Hellwoods - Bellwoods Brewery

mattsander

Alberta (Canada)

3.65/5  rDev -14.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

A: Jet black with a rather dark mocha head, nice.

S: Very roast-forward... charred malts, licorice, chocolate.

T: The 'tanginess' I get from very roasty stouts is strong here, a lot of bittersweet chocolate. Not much fruitness or sweetness. Coffee grounds and bitter tangy blackness.

There's nothing wrong with this stout but the extreme roast-forwardness isn't my cup of tea.

Serving type: bottle

04-25-2013 14:11:54 | More by mattsander

papat444

Quebec (Canada)

4.25/5  rDev -0.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Thanks to jrenihan for this one.

Poured from a 750ml. bottle, bottled Sept. 4, 2012.

Appearance: Pours a real thick & viscous body. Pretty big head, real dark brown color, bubbly with good lacing.

Smell: Soft cocoa, chunky chocolate, wafts of coffee.

Taste: Bitter-sweet chocolate is predominant, bit of vanilla, some coffee grinds, more chocolate, even in the texture.

Mouthfeel: Real creamy, coats the inside of the mouth well, has a decent bitter bite that trails on.

Overall: Heavy on the dark chocolate but not sweet. Real nice RIS.

Serving type: bottle

03-28-2013 23:32:03 | More by papat444

Phyl21ca

Quebec (Canada)

3.75/5  rDev -12%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75

Bottle: Poured a pitch-black color stout with a huge dark brown foamy head with good retention and some lacing. Aroma consists of dry roasted malt with loads of black chocolate notes with medium bitterness. Taste is a good balance mix between some black chocolate notes with medium bitterness and some dry roasted malt with light lingering sweet notes and light coffee notes. Body is quite full with nice creamy touch and good carbonation with no apparent alcohol. Well brewed without necessarily standing out from the pack.

Serving type: bottle

02-20-2013 21:09:11 | More by Phyl21ca

peensteen

Ontario (Canada)

4.3/5  rDev +0.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Big thanks to Liam for getting me this bottle in October/November?

Jet black with a ring of deep tan head, fair bit of lace and really good retention here also. Smell is full of roast and bittersweet chocolate, some coffee, anise and darker fruits as well, quite a bit of hop kick in here as well. Taste is full on roast, bakers chocolate and bitter hops, black coffee flavours, light sugary sweet points and a bit boozy in the finish. Lightly carbonated, full mouthfeel, big body on this one. Solid RIS here, really happy they are making more of this as this is one beer I wouldn't mind having a ton of.

Serving type: bottle

02-19-2013 12:55:28 | More by peensteen

liamt07

Ontario (Canada)

4.48/5  rDev +5.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

On tap at the brewery, into a snifter.

Black with a crimson-brown head. OK lacing but fantastic retention. Nose is dark chocolate, roast, molasses, brown sugar and dark fruit become more noticeable with warmth. Taste has dark chocolate, roast, earthy dark fruit notes and some vanilla sweetness. Complex and only becomes moreso with warmth. Mouthfeel is full and alcohol was fairly absent from the palate. One of the best imperial stouts I've encountered Canada-wide.

Serving type: on-tap

11-19-2012 20:31:31 | More by liamt07

wordemupg

Alberta (Canada)

4.28/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

750ml bottle poured into tulip 14/11/12 bottled Sept/4/12 thanks liamt07 for sending the bottle

A black right out of the bottle with just a thin cola edge, a thumbs width of mocha foam stays around long enough to leave a few rings of lace

S over ripe plums hit my nose first, dark fruits are strong in this one, some dark bakers chocolate and chocolate covered raisins with some booze and tobacco

T more going on in the mouth, coffee and char with a little licorice and less booze then the nose, both wet and charred wood with and little molasses, not as much over ripe fruit as the smell and some chocolate syrup comes out with a faint nutty aspect, very solid taste

M enters thick and silky with enough bubbles to give it a very creamy feel, very strong char aftertaste lingers for ages, very thick and rich with just a little heat keeping it from reaching perfection

O pretty solid RIS, big body and great flavors perhaps I should’ve aged it but with only one bottle I don’t have another to make a comparison.

