Whale alternatives

I spoke with two buyers and it sounded like they aren't planning to purchase it this year... It's weird.

 

They do make these two:
http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/423/45541/
http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/423/43670/

 

Everyone's got opinions. I whole heartedly disagree, at least based on offerings I have had from almost every brewery you mentioned, with the exception of Side Project. Oh well. I'd argue more because I feel so adverse to your comment here, but I'm not here to bash the other folks on the list since I like at least some stuff from all of them.

Tilquin is bond.

 

Although both are excellent beers, I do not at all think Rochefort 10 and Westy 12 are "remarkably similar" or even "pretty close", which was what the original post asked. St. Bernardus Abt 12 is much more similar to Westy 12 than Rochefort is.

And I think most people are missing the point. He's not asking for just options of great beer. He was asking for beers that taste like the whalz bro beers.

 

let me fix that for ya

 

I though whalez meant extremely rare, no longer produced or pricey beers? A lot of what has been mentioned so far shouldn't necessarily be called whalez. I mean, you can go to Belgium In A Box and buy as much Westy blond, VIII and XII as you want for close to the breweries price point (shipping is another story). I've seen Pliny on CraftShack almost once a month for $6.99 a bottle. I guess what is a whale to one isn't a whale to someone else.

Who the hell knows what a taste alternative to HotD Dave, Midnight Sun M, etc may be? Not many people have tried those beers, right? Aren't those true whalez?

 

How much does this one cost? I've had the regular gueuze but this is the first I've heard of this gueuze squared.

 

Cantillon Gueuze = any well made gueuze, in blind taste tests people have prefered 3F, Hanssens, Cuvee Rene, etc... it depends on the person

Westy 12= any well made quad, in blind taste tests people have prefered Rochefort 10, Chimay Blue, St. Bernardus 12, etc... it depends on the person

HF Ephraim= any well made DIPA, many people would prefer Enjoy By, Sucks, Hop Stoopid, etc... it depends on the person

Pliny the Younger= any well made DIPA, many people would prefer Simtra, RuinTen, Hop15, etc... it depends on the person

My point is, the only thing that makes a whale a whale is that it is a beer of excellent quality that is rare, usually no better or worse tasting than beers of similar quality, just different.

 

In my area it was $17 for a 375ml. I also bought Quetsche at that price, and of the two, Squared was worth the price while Quetsche was not (something with the new batch I think since it was almost flat and just tasted off). Squared is in the quality ballpark of 3F Golden Blend, I think. Extremely good stuff and semi-available, though the second oaking really makes it a bit of an oak bomb, so if that's not your thing you may not like it.

 

There are different levels of whalez, and they're basically determined by rarity, though they needn't be pricey or retired. Stuff like Dave and M are what I'd consider "white whalez." Then there are your "ghost whalez," the whaliest of the whalez.

I don't think stuff like Pliny, Cantillon OG, Heady, or 3F OG are whalez for the record, and honestly many of the beers mentioned here are not rare enough to be considered whalez in my opinion. For the sake of discussion it's interesting to note the beers that are close to rarer examples of the style, however.

 

Can't everyone stop talking about Big Bad Baptist?? That was supposed to be our little secret...

 

But this isn't what the OP is asking, he is asking for easy(ish) to find beers that are directly comparable to whales. That is, beers extremely close, potentially even a clone. For example: ABT 12 is a clone of Westy 12, differing only in the yeast and water; this is not true of Rochefort 10 or Chimay Blue. Old Stock Ale's recipe is like 98% identical to J.W. Lees Harvest Ale; this is not true of Bigfoot. Matilda is Goose Island's tribute to/clone of Orval, Sofie is not....etc.

It's not an issue of personal preference or taste buds, or what your favorite beer is in any given whale's style.

 

I recommend going for dolphins and sea otters instead of whales.

 

I actually thought the story went same recipe but St. Bernardus was using the Westmalle yeast. But I could be wrong, my memory fails me more frequently these days. I think its from drinking too many of these Belgian quads.

 

I'm bringing this to a bottle share tonight, never tried it, before.

 

Anderson Valley Wild Turkey? Seriously? That beer is incredibly underwhelming.

Excellent, point, which is why people aren't commenting on them. So people comment on the semi-whales they know, which is probably what the OP intended anyway. In a sense, you could consider any beer you 'hunt' to be a whale, and in todays craft beer culture it seems like even fairly large national distro limited releases require a hunt (i.e.. Bourbon County offerings).

I think you missed the point. He wasn't asking for beers that could be better than the whalz, he was asking for beers that tasty similar.

The best example I can think of has already been mentioned several times, St. Bernardus Abt 12 to Westy 12. Another one I can think of is I Love you with My Stout , which is similar to Darkness IMO.

 

Ok last comment, I don't get the Big Bad Baptist hype in this thread. Solid beer, but nothing special. Pretty one dimensional coffee bomb in my opinion.

 

... and Pannepot and Val Dieu Grand Cru both watch and laugh.

 

Spelling whales with a z with or without adding the term bro to the end makes the whole community look douchey.

 

Oh, you're talking about beer.