Westvleteren 12

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

Serve in Trappist glass

Drink by date of 9/3/2005 date on the cap. Pours a dark brown, lots of carbonation and thin quick fading off-white head. Aroma started to emanate out of the bottle as soon as the seal was broken on the cap. Aroma is very complex with a strong estery nose composed of a mild banana presence, a mild toasted malt and caramel sweetness, lots of Belgian candy sugar sweetness, very low liquorish and raisin with an almost cookie like finish to the nose. Flavor is fantastic! Strong candy sweetness up front with a mild smooth toasted malt in the middle. Light notes of banana and a complex estery flavor are also in there. Smooth brown sugar, light raisin with a very long lasting combo of caramel and sugar finish. Body is pretty heavy and holds a lot of residual sugar feeling. Carbonation is very high and keeps the brew pretty lively. Overall - first and foremost I have to say thanks to JMerritt for this brew. I did have some reservations in trying this beer as it comes with such lofty expectations that I thought it would be difficult for the beer to meet what I have read and heard. It definitely did not disappoint. The quality and attention to details form Westvleteren shows. Aromas don’t overpower but do give the brew a very intense quality not seen in too many beers. The flavor is complex, well balanced and provides a full range of tastes throughout th drink. Just an awesome beer and one I will look forward to having again at some point this lifetime. Additional note: This beer was only kept down for about 30 minutes due to the onset of a kidney stone. Nothing like a dash of divine intervention from this holy beer to clean the system and keep me kicking to enjoy another 1000 ratings!

2004 bottle. Nice aroma of raisins, prunes, caramel. The aged dusty aftertaste just comes through very lightly. The taste is still nice and full with similar tastes as can be recognized in the smell. Very nice beer for this age.

One of the best in belgium and the whole world! tasted at the festival in brugge (BAB) not my favorite but as we speak about beer an incredible piece of beer! For objective taste opinion i’ll let it to professionals

Another superb elixer from the AZ crew. I rather enjoyed the dark sweet fruits in this one. Simply amazing. Bravo.

Beige head that diminishes too fast, but leaves a nice brussels lace. Dark brown body. Aroma is great; sweet/malty, raisins, over-ripe fruits, winey, rum (sweet+alcohol?), dough. Body is medium to full. Full of flavour; sweet, then spicy (some liquorice!?!), and a long slightly bitter plus dry finish with an alcoholic warmth. Complex.

I can’t believe that I like rochefort 10 better. I guess I thought This would be my favorite beer. It’s still incredible. I’d actually say it’s harder to figure out than rochefort 10. Does that make it better? Dark dark fruits and sugars. Finishes very dry. Definitely get some alcohol...but not prevalent. My mouth is coated in why seems sugar. Large off white head. Aroma is Belgian for sure. Very very complex. It seems to be over my head. I intentionally allowed i t to warm to see if most nuances would show. Not much. A tad disappointed as usual with all things hyped...but amazing nonetheless. Not my favorite though. Five minutes later...after sitting here, i get this resounding smoky toasty malt aftertaste that is actually quite nice.

Finally had the chance to try this with a non beer geek friend of mine. Pours a cloudy dark brown. Would have been clear, but I got over zealous with the pour and let some yeasties in. Thin whitish head doesn’t stick around very long. Aroma starts off with some vanilla and slight chocolate, but really comes to live as the brew warms. Banana’s, plums, lots of malty goodness. Taste is caramel, dried fruit some alcohol as she warms. Medium mouthfeel with a bit of stickiness. Nice carbonation. Definitely worthy of the hype.

Complexity is probably one of the best words to describe this beer. Nose is Belgian yeast, plum, fig, malt, earthy. Pours a deep brown/plum color with a nice head. Flavor is amazing, fruits all over the place, characteristic Belgian yeast flavors, malt, dark sugar. Medium body, alcohol is present, but well hidden amongst all the other flavors. I’m sure the "forbidden fruit" rarity factor plays into the hype, but wow, this is truly fantastic, get one!