Bell's Black Note Stout
One of the most sought-after stouts in Bell’s history, Black Note Stout blends the complex aromatics of Expedition Stout with the velvety smooth texture of Double Cream Stout, each aged in freshly retired oak bourbon barrels for months.
The resulting harmony of flavors captures the finest features of all three components: malty notes of dark chocolate, espresso and dried fruits, all buoyed by the warmth and fragrance of the bourbon barrel. Aimed squarely at the stout and bourbon aficionados, Black Note makes a grand statement about the art of the dark.
The resulting harmony of flavors captures the finest features of all three components: malty notes of dark chocolate, espresso and dried fruits, all buoyed by the warmth and fragrance of the bourbon barrel. Aimed squarely at the stout and bourbon aficionados, Black Note makes a grand statement about the art of the dark.
4.3
1011 reviews
Comstock, United States
Community reviews
Bottle date 10/10/17, aged 14 months. Pours almost jet black with 1/4" head that slowly dissipates. World class in virtually every aspect. The key to this stout is its magnificent balance of aromas and flavors. Tastes of bourbon, chocolate, vanilla, caramel, and anise. Full mouth feel, smooth carbonation. Finishes semi-sweet, and then dry with a slight hops bite. Nothing is clingy or cloying about this beer. This beer has been discontinued with 2017 being the last year of bottling. Have two more I will set for 2019 and 2020. Awesome beer.
2017 Bottle. 12 ounce, at the home. Leathery notes to the nose. Just wonderful! Pitch black in color, very little beige head. Taste the malt and has woody taste. Alcohol pretty well hidden and heavy bodied. Aged wood after taste. Just one of the best beers I ever drank! Cheers!
Backlog. Bottle at home. Pours black with a dark tan head. Heavy bourbon, sweet malts, molasses, roasted coffee beans, vanilla, caramel, chocolate, burnt sugar, dark fruits. Lots of depth to this one, a bit boozy but great.
pite jakiś czas temu. uzupełnienie profilu. Ocena przepisana z utpd. Miłego dnia.
25.12.2018, 12 oz bottle (2014 vintage) @ home:
01.05.2015, tap @ CBC:
Nice brown creamy mediumlasting head. Aroma is rich and sweet, dark sugar, vanilla, dark malts, chocolate, caramel, grass, oak, mild bourbon. Taste is mild and balanced, dark malts, cocoa, oak, mild bourbon, caramel, vanilla, dark chocolate, bark, coffee. Medium bitterness, slightly dry and light mouthfeel. Nice.
Black with a small off-white head. Aroma is cocoa, coconut, roasted malt and wood. Taste is medium sweet and light bitter.
Bottle. Batch 1. This one has sit in my stash for a very long time. Let’s see how it has evolved. Sweet ripe fruit and deep roast mixed with vanilla and cocoa notes. Some tobacco. The flavor is smooth and slick. Roasted with light soy, oak, vanilla, cocoa and tobacco. Overripe fruit from the aging.
2017 from bottle. Pours black into snifter. Nose is raisins (really strong). Taste is some of those raisins, some (burnt) coffee, some booze and some lingering bitterness.it’s got a thick/oily mouthfeel. This is very good - but I don’t think it compares to a KBS.
2017 Bottle
Pours very viscus black hue with a slightly fizzy brown head that didnt last that long. What was left was just around the rim of the glass. Nose Is amazing-lots of char, wood, dark malts, broubon heat, slight licorice, anise, lots of coffee. Flavors are very rich, much like the nose-lots of char, wood, wonderful dark sweetness, slight alcohol but well hidden considering the abv. Finish goes on forever-lots of bourbon, lovely caramel, toffee, char and some roast. This is an amazing brew, probably hands down Bells best beer.
Bottle (thanks martjoobolut). Pitch black color. Small size, brown head, stays. Roast, vanilla, sweet, berries, woody in aroma and in taste. Alcohol is covered. Solid brew.
Bottle (thanks Brandon). Pours black. Aroma is sweet, roast, malt, vanilla, booze. Flavor is sweet and bitter, roast, malt, vanilla, bourbon. Overall: great.
