Bells Rye Stout

Brewed by Bells Brewery
Style: Stout
Kalamazoo, Michigan USA

Pours a dark pitch black that’s completely opaque with only the faintest of dark mahogany edges and a one finger frothy beige head with decent retention, only slowly fading into a lasting ring. Slight spots of lacing left behind. Sweet caramel malt aroma with hints of toffee and sweet rye. Slight roasted notes with some dark fruit notes and subtle burnt toast. Slightly viscous medium body with a nice balance of roasted malt and sweet caramel and rye malt notes. Hints of toffee, roasted coffee bean and hazelnut with a nice hoppy dry finish. Very nicely balanced with subtle alcohol heat. Very drinkable with lots of silky chocolate malt and sweet ruye notes balancing out the roasted notes and alcohol heat.

Another thin, headless and surprisingly flavorful beer from Bell’s. Strong notes of coffee in the finish, moderate bitterness and quite smooth. Would like it a little thicker though.

Received as part of BIF 33, from orbitalr0x, Bell’s Rye Stout poured out dark brown and very well carbonated. The head was four fingers thick, and occupied nearly half the pint glass. The smell was mild, and had the typical chocolate aroma typical of the stouts of this strength. The taste was a little too light for the style, with sweet, sour, and grainy flavors. Not sure if I detected much rye in here. The mouthfeel was thin and dry, and aftertaste minimal. I could not detect any alcohol at all, which made this very easy to drink.

(bottle) Pours dark brown with a fast dissipating tan head. Aroma of burnt toast, roasted malt, a little beef jerky, and some smoke. Taste is really nice, with alternating flavors of raisin, chocolate, and roasted malt. These alternating flavors are great, with the sweet and roasty flavors continually bouncing in and out of perception. Warming gives rise to some spicy rye flavor and teriyaki beef jerky. Further warming provides a strong taste of Hostess cupcake. Finishes with some roasted malt and dry dark chocolate, and the rye shows up far into the finish, providing a lingering note of baked bread. Mouthfeel is smooth and full like all of Bell’s stouts. This is pretty solid stuff.

On tap at Yogi’s. Pours deep auburn with an off-white head. Aroma is full of rye notes with an undertone of chocolate notes. Flavor has a nice undertone of rye spice with flavors of chocolate and coffee.

Nice black pour, minimal head. Good chocolate coffee aroma and flavor, with a bit of a bitter catch. Warm and toasty.

Pours black with a little off white head. The aroma doesn’t say "I am a stout", but more of a spicy Belgian smell. The flavor has what I initially would characterize as an ash tray taste, but as I drink more of the beer, the taste has a dry smoke flavor with some hidden dark malts. Nice thick mouthfeel. Not too sure why the high ratings, but I have a sixer of this, so if my opinions change I’ll change the rating.

Carmel/Tan head. Very little carbonation. Rye heavy in the aroma. Very dark in color. Rye in the beginning and finish. Some hints of coffee.