Bells Rye Stout

Brewed by Bells Brewery
Style: Stout
Kalamazoo, Michigan USA

Serve in English pint

Disappointing. Mellow aroma. Decent head (draft). Spicy flavor. A little too spicy, in fact. They were a bit heavy-handed with the rye. Very fruity. Perhaps it was the light mouthfeel and comparatively low malt character that made this almost lager-like. "Interesting", but not what I would call a stout. Then again, they can’t all be Expedition, so cheers to Bell’s for continuing to try new things.

Bottle. Pours a deep dark brown with a bubbly tan head. Sharp aroma, of malt, chocolate, wood, and the rye comes through nicely. Huge taste up front, of rye, chocolate, malt, brown sugar, and a hint of burnt toast. Thick mouthfeel. Lingering toasty malt-rye that fades. Different and pretty good.

cereal, roasty, leather, brown, cloudy, tan foam, medium sweetness, lightly bitter, lightly sour, medium body, thick feel, soft carbonation, bitter,

UPDATED: FEB 18, 2010 Bottle via trade with phaleslu, thanks Peter! Pours dark, slightly hazy brown with a 1 finger beige head that fades somewhat quickly. Aroma is roast, toasted grains sweet tobacco, light spices, hints of chocolate and dry grass. Flavor is dark caramel, roast, grainy rye, planty notes, roasted nuts, more sweet tobbacco, some char, a playful bit of citrus peel and some extra nutty sweetness and char toward the finish. Palate is medium bodied a little slick throughout (leaving a slightly sticky film on the lips) and has a light, but fairly sharp carbonation. Really good stout overall, the rye notes are certainly interesting.

12 oz bottle from mix a six purchased at Lukas in Kansas City Missouri. Batch 9370 printed on the label. Pour is hazed deep brown and ruby with nice settling building up a 2 inch khaki head. Head falls with loud crackling, and very large carbonation bubbles. Aroma is roasty, earthy maltiness and the rye - which presents as a very soft leafy, almost tobacco like smell. Nice soft and engaging nose. Taste is the roast malt up front, followed close behind by the earthy leafy straw of the rye, leading to a burnt, almost charred finish. Transitions of flavors are good, though the charred element seemed disjointed from the rest - ultimately did not detract from my enjoyment much. Palate is medium bodied, though certainly on the light side of medium. Carbonation is fairly low, and the body is a bit on the oily side. After the char calmed down on my taste buds, this was nicely easy to drink. Nice one.

Bottle via trade as an extra thanks to kramer. Pours just about pitch black with a small but thick tan head and decent lacing. Aroma is really roasty with coffee and lots of dark rye bread. A little metal. Flavor is burnt dark rye toast, coffee, and slight metallicity. Pretty tasty despite the metallic notes, but not quite one of my favorites from Bell’s. Fairly full body and a fairly slick mouthfeel. Somewhat low carbonation. A solid offering overall.

On tap at eccentric cafe. Lots of dark, earthy notes in the nose. Pours coffee black with a light tan head. Had nice mixture of coffee bitter chocolate in the front that faded seamlessly into rye as it finished. Most of the bitterness had faded by the end. I’m starting to become a big fan of rye. I like what it does for the beer.

12 oz bottle. Another great brew from Vince. Pours black with a thick foamy head that forms from a hard pour and quickly fades to a ring. Aroma of chocolate, dark rye bread, and some roasty smokey malt. The flavor is more dark rye bread with some bitterness from the roasted grains, no alcohol taste at all. The body is fullish with some help from the rye but not as full as I would have thought, mild carbonation and a thick smooth mouth feel. This is an interesting beer, I don’t remember having anything quite like it. The rye adds a nice dimension to the body and flavor. Thanks again Vince.