jason (1620), Easton, Pennsylvania, USA Feb 17, 2007 Bottle batch #7235. Poured a black body with thin head. Aroma was of chocolate, malt, toffee, caramel. Flavor was slightly sweet and dry. The above mentioned aromas comming thru in the taste with a little spice in it. Creamy mouthfeel. Good stout. Rockinout (945), Kent, Ohio, USA Feb 15, 2007 A mild and very drinkable stout, even as a session ale. Flavor of roasty cacamel, chocolate, and some coffee (these tastes are very mild though). MrBendo (1039), Swedesboro, New Jersey, USA Feb 2, 2007 Batch 7235. Opaque brown with small head. Aroma of bitter chocolate and earth. Dry taste. Medium-heavy body. Dry finish. tbookman (618), Ephrata, Pennsylvania, USA Feb 1, 2007 Hazy dark brown color - almost no head at all. Aroma of roasted coffee, hints of rye bread and raisins. Flavor is roasty and slightly sweet, notes of rye, roasted nuts, caramel and a bit of sweetness. Very little bitterness. Dry, clean and slightly resiny finish boboski (1095), Alabama, USA Jan 29, 2007 Very dark brown pour with a substantial and steady brown head. Lacing nonexistent. Aroma is nutty malts, coffee and toffee, spicy rye, peppery with bittersweet chocolate and mild earthy hops. Flavor is somewhat spicy and dissimilar to the aroma. Noted are heavy doses of rye and caramel, along with mild chocolate, some citrus fruit and buttery malts. Palate is full and unbalanced, spiciness intruding upon the pleasantries. Finishes aggressive and salty/spicy, short-lived as well. This has an underlying flavor that is nice, but confusing. I usually associate the addition of rye to a beer with producing a creamier mouthfeel and I’m just not getting that here as much as I’d like. My least favorite of many Bell’s stouts sampled. Mangino (1027), Mississippi, USA Jan 27, 2007 Thanks to JPDipso for the spur of the moment trade at the checkout line of the liquor store. Pours an impregnable black color, a small ring of foam lines the top of the beer. Not alot of aroma on this one bits of chocolate, spicyness from the rye, my brother says some hazlenut. Good balanced flavor, some roast and the rye combine nicely. The finsh is somewhat lacking. I would like a bit more chocolate/coffee flavor but thats just me. Good brew. DrnkMcDermott (1832), Downers Grove, Illinois, USA Jan 25, 2007 Bottle. Batch 7235. Pours respectable stout color with a thin eggshell brown head. Smell is yeasty at first (bottle-conditioned), then turns into cocoa-coffee stout smell. Rye gave it a passing rememberance of wheat malt smell. Taste is a bit odd to start, still a touch of yeast. The foam at the top somehow has the oily texture of Expedition. Then some stout sourness, and finally the spicy twist from the rye. Perhaps a hint of licorice. Interesting to find complex texture in a beer, not just complex taste. Seems to be the basic English hop profile, amped up just a wee bit. Alcohol seems cooling rather than warming. Thanks to Bell’s "Bootlegger’s Special" for us deprived Illinoisians driving to Kzoo for my chance to try this. axilla (962), New Providence, Pennsylvania, USA Jan 22, 2007 04 Bottle. Poured an opaque black body with a brown foam that disappears quickly. Doughy aroma with roasted malts present. Flavor is rye and roasted malts, dark chocolate, and a slightly sour finish. Aftertaste is subtle but quite nice. A very interesting and enjoyable stout.
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