A few weeks ago, on a Wednesday night, The Beer Sellar had a Super Bell’s Party. Get it… since the Super Bowl was in Indianapolis this year, they decided to throw in a little word play there. Clever! I like it. I like it because there is beer involved, not because it mirrors the Super Bowl. Let’s just focus on the beer.
The party started at 6:00 and they began tapping one Bell’s beer after another. By the time the night was over, 20 beers would be tapped. The Beer Sellar doesn’t offer flights, so if you wanted to try them all… good luck getting home alive. I ended up trying three of them, but sipped on Sheryl’s beer all night long. Jake had a few that I tried as well. The list of beers was incredible. Some I had never heard of. They even had the Hopslam Firkin. Have you ever had Hopslam? Best. Beer. EVER! Anyway, below is a complete list of beers, their ABV, and some tasting notes complements of Bell’s Brewery.
Bell’s Oarsman Ale – 4.0% ABV
Designed as a flavorful session beer, Oarsman Ale uses a classic German brewing technique to impart a light, refreshing tartness.
Bell’s Amber Ale – 5.8%
Amber Ale deftly balances a mixture of toasted grain and light caramel notes with a range of floral, cuts, and herbal hop notes, capped by a clean bitterness.
Bell’s Best Brown Ale – 5.8%
One of Bell’s oldest brands, Brown Ale has dominant smooth, toasted malt notes, evened out with a crisp hop profile in the background.
Bell’s Winter White Ale – 5.0% ABV
An alternative to the dark and heavy nature of traditional winter warmers, Bell’s Winter White Ale takes its cue from Belgian-style white ales, offering a crisp mixture of clove and fruit aromas.
Bell’s Sparkling Ale – 9.0% ABV
Sparkling Ale blends the rich fruit notes of two Belgian Abbey-style yeasts with the citrusy hops from the Pacific Northwest to create an American interpretation of the classic Trippel style.
Third Coast Beer – 4.8%
Assertively hopped, Third Coast Beer offers a crisp, dry bitterness with a mixture of floral and herbal aromas.
Two Hearted Ale – 7.0% ABV
Bursting with hop aromas ranging from pine resins to grapefruit notes, Two Hearted Ale remains one of the defining American-style India Pale Ales.
Bell’s Porter – 5.6% ABV
With an emphasis on darker malts, Porter presents a pleasant blend of chocolate and freshly roasted coffee flavors.
Bell’s Lager of the Lakes – 5.0% ABV
Bell’s Lager Beer follows the tradition of Czech pilsners, offering a combination of firm malt and crisp, herbal hop bitterness.
Bell’s Raspberry Ale – 4.6% ABV
Fresh tart fruit flavors from locally grown Michigan raspberries makes this a Bell’s beer garden favorite.
Bell’s Quinannan Falls Lager – 6.5% ABV
Dry hopped with a blend of American hop varietals, Quinannan Falls Special Lager Beer uses its sharp pine aroma and high ABV to evoke thoughts of a crisp autumn in the north woods.
Bell’s Golden Rye – 6.0% ABV
Earthy, rustic notes from the rye combined with the citrusy, resinous hops.
Bell’s Java Stout – 7.5% ABV
Brewed with a custom blend of locally roasted coffee beans, Java Stout puts coffee flavor front and center.
Bell’s Rye Stout – 6.5% ABV
Rye Stout blends the earthiness of rye with the rich, dark chocolate aromas of various roasted malts.
Bell’s Special Double Cream Stout – 6.1% ABV
Brewed with 8 specialty malts, Double Cream Stout has a velvety smooth texture and mocha-like malt flavor.
Bell’s Hopslam Ale (cask and draught) – 10.0% ABV
With the most diverse and complicated hop profile in the Bell’s portfolio, this beer pairs a massive hop intensity with a dangerously smooth malt body. A healthy addition of honey rounds out the flavor.
Bell’s Expedition Stout – 10.5% ABV
Expedition Stout offers an immensely complex array of flavors and is crafted specifically with vintage aged in mind.
Bell’s Harry Magill’s Spiced Stout – 7.5% ABV
Subtle notes of ginger and nutmeg provide a counterbalance to the strong roasted malt notes in the Harry Magill’s Stout.
Bell’s Hell Hath No Fury… Ale – 7.5% ABV
This recipe was inspired by Belgian Abbey beers and ended up as a truly unique offering. A mixed culture of Belgian yeasts provide distinct ester phenol notes to a dark malt base.
Bell’s Black Note Stout – 11.5% ABV
A blend of Expedition and Double Cream Stouts, aged in freshly retired bourbon barrels, Black Note Stout combines the best features of its parents and enhances them with undertones of bourbon.
Now that’s a pretty impressive list. Like I said, we didn’t try them all… but I wanted to! I ended up ordering a pint of the Bell’s Harry Magill’s, the Third Coast Beer, and the Black Note. They initially had some issues with the keg for the Black Note, but put people on a waiting list to make sure everyone got some. Needless to say, it was one of the most popular beers on the list.
I didn’t order one, but I did get to try the Bell’s Hopslam Firkin. That is the one that is pulled from the cask, and has a VERY strong aroma. It smells better than the regular Hopslam if you ask me. Now, it doesn’t taste the same. Because of the way the beer is carbonated it has a flat mouthfeel. But nonetheless, the beer is good. It’s still Hopslam after all!
We had a lot of fun trying all these beers. The place was packed too. They had a band and everything. By the time we left, it seemed like half the bar was wasted! I guess when you are pouring beers that big, it makes sense people will get drunk. Which of these beers have you had? What is your favorite Bell’s beer?
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