Westvleteren Blond

Brewed by Westvleteren Abdij St. Sixtus
Style: Belgian Ale
Westvleteren, Belgium

Serve in Trappist glass, Tulip, Tumbler

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Some similarities to other blondes with cereals and plants. Curiously, I spotted no fruit. It tasted like the outdoors, I guess that barnyard type taste. However, it was very refreshing on a warm summer day.

Westvletern - basically what beer dreams are made of. The blond was a wonderful conclusion to a three glass tasting I had at the monastery ’bar’ this summer after riding a bike from Yerpes. Amazing floral hop aromas met my nose before great flavours of green apple and spice met my tongue. A close to perfect clean dry finish. I wanted to stay forever.

UPDATED: APR 7, 2003 One of the better Wits out there. This is a Wit, isn't it? The aroma is moderately malty and heavily yeasty. I also detected lemon, coriander, pepper and, of course, alcohol. A murky, medium yellow color. Small, fizzy, white head. A lightly malty flavor to start and then the spice kicks in to bitter things up a bit. Hint of black pepper in the mouth. Medium bodied with a dry, fizzy mouthfeel. Nice crisp, dry finish. Excellent effort from those wacky trappist monks.

Flower buquett. Also hops, apple and grain. Apricot like body with a little frothy head. Very hoppy and peppery aroma. Very bitter finish. Fizzy carbonation. Nice unexpected hoppy liquid.

Big fresh hop floral aroma - love it! Like a West coast IPA. Hazy light orange-gold color and a lovely tight white head. Bright hop taste with hints of citrus (lemons) and a very long, dry bitter finish. Medium bodies and bit gritty in the mouth. Slight cardboard aftertaste. I’m not convinced of the balance, but I just the aggressiveness of this brew: it is very un-European in that respect.

Excellent pour with a soft pillowy fluffy white cloud-like head that slowly retreats to the beer. The aroma is very citrusy with a hint of orange or lemon peels. The color is a hazy yellow-white beer. The taste lacks the sweetness that I would have thought making it much more appealing to me. It is also not overly cabonated. Light to medium body with a crispness that tastes great. There is a slight bitter taste that really stand out but doesn’t have a long lasting kick. Overall, a very nice refreshing blonde.

UPDATED: JUN 20, 2005 Bottle, Brussels, May 2005. Head is initially large, frothy, white, mostly lasting. Body is hazy light yellow, bottle conditioned. Aroma is lightly malty (toasted bread), moderately hoppy (flowers, herbs), lightly yeasty (cobwebs), with notes of clove and lemon peel. Flavor is moderately sweet, lightly acidic, moderately bitter. Finish is lightly sweet, moderately acidic, moderately bitter. Medium body, velvety texture, lively carbonation. It’s hard to travel to Belgium and not retry at least one Westvleteren beer, even though the impulse is to try as many of those I’ve never had before. God, has it really been almost 3 years since I’ve had this one? Pity, as this is a wonderful Belgian blonde. CLEAN clean clean. If only this could be my everyday ale, man oh man.

Spicy and flowery aroma. Flavor is tangy, somewhat sweet but with surprising amount of grassy bitterness.

Might be the best blonde I’ve tried. Strong hoppy both taste and aroma with a clear alcoholic and yeasted flavour. Beautiful amber/yellow colour with a milky-white head. Very well balanced with both the hints of fruit and the bitterness of the hops. Very tasty, even at 5.8%. A masterpiece!

The best of the trappist singles. That makes a hat trick for Westvleteren. Tons of strong flavour without being overpowering.