Bottle from a friend. Black color, beige head. Bitter taste with roasted malts, nuts, chocolate, hops, licorice, coffee, vanilla and oak. Bitter finish with roasted malts, oak, bourbon, nuts, chocolate, licorice and vanilla. Exquisite imperial stout.
2017 vintage (bottled 10/5/17) bottle pour into tulip glass from Redstone Liquors, Stoneham (tasted first 9/18, then 4/19). Appearance is opaque, pitch black with nice sparkle at the edges of the glass, 2-finger width light brown creamy foam head (like a nitro) with good retention and nice soapy lacing. Aroma is cherry, fudge, raisin, bourbon/alcohol (slightly like rubbing alcohol first taste), oak, light roast. Taste is dark fruit, dark chocolate, complemented by subtle bourbon and light oak. Palate is medium-to-full bodied with velvety smooth texture, pleasant alcohol warmth, soft-to-average carbonation and finish with sweet dark fruit offset by a splash of coffee/burnt marshmallow character. Overall, tremendous beer with full flavors yet nothing over the top. Alcohol is a little strong, especially at the anniversary mark, but mellowed after another 6 months aging (will have to let the other two age a bit and revisit).
Bottle at home bought in San Diego, Bottlecraft, 7th September 18. Pours black with a nice dark tan head. Aroma is liquorice, wood, vanilla, bourbon. Taste is rich, liquorice up front, damp wood, vanilla, liquor, bourbon, leather, sweet, but not overly, some complex character and really very delicious as a classic, American imperial stout, bought memories back of browsing Bottlecraft in San Diego while I drank a Parabola and Speedway Bourbon. Great beer.
What a disappointment! Lack od body, aroma isn't very intens, nor complexed, there are some good chocolate/vanilla aromas and toffee, but not worth the legend it became.
Aromas of big bourbon, oak, vanilla, coconut, sawdust, corn syrup, leather, barrel wood, crystalized caramel, licorice, maple syrup, earth, mud, chocolate, star anise, fudge, brownie batter, molasses and toffee. Pours pitch black with a thin mocha foam. Taste brings dark chocolate, motor oil, slick dark malts, molasses, toffee, fudge, chocolate syrup, cherry extract, raspberries, blackberries, figs, dates, raisins, plums and prune juice upfront. Mid palate gives way to intense cedar wood, heavily charred oak, campfire ash, cigar smoke, charcoal, sawdust, burnt dark malts, vanilla, honey, maple syrup, bourbon, corn syrup, leather and crystallized caramel. Finishes boozy with more barrel wood, cedar wood, bourbon, licorice, toasted coconut, strong roasted black coffee, coffee beans and coffee oils. Overall, a really fantastic bourbon barrel stout that really stands on its own and has its own voice. A rating.
Beautiful bourbon barrel aroma with vanilla, coconut and wood followed by chocolate, coffee and caramel. Pours black with beige head. Taste is sweet with vanilla muffins, coffee, caramel and coconut. Medium bitter finish, soft carbo, full to average body. Overall lovely sipper.
12oz bottle. 2017. Pours ink black with a small tan head. Aroma is bourbon, vanilla, chocolate, some oak, and light coffee. Taste is bourbon, fudgy chocolate, light oak, some vanilla, subtle roast, and some coffee. Full body. Soft-to-moderate carbonation. Smooth, rich, silky, slightly sticky mouthfeel [4.5/5]. Bottle says 11.2% ABV.
12oz bottle from Canal's, 2017 marked on the label (PKG 10/05/2017), 11.2% abv for this round. Nose is room filling barrel character (oak / Bourbon?) and somewhat lesser chocolate and coffee. Pour straight pitch with a surprisingly large rocky tan head. Taste is dominated by barrel character and alcohol, some heat, some mild burn, but spirited and fumy without heavy fusel contribution -- I'm impressed if that was the goal. Deep warmth along the throat, touch sugary but never sweet, per se; lower bitterness than expected, probably low-medium or even just plain low; dark roast, inky dark malt character that's unfortunately marred/surpassed by oily alcohol. Medium body with light edges but the flavors are just sledgehammers. Clean throughout, hint of yeast here and there, no soy. There's a bit of fruit, mostly grape, pairing very nicely with cream (in taste and texture), espresso aftertaste, but the overall effect is closer to a marriage of Slivovitz and Kahlua than beer. That being said, a reasonably fun one, if expectations have been adjusted. [2018.08.03: 3.9]
strong malty, moderate chocolate and coffee notes. pitch black in color with great head. taste is of chocolate and coffee, very faint vanilla
Zwart met fijne mokkakleurige schuimkraag die redelijk snel inzakt. Chocolade, toffee, bourbon, creamy, volle body, barrel. Perfect in balans. Smooth en boozy in 1. Close to perfection.
