Trappist Westvleteren 12 (XII)
Brouwerij Westvleteren (Sint-Sixtusabdij van Westvleteren)

 

An extra special gift from my friend Erlend. Pours out to a ruddy deep brown in my chalice, forming a nice yellow head with very good retention in part to its brisk carbonation, ~2.75-3.0 carbs or so. Copious amount of sediment in the bottle and in the glass. Nose of prunes, soy sauce, raisins, tawny port, lightly burnt caramel and a little alcohol. No fusels. Mouthfeel is deceptively light and spritzy from the carbonation yet finishing quite dry. Taste of prunes, cola, caramelized bananas, brown sugar, grape juice, iced black tea, a healthy kick of alcohol, then rounded caramel and subtle burnt marshmallow in the finish. The bitterness is quite mild but well balanced. No hop flavor or aroma. The finish is gone before you know it. The alcohol is warming, but clean and pleasant, and it finishes dry with brisk carbonation, all of which are key.

Never having had this beer before, unable to get it, but wanting to try it, I brewed a Westy 12 clone many years ago with D2 Candi syrup head to head with homemade dark candi syrup and now that I've finally had the chance to try this, I can confidently say that they both tasted very close to this and I'm not missing anything by brewing it myself. After having this bottle, I'm inclined to brew another 5 gallons. Definitely better, richer and more refined than Rochefort 10 or St.Bernardus Abt 12.

330 ml bottle from Antwerpen. Pours brown with tall, foamy beige head and lively carbonation. Aroma is of toasted and caramel malt, spices, dark fruit, herbal hops, brown sugar and Belgian yeast. Body is full and crisp. Taste is of spices, Belgian yeast, toasted malt, caramel, dark fruit, herbal hops, brown shugar and some chocolate. Finish is long and dry. Wonderful brew.

This is it. This is one of the all time great beers. I get having your own taste, but outside of that, you can't deny the greatness of this beer. For me, it hits right where I like beers too, it is right into the register of figs and caramel. It is rustic, and delivers on its promise. Overall, I'm sure you can find flaws, but I enjoyed it immensely. I ended up harvesting it's yeast just to see what my sorry Homebrew skills could muster.

 

Lives up to hype and expectations. Wonderful, full, smooth, tasty

A lot of taste of brown sugar. Notes of figs, licorice, tobacco, and some notes of hazelnuts. Hints of bitterness. Well-balanced. Not the best quadrupel you get, but still delicious.

2026-07-06
2020-02-01

Not going to dispute, Quadrupple style is not my favourite, but this is close to perfection as Jezus is to God.

 

 

 

completely opaque dark brown with large fluffy white head. Very good lacing.

Aroma is a mix of booze and dark fruit with a light sugary waft.

Taste follows nose as the dark fruit carries the flavor. A light sweetness, oak and clove are in the background but do not approach the dark fruit in intensity flavor. A light bitterness appears but it’s hard to discern if it’s hops or alcohol, regardless the bitterness is deft balancer.

Mouthfeel I wonderfully light and soft. Carbonation is also light. Finish dries up fairly quickly with a light alcohol as it trails off.

2024 vintage. Lots of dark fruit, but lacking the usual tart notes around the edges. Doesn’t have the concord grape note I remember.

 

Wow. This is complex. It has the depth of a darker Belgium. But at the same time there are clear notes of a lighter beer including a good amount of balanced hops. Even some herbal notes. This is a slow sipper and show stopper. Take your time savoring this one.

bottle was 12 years old; drank our of a Piraat chalice;

A: opaque; deep brown at the lower (wider) part of the glass; lighter brown but still opaque at the top; fizzy tan head that receded quickly to a thin tight collar; no lacing;

S: sweet dark fruit; no hop character;

T: dark fruit from start to finish; slight sweetness throughout;

M: medium bodied; moderate, soda like fizzy carbonation; moderately dry finish;

O: certainly past its prime, but still quite good;

 

Copenhagen 10/6 2018. 33 cl bottle from Den Belgiske Ølbutik, Vanløse. Nondescript bottle with no label. All information on the Golden Cap including the ABV and the Shield of St. Sixtus with a Palm Tree.

Pours murky and hazy deep brown with big off-white head. Settles as 1 cm thick layer of foam sloping gently over the center of the glass. Moderate lacing.

Aroma is sweetish, potent and with more than a hint of alcohol. Humid basement, light banana, caramel, raisins, hints of vanilla, woody alcoholic oak. Gets even more potent as the beer warms up.

Soft carbonation. Medium thick smooth texture. A little sticky.

Flavor has strong sweetness followed by and balanced by rather strong bitterness. Aftertaste is dense and sweet with bitter notes. Light alcoholic burn.

Very fine and elegant Quadrupel. Boozy without being brutal, discrete yet intense. The only thing I can complain about is that the bottle is so small.