Westvleteren 12

From http://www.sintsixtus.be – “As every man we must be able to live. So we have to try to earn our living and let others share in what we have to abstain from. Indeed, we have to live ‘from’ and ‘with’ our brewery. But we do not live ‘for’ our brewery. This must be strange for business people and difficult to understand that we do not exploit our commercial assets as much as we can. We are no brewers. We are monks. We brew beer to be able to afford being monks.”

Father abbot
(on the occasion of the consecration of the new brewery)

Westvleteren Abdij St. Sixtus – Westvleteren 12 – 12 oz bottle poured into my New Belgium glass. Sent to me from a really kind person named Amy on rate beer. 10.2% abv.

Appearance: Pours a dark brown with a creamy 1/4 inch head. Leaves a milky lace behind.

Aroma: Creamy milk chocolate and a little bit of spearmint and dark fruits.

Taste: Milk chocolate, dark chocolate, dark fruits, moderate bitter hops. A touch of booze if you analyze hard enough.

Mouthfeel: Velvety, silky, creamy, and perfectly carbonated.

Overall: I’m floored by this beer. It has a big reputation, and it exceeded it in my opinion.