I’m digging Bellwoods so far and need to thank liamt07 for sending me these gems. A big rich stout that’s perhaps a little too easy to drink, what could go wrong?

Serving type: bottle

11-16-2012 03:20:27 | More by wordemupg

TheSevenDuffs

Ontario (Canada)

4.43/5  rDev +4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

Thanks to Andrew for this bottle! Bottled Sept 4/12.
Poured in to Bellwoods tulip.

A - Ink black. Half a finger of espresso coloured head.

S - Massive roast aroma at first that gives way to rich chocolate, brown sugar, molasses and light espresso notes.

T - Roast up front. Semi-sweet chocolate, molasses, anise and dark caramel. A good sweetness is well balanced by a noticeable hop presence and a very slightly alcohol warmth.

M - This is by far the best part about this beer. Full body. Thick and viscous with an absolutely massive chew. Light carbonation. Spot on!

O - Yet another top notch beer from Bellwoods.

Serving type: bottle

11-06-2012 01:35:59 | More by TheSevenDuffs

heebes

Ontario (Canada)

4.43/5  rDev +4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Bottled Sept 4th.

Pours black with a good size tan foamy head. Nose is rich espresso, coffee beans, vanilla, roasted malts, hint of licorice. Taste is smooth, bitter dark malts, coffee lingers in the aftertaste. Lots of layers here; sweet vanilla rounded out by the bitter chocolate malt. This is a really well done RIS, spot on, brings back memories of some stand outs in the style from the American brewers. Medium to heavy body.
Overall an incredibly well done beer by the boys at Bellwoods.

Serving type: bottle

10-21-2012 19:55:03 | More by heebes

northyorksammy

Ontario (Canada)

3.83/5  rDev -10.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5

Enjoyed on tap at the Brewery Market. Pretty good drinkability for the level of alcohol. Black with a bit of a mocha head. Good roasty aroma. Taste is bitter with a sugary finish. First sample yielded some almost burnt parts.As it warms, more hops present (second sample), the Warrior burst through. Still, too much sweetness, would like more balance. Its bitter and then somewhat too sweet. Would like thicker mouthfeel.

Serving type: on-tap

09-23-2012 20:12:43 | More by northyorksammy

jrenihan

Ontario (Canada)

4.38/5  rDev +2.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

On tap at Bellwoods.

Beer is black with a moderately sized tan head. Head fades fairly quickly to nothing.

Smell consists of roast malt, vanilla, anise and some hop scents.

Taste is very nice. Roast malt, a bit of burnt caramel, vanilla, molasses, anise. Some bitterness, with slight grassy flavours from the hops. Alcohol quite well hidden for the ABV. Good stuff.

Full bodied, moderate carbonation. Heavy and a bit slick.

Overall, really good. Very enjoyable. I hope it is around for awhile as I could drink a lot of these (though probably not in one sitting!).

Serving type: on-tap

09-11-2012 14:46:12 | More by jrenihan

cmadd

Ontario (Canada)

4.38/5  rDev +2.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

A: Poured with a two fingered head, tan, and the body black like pitch. Beautiful.

S: Classic nose of burnt sugar, oats, and grassy fresh hops.

T: This beer is still quite young – the hops are floral, grassy, and bitter – but the alcohol is extremely well hidden. The taste is upfront with stone fruits, molasses, and burnt sugar. Fresh grassy earth and bitter hops round out the finish.

M: Oily, thick, and perfectly carbonated.

O: This is the best Ontario Russian Imperial Stout, bold and brassy, complex, but not too sweet. Reminiscent of Founders' version of the same. So glad to have this in our province.

Serving type: on-tap

09-09-2012 19:09:34 | More by cmadd