Bells Expedition Stout

Brewed by Bells Brewery
Style: Imperial Stout
Kalamazoo, Michigan USA

12oz bottle to celebrate rating #800. Seems like awhile since I did a proper milestone beer. I really wasn’t terribly impressed with Bells’s other stouts, but this is pretty damn good stuff. I’m going to skip the beer color and go right to the head because that’s really all that sets stout apart; I mean, you know it’s black, right? has a good sized brown head off the bat, but settle into a solid ring of tan foam in a couple minutes. Big, vinous, chocolate, port-like aroma, with cherry and other fruity accents. Like a delectable black forest cake in a glass really. The flavor is the same rich dark chocolate with fruity, port-like complexity. You can tell that there are plenty of hops to balance the malt, but they don’t really protrude at all. There is a light alcoholic bite in the finish that reminds you how strong this is and dries enough sugar off on your tongue to invite the next sip. Thick, mouth-coating body. Definitely the most balanced imperial stout that I have had to date. Amazing beer actually.

Bottle. Pours black with almost non-existant head. Aroma: well-balanced between coffee and sweet notes. Noticeable coffee through the entire drinking experience.

I feel like this is what I have been searching for my whole life- everything that I want in a beer is here- unprecedented maltiness l;eaving caramel surgar, coffee, toffee, and creaminess that will blow your mind, you have close your eyes as you drink it so that it can solefully permeate your wghoole body, saturating every tissue down to your feety- you can taste this beer in your feet! we were so happy with this beer that we all watched as our friends $200 dollar longboard got run over by a car and we did nothing to stoip it. This is liquid heroin. I can now die after trying this beer.

12oz bottle from hoppymeal. Pours a very thick and dark black with a dense tan head. Nose is of roasty malt, chocolate, licorice and coffee. Tasting it just brings all of these nose flavors onto the palate with some faint hints of dark fruit in there. The 10.5 is well hidden in this one for sure. Looking forward to revisiting this one with some age on it.

Yep. It’s big. A nice creamy head. Taste comes off well with chocolate, roasted mild coffee, cream, and more chocolate. Well worth a try for stout lovers.

Bottle, batch # 8183. Pours a dark brow / black, nice dark brown / tan head that developed. Aroma is roasted malt, slight coffee notes. Flavor is roasted malt, chocolate and slight fruit in the background. The body is a little thinner than I personally like. Finish is bitter, but not overly bitter.

This is an excellent stout from Bells. I tasted this in a beer tasting, but the case was skunked. The next batch was great. It is a bit thin for a stout, but I am a casual stout-drinker. More of a weizen and bock fan.

This is good stuff, but a little strong-tasting for my tastes. (Yeah, I guess I’m a wuss). I wonder if this gets such high ratings because of the high ABV. Sometimes I think these ratings are skewed a little too much towards high ABV beers.