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

Bottle at ZBF 08, thanks to Miketd for this one. Thick toffee aroma. Along with everything else you would expect from an impy stout. It’s a lot of hops. A bit too sweet and thick. I am not really a fan of Bells and this doesn’t really change my mind. Still, pretty competent.

Trade with nbutler11, thanks Nick. It is pitch black with a creamy head and the mouthfeel is oily. The aroma has notes of roasted malt, vanilla, sweet fruits, preserved cherries/Cocktail berries, wood and licorice. The sweet flavor has notes of preserved fruits, berries, wood, roasted malt, licorice, alcohol and the finish is spicy and roasted bitter with the alcohol shining through once again. A very nice beer indeed!

Bottle. Black colour with a brown head. Light roasted, dark fruits, coffee aroma and taste. Full body with a fruity, light alcoholic finish. Great!

A Mes rate: Bottle at Zythos, big thanks to Miketd.
Black as night with a thick tan head. Awesome hops and sweet sweet cola on the nose with some hints of soy and it’s very slightly oxidised. Rich dark chocolate flavour that is just heavy as fuck and probably a little o.t.t. but still very good. Much too thick in the mouth unfortunately but there is no doubt it was a treat to try it.

Bottle. [thank you, madmitch76]
Pours utterly and completely black. Wonderful, creamy, beige-brown head that just stays for a looong time. Wonderful aroma of oak, sherry, dark chocolate, some cellar, bourbon, dust, prunes. Low carbonation, fat and just totally impressive creamy/oily mouthfeel. Flavour is equally impressve, vinious, chocolate, bourbon, sherry, prunes, raisins, coffee, cocoa. Very much still a brilliant beer. This is really a great experience!

(Bottle) Pours a black body with a small tan head. Aroma of roasted malt, dark chocolate, and mild hops. Flavor of charred and roasted malt.

12oz bottles acquired in trades with SuIIy, Jcapriotti, beerhandy and OhioDad (thanks all!). Poured a dark black with a large (4.5 finger) brown head. Aromas of roasted malts, chocolate, some dark fruits, light coffee and pine. Tastes of roasted malts, coffee grounds, and dark fruits. Ends in a nice coffee bitterness. Light alcohol in the finish as well.

Deepest burgundy-brown without the opacity of an expedition, but producing an initially fair head that leaves interesting lacing for its strength. Immensely hoppy nose explodes with grapefruit, mint and citrus aromatics, but the malt overlay is just as massive. Cakey feel is intensified by the floury, chocolatey and coffee-like notes in abundance. The roastiness is powerful all along. Very bitter in mouth, that’s usually not my type, but it has qualities otherwise, for one, its dominant orangey citric character somehow manages to keep the acidity level at a low. The coffee/cocoa malt combo seems to simply accept and bend under hop pressure rather than being forced to and I guess it makes the difference. Medium-full bodied, heavily roasty, sensible carbonation, but without the silkiness of the greats at this point, maybe as the hops mellow – it is not overly astringent, but the components extravagance can’t help but giving it a rapacious feel on the palate. Additionally, that hop action takes a lot away from the malt fruitiness underlying. While it may not have been made to be balanced, the final product certainly seems to be striving for it. Lots of hops for lots of malt. I would trade it for an expedition in a blink, but I can see how some people may find it a regal.