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

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BA SCORE
94
exceptional
-
3,052 Ratings

rAvg: 4.21
pDev: 12.11%
Reviews: 1757
Hads: 1295

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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 tectactoe:

tectactoe

Michigan

4.4/5 rDev +4.5%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Pours a squid-ink shade of black, letting no light through this one at all, super dark tan head, excellent staying power with thick bouts of lacing left along the edges of the glass. Aroma is full of rich, bittersweet dark chocolate, highly roasted malts and grains, sweet black licorice, and a touch of deep fruit sweetness and ashy hop bitterness. The presence of this beer is very powerful from the aroma alone. Some alcohol detectable, but not too heavily; just enough to provide a nice warming sensation on the tip of the nose.

One sip of this and you know you're in for a treat. Thick, sweet licorice up front, along with sweetness in the form of over-ripe dates and figs. Roasted cocoa beans, bitter espresso and thick coffee, dark chocolate and cocoa beans, bitter, creamy, and milky. An ashy, leafy hop profile asserts itself just in time to balance the extreme sweetness and put everything into perspective. Fading out, the beer leaves a nice combo of sweet and bitter behind on the palate with cocoa, roasted malt, and ashy hops. Alcohol warms and make itself known, but never burns or scares you away - it just adds another element. Super thick, motor oil body with a low-medium amount of carbonation.

This beer is extreme - it's heavy, thick, powerful, and jam packed full of flavor. I believe it's slightly underrated, but I may be biased since it's readily available in my area when in season. Take this one slow, it's a doozy, but it's damn good.

EDIT: 2006 vintage, enjoyed 3/21/2013. Thanks to Chris from bringing this one from this cellar. Bell's wasn't kidding when they said this one would hold up. No head, still silky smooth. Flavors are all there; dark coffee, bitter cocoa, sweet licorice. Mellow booziness with a light oxidation - understandable given the age. Fantastic. Seven years old and still holding up like a fuckin' champ.

Serving type: bottle

12-31-2012 22:42:51 | More by tectactoe

More User Reviews:

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