Bells Java Stout

Brewed by Bells Brewery
Style: Stout
Kalamazoo, Michigan USA

Serve in English pint

Overpowering with so much coffee! Holy shit! If you like coffee this is your beer, if not, well, it’s name is well-earned.

12oz bottle provided by josephselander poured into a snifter. Pours black in the glass with hints of mahogany showing through the edges. There is an impressive two-inch tan head that hangs around as a small cap and leaves good lacing. The aroma is like a coffee milkshake with a shot of chocolate syrup. The dominant aroma is that of spent coffee grounds but there is an underlying chocolate malt presence that keeps the coffee from being the only player. The taste doesn’t quite hit the excellence of the aroma but, as a coffee lover, I thoroughly enjoyed it. It’s got the dominant roasted espresso taste but it’s definitely got a more toasted character than the aroma, almost burnt. There is a decent malty sweetness but the finish is very roasty and bitter. They mouthfeel is on the fuller side of things and super creamy with soft carbonation. This is an stellar stout that sits somewhere just short of an imperial stout, but is extremely tasty and a must-try for the coffee lovers out there...like me. Another great beer from Bell’s.

Rich coffee and dark malt aroma. Black, nicely balanced flavor of coffee, bitterness, malt and mild chocolate.

Draught @ Bell’s Eccentric Cafe, Kalamazoo, MI: Pours deep, deep brown - almost black - with a bountiful foam tan head resting atop. Aroma is all coffee off the top and throughout; I squinted and strained to find some chocolate and anise waiting for me, but this is coffee’s show. That first sip again is a coffee bomb, but a great one. Dark roast, earthy coffee with subtle notes of chocolate malt, cocoa powder, tobacco, and toffee. It’s complex, it’s super tasty, and it glides down your throat without effort. A commendable effort by a superb brewery.

Aroma of roasted coffee. Kind of woke me up. Taste was much of the same. Loads of coffee with a rich thick body. Hellava good coffee brew.

There are a few breweries that are veritable powerhouses when it comes to consistently good craft beer. One of them would be Bells Brewery.

My Java poured black as night with a billowing head of foam which rises from her dark depths to proudly dominate the top of my brew. Where light manages to peak through, glints of dark earthen brown can be glimpsed while her head collapses in a series of bubbly pockets, leaving a dark tan blanket to mark her territory. Just as her head billowed and burbled her way to the top, so does her nose; coffee, a smorgasbord of chocolate, and espresso with fresh caramel crema topping her estery bliss. Warm notes of vanilla and cream temper the delicate notes of caramel sweetness as dry, toasty and crusty burnt malts cause me to salivate in delight. Enough of this nose thing, I want to make sweet love to her dark java stout depths. Our first embrace is soft with milk chocolate and cream, reminding me of a gourmet latte with hints of chocolate and caramel while coffee permeates every pore. Dry burnt malts leave each kiss dry and arid, creating an immediate thirst which is sated almost immediately. Delicate lace teases, seducing my eyes and body as we grow closer. Her coffee presence dominates while a naughty nip of lemon creeps into her finish. Whoever said ‘parting is such sweet sorrow’ was obviously a masochist because parting is nothing but sorrow. As I bid my Java Stout farewell with a tear in my eye, my senses revel in a beauteous blend of rich chocolates, fresh coffee and cream, gooey caramel, and a whisper of wood while my body melts in contented warmth.

I love this beer. I could drink her all day long, but then I wouldn’t have time to enjoy other beers. Suffice to say, Bells Brewing knows their beers and they especially know their stouts. Java Stout is an absolute success and I am happy to say that this time I have more awaiting me in my fridge for further scandalous affairs.

This is batch 8256. Appearance - Pours a dark brown with a 1 finger cappuccino head. Has wonderful head retention. Smell - Smells like an over the hill coffee smell. Not the most pleasant of smells from a coffee beer that I have experienced. This scares me a little, wonder if this one has gone south... Taste - Yup, this one might be heading south... The coffee is there, and is not very pleasant. A weird taste in there, can’t put my finger on it; not a welcome taste. Tastes kind of stale. Maybe some rotting figs, I can almost taste branches too... Mouthfeel - Great carbonation, wonderful mouthfeel. For the style, I would say this is damn near perfect. A nice and refreshing feeling. Drinkability - I don’t know, I wish I could have tried this when it was fresh. It is 2 years old now, and I just don’t like it that much. I didn’t finish the bottle.

smell: coffee all the way. Appearance: black as... well, coffee. Taste: well... coffee, strangely enough. Taste: erm, like a cup of really nice coffee! As it warms a malt sweetness emerges, softening the coffee bitterness. Very drinkable.