Bottle at Avenue Pub, New Orleans. Big Bourbon aroma with vanilla, roasted malt, caramel, coffee, fudge, milk- and dark chocolate, oak. Controlled above medium sweetness, roasty bitter. Full body, light liquorice, lovely Bourbon finish. Big and beautiful.
Poured from bottle thanks Brian 2012 vintage amber black with minimal head nice lacing. Aroma is dark roasted chocolate dark fruit oak. Taste is creamy nice mouth feel chocolate notes bourbon light caramel blended perfectly.
Ohhh you think darkness is your ally. You merely adopted the dark, I was born in it, molded by it. I didn't see the light until I was already a man. Black pour with a tan to dark tan head that lasts. Aroma is wood, vanilla, ash, roast, coffee, chocolate, notes of darker fruit. Fairly full bodied, moderate to high creaminess, ash and roast flavors present with chocolate, pleasant, decadent. It's crazy how much the standard for BA imperial stouts have evolved. This is still really nice, but I don't find it 'wow status' either compared to the plethora of other BA offerings. If I rated this 12 years ago it would have been an absolute world beater and then some. The shadows betray you because they belong to me.
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The aroma is licorice, figs/dates. a little bourbon. Pours black with tan head fully diminishing. The taste is bitter and a little sour. The body is full, the texture creamy, the carbonation lively, the finish long. Very good!
Apparence : Noire, léger col brun foncé, rétention faible, petites bulles moyennement actives, fine dentelle.
Nez : Bourbon, malt rôti, chocolat, fudge, café.
Goût : Fut de bourbon et chocolat dominants, malt grillé, finale bien distincte des arômes de café de qualité. Tout de même sucrée, légère amertume.
Sensation : Corps moyen, bonne longueur, touche épicée sur la langue.
Bref : Pour moi, cette bière a deux grandes qualités. D'abord, l'équilibre des notes maltées grillées, des apports aromatiques du fut, du sucre résiduel et de l'amertume. Une belle maîtrise. Ensuite, la transition entre les notes mentionnées et une finale bien distinctive sur le café est fort intéressante. Belle complexité. Puis-je m'avancer par contre en disant qu'elle aurait pu avoir un peu plus de corps (et si je veux vraiment aller plus loin, de ''punch'')?
12 oz. bottled 10-05-2017, 11.2 % abv. Jet black with a quarter inch of lasting cream. Aroma of dark chocolate, caramel, toasted nut and vanilla. Flavors of bourbon, milk chocolate, caramel, toasted walnut and vanilla. Medium-heavy mouthfeel with a lightly tingly, low-medium carbonation. A little bit sticky and boozy, but very tasty indeed.
Bottle from Modern Liquors. Black pour, scant head, come off as a bit thin. And thats the only weak point. All else this baby has it in spades. Aroma is sweet and roasty, some underlying bourbon notes rising through. Taste beings more of the sweetness, molasses and brown sugar, marshmallows and vanilla. Lingering sweetness with some more of the whiskey notes.
0,355l bottle at home from trade with Biroholik, big thanks. Bottled 10/05/2017. black color, small coffee colored head. smells of bourbon, nutty, marzipan, some cinnamon, chocolate, cocoa, lightly boozy. very nice smell. full body, light carbonation, slick mouthfeel. tastes of bourbon, wood, nutty, some vanilla, earthy, cocoa, light cinnamon, spices, ligh oxidation. finishes lightly roasty bitter with notes of bourbon, nutty and some vanilla. very nice one overall, very bourbon forward, some oxidaton notes and some (a bit too much) vanilla.
8, 4, 8, 4, 17