Bells Expedition Stout

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

Pours black with a dark tan head. Aroma is roasty, with lots of dark fruit and citrusy hop coming through. Flavor is rich, roasty, bittersweet chocolate with a big roasty bitter finish and a nice slight warming. Very good.

I gotta say one of the best Imperial stouts I have come across as of yet. Chocolate, coffee, raisins and thats just the start. A very slight hint of alcohol. Stains the glass ever so much, finish on the mouth keeps you wanting more.

poured from standard 12 oz bottle. Overall, this is a great imperial stout with no head to show for. Who cares? Great bold flavor.

Poured black as motor oil with a very attractive deep chocolate head on top. Nose is well crafted, nice dark chocolate, roasted nuts, vanilla, and a little bit of figgy-pudding. Taste is almost silky, very luxurious and creamy chocolaty body, not cloying though, paired very well up against a strong roasted dryness. Nice hint of vanilla creme, and various toasted breads and nuts.

12 oz. bottle from The Party Source. I had this once before, courtesy of shawnm213, but that was a little before my rating days began. Glad I got to share another one with him. Pours black with a creamy tan head that vanishes relatively quickly. Aroma of dark chocolate, dried fruits, dark fruits, coffee, roast, alcohol, and malt. Perfectly-balanced flavor of chocolate, coffee, roast, malt, alcohol, dark/dried fruits, licorice, hops, and syrup. Dangerously smooth and full-bodied. Sweet, roasty, bitter, and a little smoky. This is amazing stuff, one of the gold standards for imperial stouts.

12oz. bottle at home: Pours deep black with a big creamy whipped chocolate mousse sitting on top. Fantastic aroma of dark chocolate and sweet dried dark fruits. Alcohol is sweet on the nose mixing well with the caramel and toffee that is drizzled over the chocolate. Just a touch of fresh ground coffee sprinkled on top. Hmm, now I am hungry. As it warms up biscuit and toasted brown bread start to come through and some of the sweetness blows off. No astringent bitter roast or minerally and ashy coffee as with many of this style... and that is good. Full bodied and creamy thick on the tongue. Sweet toffee, with tons of chocolate run rampant around your mouth. Sweet alcohols and herbal hop bitterness then swoop down and tame the sweetness. Roast is more apparent in the mouth than on the nose. Some slight charcoal mixed with bitter bakers chocolate. Long bitter herb and chocolate finish riding a sugary vein. The chocolate notes are quite nice and multi-layered. It is definitely a good candidate for long term aging. For me this is a bit sweet and the alcohol can stick out a bit too much. Given some time that would round out quite nicely. Guess I’ll have to re-rate when there is some more age on it.

holy crap. Can’t see through pour, opaque black. Head is minimal then is gone like a dinosaur in a tar pit. Aroma is mild syrup sweet with a kick of bitter roast and dark chocolate. Thick and creamy in mouth feel...full bodied powerful flavor of dark chocolate, caramel, and dark roast malt, then gives way to it’s hop foundation with a semi-sweet roasty bitterness. Excellent stout, could make hard candy out of what was left in the bottom of the glass. Left one bottle to age.

Bottle - 2007 vintage - Pours black with no head. Motor oil, baby. Smells of dark fruit, sweet, smooth bourbon. Seems to have mellowed out a bit in the cellar. Taste is waaay smooth, with some nice bourbon and a coffee finish that flows into some dark roast and toffee. It’s smooth, syrupy, warm, and just a bit sweet. It’s not my favorite IS, but man, it’s right up there. Gonna buy a whole crapload of this to put in the cellar.