Bell's Expedition Stout - Bell's Brewery, Inc.

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BA SCORE
94
exceptional
-
3,053 Ratings

rAvg: 4.21
pDev: 12.11%
Reviews: 1757
Hads: 1296

Ratings Help

Brewed by:
Bell's Brewery, Inc.

Michigan, United States

Style | ABV
Russian Imperial Stout | 10.50% ABV

Availability: Winter. bottle (1663), on-tap (75), cask (14), growler (3), nitro-tap (2).

Notes:
Expedition Stout offers immensely complex flavors crafted specifically with vintage aging in mind, as its profile will continue to mature and develop over the years. A huge malt body is matched to a heady blend of chocolate, dark fruits, and other aromas. Intensely bitter in its early months, the flavors will slowly meld and grow in depth as the beer ages.

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Reviews

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Reviews by SuperSpy:

SuperSpy

Georgia

4.13/5 rDev -1.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured from a 12oz brown bottle into a pint glass. No freshness date but I don't think this beer needs one. Hell, it's probably too young to drink.

A - Black. Not a hint of light gets through. This is also thick. It looks like oil. It has a very thick head that's the color of chocolate milk and sticks to absolutely every edge of the glass. This Russian Imperial looks like it is out to wrestle a Siberian Bear (and with a 10.5% ABV it will probably knock it out).

S - There is a lot of sweet dark aromas in the smell of this beer. There is raisin, molasses, roasted barley, figs, dark cherries and vanilla. The aroma is like a toasted, rum soaked fruitcake. All of those aromas are there and more.

T/M - The first thing that is very apparent is that this beer is thick and creamy. This is a very heavy bodied beer. It just sort of floats on the tongue and lets you taste all of the sweet and roasted flavors. There is dark cherries, cocoa, roasted barley, bitter chocolate, molasses, currants, dried figs, plenty of warm alcohol, and lots of hoppy bitterness. Despite the strong hops the beer is still relatively sweet because of all the dark fruit and sugary flavors. The finish is a bit more bitter and dry than the beginning or middle but you don't care because you want to taste all of those sweet dark flavors that come with each sip. The only place I would knock the taste is in the hop flavor. There is just too much citrus. It has a very strong grapefruit character that I'm certain comes from a liberal use of American hops and it detracts from what is otherwise really great complex flavor.

D - This is the third or fourth time I've had this beer and I must admit that the first time I tried it I wasn't blown away. However, I have to say that each time I drink this I am more and more impressed. At the same time, this isn't my favorite RIS and I think it's because of the citrusy/grapefruity hop flavors. I will definitely recommend this beer, but only drink one because the 10.5% ABV packs a punch. And judging by the number of misspelled reviews of this beer I would say I'm not the only one that has felt its effects.

Serving type: bottle

03-05-2011 01:39:36 | More by SuperSpy

More User Reviews:

NJB145

Michigan

4.5/5 rDev +6.9%

05-19-2013 00:59:31 | More by NJB145

jakeox

Illinois

4/5 rDev -5%

05-19-2013 00:05:50 | More by jakeox

rob99er

California

4.5/5 rDev +6.9%

05-18-2013 17:15:35 | More by rob99er

match1112

Illinois

4.25/5 rDev +1%

05-18-2013 13:26:15 | More by match1112

SMITHAND

Oregon

4.5/5 rDev +6.9%

05-18-2013 03:17:23 | More by SMITHAND

Honus1

Ohio

4.25/5 rDev +1%

05-18-2013 02:37:44 | More by Honus1

carlosega

Ohio

4.5/5 rDev +6.9%

05-17-2013 19:23:03 | More by carlosega

iHeartMNBeer

Minnesota

4.75/5 rDev +12.8%

05-17-2013 04:51:13 | More by iHeartMNBeer

GoldHorde

Minnesota

4.36/5 rDev +3.6%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Bell's Imperial Russian Stout: Expedition Stout

Another excellent stout! Mouth feel is correct - just a bit on the thinner side of cream (hinting towards a Porter style) but that just adds to the deep flavor gamut's mystery. A gargle of it just makes you want to get a V8 of huskies together for a 3,000 kilometer mush! The flavor is complex; coffee first, chocolate, smoke & caramel with a very faint echo of bourbon.

A = pours opaque black with a mocha tan head with open lacing
S = feigns at Porter style with a wet smoke (rain on burned wood after a fire)
T = again, feigns at Porter style but delivers the deeper, more complex character of the Stout
M = thinner than cream, but within Russian Stout style.
O = A great beer!

Serving type: bottle

05-17-2013 04:44:10 | More by GoldHorde