Bells Oak Aged Java Stout

Brewed by Bells Brewery
Style: Stout
Kalamazoo, Michigan USA

2005 Eccentric Day. Pours an oily black with a small, foamy tan head. Nose is oak, vanilla, coffee, chocolate, light bourbon. Tastes of coffee, bourbon, sweet sugars, chocolate, vanilla, oak. very smooth mouth feel, with a nice warming feeling in the end.

Sample at the Bell’s tasting at Brews Cafe on 3/6/08 (as Bourbon Barrel Java Stout): Pours nearly black with a wispy beige head that recedes quickly. Spotty lacing. Nice coffee aroma with some oak and roasted malt. Rich, smooth body with an understated coffee character. Notes of malt, hops and bourbon flavor. The finish is mostly coffee with touches of caramel and toffee. Hit the ground running with this one because it turned out to be my favorite of the evening. Very good overall.

Tap @ Bells tasting. Black pour with a tan head. Aroma of roasted malt, coffee, oak, bourbon, and vanilla. Faint hints of chocolate and roasted malt...espresso beans and then it’s a shot of boozey bourbon. Medium thick body, coating and roast/boozey with a sweet/boozey/roasty finish. Nice!

On tap at Oaks Cafe. Pours a very dark brown with a head that doesn’t hang around too long. Smell is an absolutely incredible bourbon with plenty of vanilla. Full and creamy on the mouthfeel. The barrel aging tones the java down a bit, but this is so damn easy drinking. I have to argue with the 7.5% ABV noted here in the profile, I think it’s easily higher than that.

On tap at Maduro prior to the 2007 GTMW: Pours an opaque black with dark brown edges and a thin wispy-lacing tan head. Aroma of toasty malt, maple syrup, bourbon oak and sweet caramel. Body is well-balanced with a good amount of sweet caramel bourbon and coffee with doughy toffee and some oaky balance. A nice barrel-aged beer.

On tap at the Great Taste of the Midwest, poured by Mr. Bell himself! Poured a very deep brown with some lighter brown at the edges. Nose was deep, with lightly-burnt coffee maltage, hints of dark chocolate, rich vanilla, and oaky bourbon sugars. Burnt coffee bitterness and citrus tartness provide a fine first impression on the tastebuds... followed up by more coffee grounds, dark chocolate, oak, and warm bourbon. Flavors meshed very well. Fuller on the palate than it appeared in the pour, with sticky dark malts and alcohol at the finish. Excellent brew!

On tap @ Brew’s Cafe: Pours black with a tan head. Aroma, rich woody notes, coffee, chocolate, and vanilla. Flavor, coffee and chocolate at first, oak and vanilla, a really nice balance or the wood and yet still maintains a nice coffee character. Very enjoyable.

On tap: Aroma is loaded with roasted coffee with light chocolate and vanilla. Dark brown, virtually black, with an insignificant off-white head. Flavor is loaded with roasted coffee just like the regular version. Chocolate profiles is much bigger and light vanilla as well. Hints of wood hide in the background. Very tastey.