Michigan Trip Beer Review #2

The second beer I tried on my trip in Michigan was from Bells Brewery. I drank quite a few Bells in my time at Michigan. They are very well known in Michigan even among non-Beer Geeks- you can almost always find a Bells tap at even the skeeziest of bars. So although this particular variety was new to me, it brought me back to college days in some ways...

Bell's Rye Stout

Bell's line of stouts is pretty impressive- Kalamazoo, Java, Double Cream, Expedition, Cherry to name a few. Without checking I would guess they make the most stout varieties of any US brewery. This one is good, though I wouldn't say it's the best. The smell was like moist raisins over coffee. Roasty and somewhat sweet. The taste was more complex. Though I couldn't really pick out a rye character there were notes of coffee, maple syrup, and straw. And like some of it's brothers, especially the Expedition and Kalamazoo, this stout had an excellent mouthfeel- silky and sat on my tongue for just the right amount of time. All in all it's good, complex enough really sit and enjoy, but not so mind blowing that you couldn't have a couple of these.