Westvleteren 12

Brewed by Westvleteren Abdij St. Sixtus
Style: Abt/Quadrupel
Westvleteren, Belgium

Serve in Trappist glass

send corrections   |   shelftag   |   edit barcodes   |   add pic

Glass at the St. Sixtus cafe: Appearance is nearly black with an cream color head slow fading head. Aroma is filled with spices, sweet malt and yeast. Flavor is unlike any other beer I’ve ever had. Most similar to Rochefort, but perfected. This beer has a slightly sweet taste at first, followed by some plumb, brown sugar, candi sugar, spices, caramel, roasted malt and some Belgian yeast. Absolutely the best Belgian beer I’ve had, if not the greatest beer I’ve had. The cafe was sold out of the 12 deg in bottles, but was able to pick up a 6 pack of the 8 deg to rate and enjoy later.

Dark brown beer pours in its own glass with a moderate but long lasting head. I had a lot of expectations beforehand and this beer managed to answer to these expectations. This beer really has a quality. It’s almost perfect.

Made a mistake by having this chilled before opening the bottle, and it took half the bottle to be drunk before it had warmed up enough to appreciate the full range of flavour. Hoppy, malty, wonderfully balanced, lmost made me want to find religion!

Bottle won at North Bar, Leeds. Feels like a special occasion. Pours an opaque brown, small white head. Aroma is great - spice, dark fruits, Belgian esters, blackcurrant cordial, a touch of coffee. Taste is equally brilliant: dark fruits, spice, brown sugar, caramel, Belgian esters, a touch of treacle. Not too sweet, not too bitter. Taste comes in waves/phases, keeps it interesting. Long, long finish. A really pleasant finish. I tried to disassociate myself from the hype and rate this objectively, and still come to the conclusion that this is one f*cking brilliant beer. Ya beauty.

Pours dark amber with a low head. Aroma is sweet malts, dark fruits and alcohol. Flavor is sweet malts, syrup, fruits, yeast and some alcohol. Pretty much the perfect abbey ale. Simply sublime.

Tasted at in de vrede ( the cafe next to the monastery. Smokey, oak smell. Nice thick lasting head. Tastes nutty with a hint of hops. Flavourful lasting aftertaste ---Rated via Beer Buddy for iPhone

Serving: Bottle courtesy of Robert. Big thanks to Robert for hooking me up with this hard to get brew. It pours a cloudy brown with a pretty decent tan head. The nose is a potent mix of spiced bread, vanilla, yeast, dried fruit, and brown sugar. The flavor mirrors the nose with the yeast, dried fruit, and light brown sugar as the dominant flavors. The spice, light wood, and bitterness add just enough balance. What really struck me was the mouthfeel. Light to medium bodied do in part to the combination of high alcohol and abundant carbonation, but it works well. The finish is amazingly dry and the alcohol is all but undetectable at 10.2%. I can certainly see why this brew is so highly rated. My first thought after finishing it was "I can drink this all day." Truly outstanding. Tasted side by side with a Roch 10 and a St. B 12. The St. B 12 was a distant third, but the 10 held up well in comparison. With some age on it, I would put a Roch 10 neck and neck with this brew, but right now I have to give a slight edge to this one.

Wasn’t sure if this would live up to its hype, but I’m happy to say it most certainly did. Fantastic balance of bitter hops and sweet roasted malt. Beautiful dark brown/red pour with a head that lasts the duration of the enjoyment. Tastes of raisins, chocolate, and toasty malt with a nice punch of yeast flavor. Absolutely delicious. As complex as it is delicious.

Prima volta assaggiata.Birra fantastica con sentori di frutti scuri,malto dolce e una leggerissima luppolatura...Sicuramente tra le migliori birre che ho assaggiato

Bought this one at the biertempel in brugge. Nice dark trappist beer, creamy full head, great taste. Nice aroma, flavored with various tints of, resin, woody, roasty, citrus, coffee. Try this one if you can. They only sell just enough to cover the bills. But see if yoy can get your hands on one or two. Enjoy...

Bottle from "Berlin Bier Store", Berlin. Got the last bottle they had. Pours opaque brown, with quite lively carbonation. Big head. Aroma of brown malts, toffee, ripe fruits and brown sugars. Taste is super creamy, with loads of caramel, vanilla, resin and some fruity aspects. Worlds best? I dont know, but it’s the best quad out there for sure.