Westvleteren 12

Best I ever tasted. Very hard to get. Soft warm taste. Fantastic flavor. I drink one in "de vrede"near the brewery

My third bottle since I’ve brought a few bottles back from Belgium in April 2007. One was with a tasting party and the other was the ’nth beer of the night. This is first one I’ve had to "taste". I had the 8 and 6 at De Vrede-those were extremely fresh beers. I think my beers have seen better days. Poured a bit cold-could be an issue. Small flat head and very dark brown-almost opaque. Nose is a bit alcoholly, chocolates, caramel. Thick, syrupy mouth. Alcohol is present but tons of syrup, chocolate, raisins, prune. The flavors stick to the palate as the warmth creates more flavoring. Still, I would believe this is a beer best drank fresh at the brewery (or across the street). The 8 was almost perfect. I didn’t have the 12 because I had a case in the trunk of my car. Now I wish I would have had the 12 too....

No doubt this is the one. With the soft feeling in the mouth of small boubles and smooth taste this is a fantastic beer.

A perfect pour into my Westvleteren goblet yields a 2 finger tan head atop a dark brown, murky, mystical body. Quintessential Belgian lacing coats the glass. Several intermingling aromas arise from this beer; yeast, cherry, grape, raisin, fig, cappucino, dark malt, spices, molasses, and so much more. To enumerate every note in this beer’s aroma would take the nose of a bloodhound and the vocabulary of a thesaurus. The flavor is just as complex as the smell. Plum, rum, chocolate, fresh bread, grape, pepper, vanilla, again I can’t possibly do this justice. Unrivaled. As one would expect this beer has a mouthfeel smoother than velvet. The carbonation is incredibly fine. Supremely drinkable.

Aroma of prunes, cherries, notes of alcohol. Incredible lacing of the side of the glass at first glance. Cant believe how well balenced.. expected more of a syrupy beer like many other quads.. so smooth. Not overly carbinated. I can taste the alcohol finish on my palate. I loved it, period

10.2 % that is nicely hidden in this perfect beer. There is a reason this beer is rated so high, it is because it is completely perfect. I have drank about 10 bottles in Europe over the past couple of months and I can certainly say, "I’ve drank enough to know."

2004 bottle served masterfully by Chris at Ebenezer’s. Deep brown body with a small, light head. My final beer at the end of an intense day, and I wasn’t taking notes, but I’ll try to remember my impressions. I do remember what I thought of it in comparison to some other beers that I’ve had, so that’s largely where the rating comes from. My most memorable impression of it is it’s light body compared to other beers of the same and similar styles, yet it’s ability nonetheless to maintain it’s complexity. Definitely some molasses coffee notes, I got some honey notes as well amidst the more typical vinous dark fruit body. I’m not sure if I would say the beer is overrated, if I was just expecting too much, if it was the end-of-day placement, or if my preference for brews not afraid to be bold at every turn results in this below-average rating.

Completely overrated. Tasted a lot like a port or sweet red wine. Not what I believe a beer should taste like. Maybe I had a bad bottle?