It's not the hardest in the world to come by, although getting a bottle isn't so easy. Someone has to go to the monastery that the beer is brewed at and pick it up. Thanks to the wonders of the internet, my fiance was able to pick up a bottle on ebay that she purchased from someone in Belgium. It's also not the most expensive beer in the world, that title is generally given to Samuel Adams' Utopia, which originally retailed for $100 a bottle, but now goes for $400 or more. However, it is generally considered to be THE best beer on the planet. It's voted as #1 on both Rate Beer and Beer Advocate, which I think says quite a lot. The fact that it's also somewhat attainable should be pretty exciting for beer lovers. While you're likely to pay upwards of $20 a bottle, it's something that pretty much anyone can do at least once in their life.
Like the 8, it comes in a fairly unassuming bottle, plain brown with no label. The only markings it has are a ring in the glass neck of the bottle that simply says Trappistenbier, and a bottle cap marking it as the Trappist Westvleteren 12. The beer is a Quadrupel, which is a strong Belgian style, usually in the 10% range. It's also supposed to be stronger in flavor than either the Dubbel or Tripel. I haven't had a lot of this style. In fact I think the only other Quad I've tried was Ommegang's Three Philosophers, which as I recall I didn't enjoy all that much.
Pouring the bottle into the glass was a little whiff of Belgium. The smell was fruity, of cherries, apple, and candied sugar. Around the edges of the smell there's a bit of round hops that have just a bit of bite. It's a fairly strong smell, but mainly sweet, with little bitterness present. Underneath was just a touch of roast, but it's faint.
The beer poured a deep brown color, fairly cloudy, and with quite a bit of sediment in the bottom. There's nearly a finger of yeast sediment at the bottom of the bottle, in large white flakes. There's almost no head, just a slight dusting of off-white head. The ring of bubbles around the edge of the glass left a touch of lacing.
The taste was initially of chocolate and fruit, with a good candy sweetness, but still some tartness in the mouth. Towards the back of the tongue, a smooth hop bitterness took over. The malty chocolate flavor sat just in the middle of the tongue. I noticed just a hint of alcohol flavor as well, not nearly enough to indicate the 10.2+% that this beer contained. The flavor was very strong though, absolutely filling the mouth, and leaving a fruity and bitter aftertaste for quite a while.
It's a very full bodied drink, absolutely thick and syrupy. There's quite a bit of carbonation though, much more than I'd expect from such a thick beer. It left a filmy coating on the teeth as well. The beer warmed the throat going down, a much better indicator of how strong it is.
It's definitely a very good drink, and well worth getting your hands on one. I didn't like it quite as much as the 8, but it's probably more a style preference than anything else. I'm not sure exactly how old the bottle was, at least 4 months, and probably older. It would be interesting to see how the flavors change between a fresh bottle and one that's aged. I can see though why it's earned the reputation it has, although it's not the single greatest beer of my life, it's one that I thoroughly enjoyed, and am very glad to have experienced.
- Adam
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