Westvleteren Extra 8

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

Served in July 2006 at the DeVreda in Belgium. the best beer ever until...Ihad the Westvleteren 12 a few minutes later

Bottle 2003 - Beautiful deep brown body with an orange edge, creamy light brown head; Huge very complex nose yet very, very balanced and settled, lots of great aromas ranging from vinous fruity to ripe apple, dark red berries and sweet malty aromas all in a near perfect harmony; Huge perfect body, full, very balanced and super complex, sweet, bitter and slightly salty, perfect big carbonation with a slight bite, perfect soft texture; The longest of long finishes, super full aromas that grows with the length, warm more caramel aromas without being sweet, tobacco sharper sweet aromas, super complex and perfectly balanced, bitter and slightly dry. Amazing beer like the other Westvleteren, this might be the one that ages the best.

Compilation of ratings from two bottles, both thanks to Fin! One shared with Fin, Loz and Traci, one just Traci and me. Lovely deep orange highlighted brown, substantial sand-colored cap that leaves streaks of lace all over the glass. Woody, earthy aroma, a bit of toasted caramel and a touch of smoke. More sniffing: strawberries, buttered toffee. Bright peppery carbonation fills the mouth, making an interesting contrast with deeply caramelized low-frequency flavors. Strawberry and plum esters, a lingering mineral, leafy caramel finish. A few things strike me about this beer: aroma is pretty, but the volume seems really low--in any kind of distracting environment this beer would almost disappear. (A shy beer?) The flavor too, is ultra soft and unassuming. And while I really enjoyed this, I sort of expected something with a bit more impact. This is 8% of shrinking violet.

2004 vintage, deep amber with a thin off white head..nose of raisins nuts malt and yeast. Belly warming alcohol with again raisin nuts and malt with a slightly bitter swallow. Still, a great beer and once again a spiritual experience at that...Amen.

Aroma: caramel followed by vanilla. Gives way to strong malt and fruity esters with a touch of cherry. Apearance: brown with red highlights nicely hazy with a good tan head and sheet lacing. Flavour: malt, balanced with grape fruity bitterness. Some carbon, cherry notes with some hazelnut 8 mocha. Palait: thick, lots of carbonation finishes malty sweet and highly acidic

Name: 8 - blue cap
Date: 02/17/2001
Mode: Bottle
Source: www.belgianshop.com

dark brown, thick tan head, malty aroma with a touch of floral hops, rich malt flavor, lots of complexity, underlying bitterness
-------- /> Name: 8 - blue cap
Date: 05/05/2003

opaque brown, frothy tan head, peppery spicy aroma and flavor, rich dark malt flavor, light bitterness,
-------- /> Name: 8 - blue cap
Date: 03/26/2006
Source: tasting

lots of rich spicy chocolate malt flavor,
-------- /> Name: 8 - blue cap
Date: 07/02/2006
Source: tasting
Words: cellar party

nice sweet chocolate malt flavor, great fig and raison flavor, nice spices
-------- /> Name: 8 - blue cap
Date: 09/08/2007
Mode: bottle
Words: cellar party

rich chocolate and ripe fruit is a great combination

Aroma: 7/10; Appearance: 8/10; Flavor: 9/10; Palate: 8/10; Overall: 17/20
Rating: 4.1/5.0
Drinkability: 8/10
Score: **4

Big thanks to JJPM74. Dark mahogany pour, big almond head. Aroma is perfumy but light. Flavor is candi sugar, lots of caramel, brown sugar, molasses, perfumy with a good amount of floral hops. Oak and woody with chocolate and some smoke as it warms. Lots of dark berries with mainly a sweet sugary and perfumy taste with some roastiness in the background. Good beer but I do prefer the 12 this was like a subdued version.

Tasted 2007-08-19. 1 year old bottle, 33cl. Pours clear dark brown with big beige head. Powerful notes of malt, yeast, plums, molasses and prunes. There’s an alcohol-burn at the end, that I could do without, but make no mistake; This is a great beer!