Bells Eccentric Ale

Brewed by Bells Brewery
Style: Spice/Herb/Vegetable
Kalamazoo, Michigan USA

[981-20071215] 12floz (Vintage 2006; Holiday Tasting 2007 @ Cole’s, Buffalo, NY). Black cherry and dark vanilla malt aroma has a hint of meat. Dark brown red body with quick off-white bubbles. Nice dark rich malt flavour has sweet meady light chocolate notes and a bit of flowery toasted popcorn in the background. Medium-full body is thick and dry. Rather unique, interesting to try.

Bottle @ Cole’s Christmas Tasting 2007. 2006 Vintage. Courtesy of Bill Metzger. Very very dark brown, mostly headless body. Vegetal aroma like dry vegetable soup mix, some pine needles and spruce. (7+) Sweet flavour at first but with an omnipresent bitterness that smacks you to attention, More bizarre vegetal fruit melange, sugars, tangy fruit, tiny brief honey and licorice, blink and you’ll miss it hint of marmite, very slight hint at possible oxidation? Coats the tongue and lingers a long time. Smooth full palate is heavenly at times, very lightly carbonated. It is both fabulous and awful, it has some great cameos but ultimately it is just right friggin weird! Makes you want to try it again, but mostly so you can figure it all out rather than the flavour itself. Many thanks to Bill for sharing!

bottle @ Coles Christmas tasting 2007. Coutesy of Bill Metzger. Strange but interesting beer. Said made with vegetables, malted milk balls, honey, raisins and other rthings. Really stange taste. Poured drk brown maroon. Some winey type character, maltiness, slightly sweet, dried fruit. Little of everything going on here,. Glad to try it but almost impossible to comprehend

12 bottle - purchased as a single at Bells General Store on 12/7/07 - batch #7799. Color is dark mahogany. Small tan head. Too many flavors to contemplate at once. For me it was chocolate, carmal, honey and fruity all at once. There was a lot going on here - far more then my amateur taste buds can appreciate. Lovely beer . Not somethling you’d drink every day, but definitely an experience I will remember.

12 oz bottle, via BBB63. Pours a mostly clear dark garnet body with a small covering of beige head that faded to a whispy partial covering. A few big chunkies made it into my glass, but the vast majority I was able to keep in the bottle. The nose is showing some age, with a fair amount of oxidation. Lots of spicy notes, alcohol, brittle toffee candy, and resiny hops. The flavor has a good bit of oxidation as well, but the really nice kind, imparting some sherry qualities to it, not papery or cardboardy at all. Still quite bitter, and that’s after 3 or 4 years, this must have been a hop monster when fresh. Lots of dark alcohol soaked fruits with dates and figs primarily. Some roasty notes and lots of spicy and herbal notes on the finish. Noticable, but not overpowering alcohol. Mouthfeel is quite thick and substantial, but not clingy or sticky at all. The bitter finish lingers on forever. Nice soft carbonation, but it was a little prickly. Overall, this was quite good, and I’d probably lean towards a Barley Wine or ASA rather than a spiced.

07 Eccentric day. FINALLY got to try this great beer. Nice dark pour and fulfilling aroma. Just about everything imaginable in taste to end another great Bell’s year. Spicy, fruits and more. At 11% you can barely notice it in the least. A pleasure to finally enjoy.

(2004 Vintage; Batch 6714) Slight grassy aroma, pours a thick opaque dark amber, with almost no head. Almost barleywine-esque in flavor. Dark fruits are noticeable, as well as a touch of bitterness. Alcohol is very well hidden. I’d love to try a non-aged version for comparison.

Eccentric about sums it up. It’s just a mess of flavors, you name it, its in there. I thought it was waaay overboard. In all reality, I think that is their goal with this. Quite pungent. Had the 98 version, which may be quite different than now. Many of Bells beers have changed since they’ve lost their microbrew status.