Bells Rye Stout

Brewed by Bells Brewery
Style: Stout
Kalamazoo, Michigan USA

Serve in English pint

An incredible bouquet of roasted malts and coffee. The pour is very dark brown and the flavor profile consists of roast and dark roasted coffee and dark chocolate. Another solid and diverse stout from Bell’s.

Wow wow wow! On tap at Bell’s in Kzoo on Eccentric Day. Sharp as a New York Style Cheddar on the tounge...an absolutley stinging gustatory experience. I loved it!

UPDATED: APR 10, 2006 Original 12 oz. Bottle at the Michigan House - Calumet, MI. I sit down at the bar, with the coolers of beer on the floor, beneath the counter in front of me and immeadiately I spot the ghostly label of this bottle. I’m blown away that this is still available. Pours a pitch black with a rime of whitish. A little salt and sea aroma, with a rich burst of cream and mellowed hops in alcohol. Some root beer and brandy shine through, with a hint of flowers. Flavor starts as a static salt and roasted coffee, quite watery, but then as the beer moves across the tounge and warms, it explodes into a fury of unencumbered chocolate and fresh ground espresso. Heavily depressed dark chocolate beans erupt into a glowing mouthful of rich notes mingling with light warming alcohols and gentle aged fruit notes. Pretty incredible profile for a beer that’s been sitting at a bar for a few years. Finishes fantastically with fresh coffee and toast. Palate is sweet, but peculiar. It starts like salt water, but then morphs into this hard-to-describe panacea of textures with some oily coating properties and a hint of dryness. Leaves the palate feeling refreshed, but also wanting and tasting more. Re-rate On tap at the Michigan House - Calumet, MI I’ve now had the fresh batch on. More sweetness and caramel, with a dusky and light must fruit and grain, with a touch of woody leather on the tongue. Toothy grain. Some creamy bourben notes., with a different edge. Rye really adds a nice level of complexity.

Bottled. Black opaque colour, minor brown head. Aroma is roast, rye and grain. Flavour is strong roasted malts, wet wood, rye, caramel and licorace. Wellbalanced, quite complex, but still very easy to drink.

Thanks to trades with both Ughsmash & jgd0608, I have two bottles of this stout. Pours a hazy deep brown, just about black, with a moderate tan head head that lasted through the first quarter of the glass and left light lace. Very pleasant aroma of roast with a very noticeable presence of rye. Some chocolate in the nose as well. Actually, as I think about it, the aroma reminds me very much of freshly baked pumpernickel bread. The flavor is similar with roast and ample rye, again with some chocolate. And again, I am reminded of fresh pumpernickel bread. A bit lighter in body than I was expecting. Overall, a very solid beer, and I’m glad I have another bottle to enjoy.

Yummy yummy yummy I got Bells in my tummy. When will these guys ever dissapoint? Never it seems. Nothing really to add to the prvious ratings, so will leave it at that.

Dark roast and rye aroma, like a glass of pumpernickel. Tastes like a glass full of pumpernickel too, just a tiny hint of acidity and plenty of prickly rye spiciness. Very tasty.

Long waited for them to make another batch! Bottle, batch 9370. Typical Bell’s stoutiness in the nose but this has much more pronounced coffee roast, light grain. Deep dark pour with a creamy, rocky light brown head. Creamy smooth feel (5/5 all the way), very luscious, taste is a sort of rounder Kalamazoo with a little more heft and a deeper malt complexity - lightly spicy rye, but very restrained, definitely more of an accent than the full monty. Light prunes, nuts, blackberries, and a slight herbal quality, in the vein of Jägermeister. Roast is backed way off from what was expected by the nose. Dry and tweaked lightly off of center, almost of lemon zest, with firm but low-level bitterness and a dash of coffee creamer. Beauty in subtlety.