Bells Expedition Stout

I’m thinking tar - black with a tan head, good lacing and plenty of carbonation. Not flat like many of the Imperial Stouts that I’ve had. Roasted malt, coffee a bit of hops and chocolate. Full bodied and smooth across my tongue. The chocolate, coffee, sweet malt and hops are balanced nicely and there’s a bit of a warming alcohol in the finish. A great warmer for those cold winter nights!

pitch black pour, delayed tan head that doesn’t quit... rich, creamy mouthfeel...tons of roasty malty flavor, nice bitterness in the finish

12 oz bottle from the Four Firkins. Pitch black pour, long lasting tan head with nice lacing. Sweet chocolate aroma. Thick chewy mouthfeel. Complex chocolate & coffee flavor with some hops tossed in. Lingering bitter chocolate finish.

Poured pure black with a caramel brown head. Aroma was kind of confusing. For some reason (and this was the opinion of everyone I tasted it with) the aroma was lacking. Not bad, but just not there. I really couldn’t smell much at all until about half way through the beer. The coffee tones definitely came out and the malts were pretty spectacular. It had a surprising amount of hops and citrus undertones for what it is. Enjoyable beer, but I’ve had better stouts.

Great, thick head that disappates quickly. Great dark color for an Imperial. First aroma that hits is the coffee, very dark coffee maltiness. Taste is smooth but the palate is below average. Overall, I like it but I’ve had better Imperials. Worth giving a second chance.

Seeing this beer having a 100 rating score, I expected a lot more. Not bad, but I wanted more. Not a 100 in my book...

This was bottled in Sept 08 and consumed Nov 09. Saved it a year, as I heard it improves the beer tremendously. Poured from bottle into Snifter. Pitch motor oil black with chocolate covered head that leaves some very spotty lacing behind. Huge roasted aroma of burnt molasses, semi-sweet chocolate, licorice root, dark fruit and noticeable alcohol. The roasted malt taste also drifts toward burnt molasses, with some notes of sweet chocolate, anise and coffee. Ends somewhat bitter and with an alcohol kick. Even after aging a year, still seems a trifle raw. Very thick and chewy. Low carbonation, quite smooth and extremely warming. Overall, a luxurious (if somewhat raw) late evening sipper. While not my favorite RIS, it is still quite delectable.

Poured from 12oz bottle into 6oz goblet. A - Pours black with very little tan-colored head. No lacing whatsoever. Looking at it now, all I see is total darkness in my glass. Don’t know if I’m good with this or not. S - Coffee, dark chocolate, some nice bitterness. As I take a few more whiffs, it’s really hard to get a good sense on the nose, don’t know what, but I can’t get a whole lot from this one. T - Alcohol, dark chocolate, roasted coffee beans, bitterness all melded pretty well together. Maybe a little too much alcohol burn on this right away, but I’m digging the other flavors afterwards. Pretty dry finish, bitter aftertaste with some chocolate notes. Too much booze for me, needs some cellar time to chill out. M - Just about right for me with enough fizzy carbonation to satisfy. I would say medium bodied, but a very "light" medium. Def better then the Bourbon Barrel Aged Cherry Stout I just had. D - I like this one, but if I had to choose a regularly available RIS, I’d take an Old Rasputin RIS any day of the week. Will drink again.