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Bells Wheat Love Ale

 (RETIRED)
Percentile
92
overall
Formerly brewed at Bells Brewery
Style: Barley Wine

Kalamazoo, Michigan USA

bottling
unknown

on tap
unknown

distribution
unknown

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RatingsAverageScoreSeasonalABVStyle PctlServe in
2703.62/5.03.6/5.0Special8%63.8Snifter
Commercial Description:
Bell’s Wheat Project (2005) is an experimental foray into the development of complex flavors in beer. The Project comprises five new ales, four in series and one specialty strong product. The first four, Wheat 2, Wheat 4, Wheat 6 and Wheat eight are all made using 55% Wheat (either wholly or mostly malted) and 45% Barley malt. The barley malt makeup is exactly the same in each of the four and consists of three different malts. The total amount of grain in each of the four is also exactly the same, so each of them should have a virtually identical original gravity. The type and amount of hops in each of the four is exactly the same. And the processing through the brewhouse and fermentation is also exactly the same. The changing factors between the ales are the composition of the 55% of wheat used and the type and number of yeast strains used. In Wheat 2 the 55% of wheat is made up of two different kinds of wheat malt, and this ale is made with two different yeasts. Wheat 4 is made with four different wheats and four yeasts. Wheat six and eight made with six and eight wheats and yeasts respectively. The final product, Bell’s Wheat Love Ale, is made with the eight yeasts of Wheat eight and is a strong, but relatively light colored, “wheatwine.” 2. Basic Content List for the Wheat Series Wheat Two Wheats: White, Dark Yeast: Bell’s house ale strain, WLP410 Belgian Wit II Wheat Four Wheats: White, Victory, Toasted sprouts, Torrefied Yeast: WLP550 Belgian, WLP570 Golden, Wheat Two blend Wheat Six Wheats: White, Dark, Toasted sprouts, Torrefied, Red, Caramel Yeast: WLP500 Trappist, WLP530 Abbey, Wheat Four blend Wheat Eight Wheats: White, Dark, Victory, Toasted sprouts, Torrefied, Red, Caramel, Chocolate Yeast: WLP4000 Belgian Wit I, WLP565 Saison, Wheat Six blend
 Most Recent Top Raters Highest Ratings Who's Rated This?  
 Cletus (5052), Connecticut, USA
3.6 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
8/104/57/103/514/20
Feb 21, 2007  
Pours orange and very hazy with a white head. Smells of the full spectrum of citrus, wheat, bananas, coriander and cloves. Tastes of oranges, lemons, pepper, coriander, and spices. Mouthfeel is full and spicy. Finish is of oranges and lasts. Looking at the style category, I see this is listed as a barleywine (wheatwine). I never would have guessed that from the taste and aroma of this one.


 kkearn (999), Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
3.8 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
7/104/58/104/515/20
Feb 8, 2007  
12oz bottle, batch 7155. Murky amber with a moderate sized white head. Sweet aroma with notes of banana, clove and yeast. flavor is mostly sweet, with spice and yeast. Moderately bitter, with a wheaty, spicy finish.


 mynameisjonas (206), Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA
3.8 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
9/104/57/104/514/20
Feb 7, 2007  
my favorite of the wheat project. very good bew with lots of taste...mmm i love bells


 IrishBoy (2706), Bakersfield, California, USA
3.8 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
8/103/58/104/515/20
Jan 26, 2007  
Bottle from bgburdman9; Thanks! Nose of clovey spices, light fruit, and yeasty breadiness; hazy orange with a small off-white head; flavor of bananas, cloves, wheatiness, and a slight bit of alcohol lasting to the finish. Definately an unusual barleywine. Could be a new style: HefeWinesen!


 DrBayern (1135), Morehead City, North Carolina, USA
3.7 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
6/104/57/104/516/20
Jan 22, 2007  
12 oz. bottle courtesy of Hellomynameis pours a hazy gold with a medium off white head that settles to a thin white layer perisisting to the end of the glass. Aroma of toffee, clove, some faint alcohol, and yeast. Palate is smooth but with a lively effervescence, and a pretty clean aftertaste. There’s some definite acidity and a slight sourness that seems to dominate the flavor, not unexpected considering the large wheat bill. Slight bitterness noted at the finish, although the hops are definitely a distant background feature here. I actually ennjoyed the rather unusual combination of aromas and flavors that this beer offers. If nothing else, it’s interesting.


 MrBendo (1042), Swedesboro, New Jersey, USA
2.8 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
5/103/55/103/512/20
Jan 16, 2007    Updated: Jan 25, 2007
Batch 7155. Lightly hazy amber/orange with a medium head. Aroma of cloves and bananas (belgian yeast) and sweet malt. A little sweet, and a little boring. But I love the experimentation. Keep it up.


 Vac (2389), San Diego, California, USA
3.6 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
7/105/57/103/514/20
Jan 15, 2007  
Pours with a crystal clear amber body topped by a medium thick head with lots of lacing. It’s slightly sweet with a note of toffee and wheat as well as a hoppy bitterness. Medium bodied, tingly and dry.


 RedHaze (370), Where the hell am I?, Nebraska, USA
4.6 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
9/104/59/105/519/20
Jan 14, 2007    Updated: Apr 21, 2007
Pours a very nice, mostly clear, pale golden color, with a thin dense head that fades very slowly to a spotty cap, leaving behind quite a bit more lace than I was expecting. Smell; there’s definitely a very solid wheat aroma in this, and some yeasty esters very reminiscent of a good hefe-weizen. There’s also a bit of a sweet fruitiness. Taste; as I noticed in the aroma this has some similar charactaristics of a hefe, but it also has a touch of trippel going on as well. There’s the wheat that’s expected, but also a little banana, and some tropical fruits. This is a very interesting beer, and I wish that Bell’s would make more of this, instead of just being a one-off release. Mouthfeel is medium bodied, with a moderate but smooth carbonation, with a bit of a drying finish. Drinkability is very good. I could happily have a few of these in one night if the alcohol would let me.



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