Westvleteren 12

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

Aroma is wildly delicious - sweet figs in honey, toffee, an immediately noticeable vinous presence, rum sugars, candied dates. A rich, fresh maple syrup is announced. Pour is deep chestnut brown with a small, cobwebby beige head. A highly-anticipated first sip. This has the round, chewy malt of St. Bernardus 12, but has a richer fruit presence and is more refined. Creamy, wonderful mouthfeel. Just beautifully balanced and well-crafted. As with Rochefort, an impression of overripe banana makes itself known. This is fucking amazing. A brilliant spicy note, like cloves, cinnamon, and cardamom swirl about the dark fruits and rich, deep alcoholic sugars. I don’t know if I’’ve ever enjoyed a bottle of beer this much. If my tooth wasn’t hurting I probably would have enjoyed it even more. Thanks Brad, I owe you.

A very dark brown pour, with a touch of ruby highlights. Surprisingly dark, moreso than I was expecting. A two finger head, pale tan / offwhite, nice and sticky, good retention. I was quite pleasantly surprised by the size of the head on here, especially considering the ABV. A ton of dark fruit, sweet candi sugar scents, almost caramel like, too. A smoky, and woody quality, kinda oak like. Sugary dark fruit... A very notable raisin, fig, and date flavour. A warm, alcohol flavour... A little sweet, a little tart, a little peppery/spicy. A nice earthiness, smokiness, leather and tobacco. A lot going on, and beautifully balanced. Certainly my favourite of the trappists, and a very fine abbey ale. Big, rich, and round feel. A nice, fizzle of carbonation over the tongue, swirled through the mouth, and easing to soft and smooth on the finish, leaving the warmth and rich flavour on the finish. An excellent beer, and unfortunate to only have one bottle. It drinks incredibly smooth and soft, with an excellent sense of satisfaction after a glass. It has certainly secured a place among the best of the best, and well worth seeking out to try. Almost frighteningly drinkable, and perhaps the closest thing to perfection that I have tasted.

It has a cloudy brown colour with a creamy head. Aroma of hazelnut, nut and chestnut. Full-bodied and very complex.

nightcap for emily. she kindly shared it with me... long blonde hair, deep clear blue eyes, wonderfully soft skin and looks just beautifull asleep on my couch... and the beer? :-) it’s westy 12! Gorgeous stuff, but no competition ;-)

Bottle from Brad... Pours a dark brown color, almost a two finger creamy white head, that faded fairly quickly. Aroma was of dark fruits. Taste was candy sugar, dark fruits, maybe a little oak/vanilla touch. Very smooth. Not a trace of alcohol. Nice creamy texture, average carbonation. Thanks brad for the beer.

I am not totally impressed with this beer, it pour really thin with virtually no head. its got some taste of dark fruits including figs and raisin. Alcohol taste is their which brings a smooth overall flavor. truth be told, while this is very good, it is far from being "the best"

The aroma is nice with fruit, malt, maple, yeast, and leaves. The appearance is the color of a fig (purple) with brown and the head is sudsy. The flavor is bitter and soapy but mostly like the aroma. The palate is thin. Overall it’s disappointing.

Sweet, full bodied and suprisingly drinkable abbot. Very sweet and complex flavour with allot of most things. I didnt find the finish to be of a bigger experience but the smooth mouthfeel and complex character of this beer is really great.