Bell's Expedition Stout | Bell's Brewery, Inc.
Brewed by:
Bell's Brewery, Inc.
Michigan, United States
bellsbeer.com
Style: Russian Imperial Stout
Alcohol by volume (ABV): 10.50%
Availability: Winter
Notes / Commercial Description:
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.
Added by BeerAdvocate on 01-10-2002
View: Beers | Place Reviews | Events
Ratings: 6,166 | Reviews: 2,138
4.25/5 rDev +0.7%
BrewBoyR, Nov 09, 2013
3.99/5 rDev -5.5%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Appearance: Poured into a wili becher. Pours an impenetrable black with a light brown, two-finger head of fine bubbles.
Aroma: Sweet, creamy, roasty malts dominate. Coffee, some bitter dark chocolate, but mostly excellent roastiness.
Taste: Sweet, creamy. slightly chocolatey malt notes move into roasty astringency and slight booziness.
Mouthfeel: Full bodied, slightly viscous, light carbonation.
Overall: Killer RIS. Absolutely delicious.
445 characters
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Appearance: Poured into a wili becher. Pours an impenetrable black with a light brown, two-finger head of fine bubbles.
Aroma: Sweet, creamy, roasty malts dominate. Coffee, some bitter dark chocolate, but mostly excellent roastiness.
Taste: Sweet, creamy. slightly chocolatey malt notes move into roasty astringency and slight booziness.
Mouthfeel: Full bodied, slightly viscous, light carbonation.
Overall: Killer RIS. Absolutely delicious.
445 characters
4.31/5 rDev +2.1%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.25
Bottled 8/22/13 and poured into a shaker pint :| ... I wanted to age this one, but decided to drink it now, and then age any bottles that I get later. $2.99 single.
Appearance: I poured aggressively thinking this wouldn't give me much of a head, boy was I wrong. I got about 90% of the beer poured and the glass was full, almost half with foam. Gorgeous beer, and one of the best RIS's I've seen. As you'd expect, the beer's an abyss. The mocha (almost orange) three finger or more of head dies down to about half of one. Lacing is phenomenal.
Smell: Quite good, but just not quite what I was hoping for. Has a very nice aroma to it, but it's not as pungent as I was hoping for. Maybe it's the thick head I have on top that's blocking out some of the notes. Roasted coffee, deep, dark chocolate, a hint of smoke/ash, and a bit of soy sauce. As Expedition Stout warms, nondescript dark fruits come out to play.
Taste/feel: First off, the feel. It is every bit of what an RIS lover would hope for. Super thick and creamy, with a subtle carbonation. The taste is fabulous, though, like the smell, not killing me with gigantic bold flavors, and the bitterness isn't nearly as harsh as I was lead to believe. Like the smell, roast, coffee, chocolate... there's also a pretty big ash sort of flavor on the finish. There is an alcohol warmth (surprised, surprise!), but there doesn't really seem to be an alcohol flavor... maybe slightly.
Overall, I actually want more out of this. It has a big body. It has a really bold "feel" to it, but the flavor isn't reeking of coffee or chocolate like I thought it might. Still, I'm ecstatic that I enjoy RIS's as much as I do now. I'm really enjoying this beer... I couldn't ask for more from the appearance and mouthfeel, as they are truly flawless.
1,789 characters
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.25
Bottled 8/22/13 and poured into a shaker pint :| ... I wanted to age this one, but decided to drink it now, and then age any bottles that I get later. $2.99 single.
Appearance: I poured aggressively thinking this wouldn't give me much of a head, boy was I wrong. I got about 90% of the beer poured and the glass was full, almost half with foam. Gorgeous beer, and one of the best RIS's I've seen. As you'd expect, the beer's an abyss. The mocha (almost orange) three finger or more of head dies down to about half of one. Lacing is phenomenal.
Smell: Quite good, but just not quite what I was hoping for. Has a very nice aroma to it, but it's not as pungent as I was hoping for. Maybe it's the thick head I have on top that's blocking out some of the notes. Roasted coffee, deep, dark chocolate, a hint of smoke/ash, and a bit of soy sauce. As Expedition Stout warms, nondescript dark fruits come out to play.
Taste/feel: First off, the feel. It is every bit of what an RIS lover would hope for. Super thick and creamy, with a subtle carbonation. The taste is fabulous, though, like the smell, not killing me with gigantic bold flavors, and the bitterness isn't nearly as harsh as I was lead to believe. Like the smell, roast, coffee, chocolate... there's also a pretty big ash sort of flavor on the finish. There is an alcohol warmth (surprised, surprise!), but there doesn't really seem to be an alcohol flavor... maybe slightly.
Overall, I actually want more out of this. It has a big body. It has a really bold "feel" to it, but the flavor isn't reeking of coffee or chocolate like I thought it might. Still, I'm ecstatic that I enjoy RIS's as much as I do now. I'm really enjoying this beer... I couldn't ask for more from the appearance and mouthfeel, as they are truly flawless.
1,789 characters
Bell's Expedition Stout from Bell's Brewery, Inc.
4.22
out of 5
based on 6,166 ratings.