Westvleteren 12

Paparazzo

Anyone ever taste it?
It has 100% out of 1300 reviews on beer advocate: http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/313/1545

It's hard to get, but Molloys are doing it. Not cheap at €50 for 6 bottles and 2 glasses. If you say the glasses are a fiver each, that's still €6.60 a bottle.

http://www.molloys.ie/buy-online/Products/Beers-of-the-World-Gift-Packs/Westvleteren-XII-Gift-Pack

I reckon I might get a pack though, just for the experience.

source

Paparazzo wrote: »

Anyone ever taste it?
It has 100% out of 1300 reviews on beer advocate: http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/313/1545

It's hard to get, but Molloys are doing it. Not cheap at €50 for 6 bottles and 2 glasses. If you say the glasses are a fiver each, that's still €6.60 a bottle.

http://www.molloys.ie/buy-online/Products/Beers-of-the-World-Gift-Packs/Westvleteren-XII-Gift-Pack

I reckon I might get a pack though, just for the experience.

Haven't tasted it but thinking of getting one just for the taste, and those glasses are really nice looking.

Paparazzo

I just got some. If you compare the price to wine it's not too expensive. Roughly the price of a €14 bottle of wine.

BeerNut

Bit of discussion on it here.

I liked it but I don't think it's worth the asking price.

Paparazzo

BeerNut wrote: »

Bit of discussion on it here.

I liked it but I don't think it's worth the asking price.

Good taste test. Agree with you on Westmalle Dubbel, it's one of those beers I'm always in the mood for.
St. Bernardus Abt 12 is down as €3.80 on drinkstore.ie, so it's worth getting these at €6.60 each to give them a go. Might do a taste test with St. Bernardus while I'm at it.

the beer revolu

I was gutted when I found out it was just the 12 coming in and not a selection pack. The blond is the on that stood most for me.

Seaneh

BeerNut wrote: »

Bit of discussion on it here.

I liked it but I don't think it's worth the asking price.

Where can you buy "any of the others for less than €1 per bottle", I'd love to know!

BeerNut

Any supermarket in Belgium.

Seaneh

BeerNut wrote: »

Any supermarket in Belgium.

ah right. Not here ya cant :P


Out of interest, how much does a bottle cost from the Abbey or Visitors centre?

BeerNut

Seaneh wrote: »

ah right. Not here ya cant :P

No. But when I wrote that blog post you couldn't buy Westvleteren here at all. There's an assumption that the hypothetical purchaser is in Belgium.

Seaneh wrote: »

Out of interest, how much does a bottle cost from the Abbey or Visitors centre?

€1.62 and a half, plus deposit. But you can only buy by the case of 24. Details here.

BaZmO*

I liked it, but other than the six pack I got, I can't see myself buying it again for such a high price.

Paparazzo wrote: »

Anyone ever taste it?
It has 100% out of 1300 reviews on beer advocate: http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/313/1545

Betcha the rating goes down in the next few months since it's now more widely available and you'll have a lot of people surprised that it's not the manna from heaven that it's hailed to be.

_blank_

Just got a text from my brother saying he'd left a bottle of this into my mother's for me.

I remembered this thread.

Will I just open it and drink it, or should I leave it for a while?

KJ

Des wrote: »

Just got a text from my brother saying he'd left a bottle of this into my mother's for me.

I remembered this thread.
Will I just open it and drink it, or should I leave it for a while?

Open and drink. They were released in February or so, so it will have already aged a bit. I liked it better when it was fresher. I still have 4 ageing though.

Saruman

I got 2 of the bricks so I have 12 in total. I have not tried them but I have had it before.
I agree that it's an excellent beer but not worth the hype. In fact Westvleteren 8 stood out for me. I had that before the 12.

slayerking

I also got 2 bricks and popped a bottle at the weekend.
I was actually a bit let down, I've had it before in Bruges and thought it was better. I still prefer a good Rochfort 10 over it tbh.

I might try another bottle at Christmas or some time next year to see how its going!

Saruman

Still, there is always ebay if you don't care for them! I heard Ireland got the same allotment of bricks as the US did

BaZmO*

Saruman wrote: »

Still, there is always ebay if you don't care for them! I heard Ireland got the same allotment of bricks as the US did

And if you want to make money on your empty bottles!

BeerNut

BaZmO* wrote: »

And if you want to make money on your empty bottles!

They're not empty. People who sell beer on eBay try to get round the law and the rules by pretending it's the bottle that's for sale, not the contents.

Saruman

Yeah I saw people selling empty bottles. I didn't think anyone would buy them. For one thing, they are just beer bottles but specifically there is nothing about them to distinguish them as Westvleteren bottles is there? Other breweries use the same type bottle and it only says Trappist or something like that does it not? I thought the only thing that makes it Westvleteren traditionally is the colour of the cap, which can be bought in any homebrew store.

BeerNut

Saruman wrote: »

specifically there is nothing about them to distinguish them as Westvleteren bottles is there?

In this case, the beer inside

Saruman wrote: »

Other breweries use the same type bottle and it only says Trappist or something like that does it not?

Yep, those were originally Westmalle bottles. Before the specially-printed bottles in the brick, Westvleteren always used second-hand bottles from other breweries. The Westmalle ones can be spotted by their collar.

Saruman wrote: »

I thought the only thing that makes it Westvleteren traditionally is the colour of the cap, which can be bought in any homebrew store.

The cap is branded, and has the brewery name and logo, the beer number and the ABV on it.

Saruman

Thanks TBN, I have not examined the regular bottles but neither have I paid any attention to the ones in my bricks at home.

I love on the bottle add where it says:

The container has not been opened and any incidental contents are not intended for consumption.

What the hell is in there?

BeerNut

Saruman wrote: »

What the hell is in there?

See post #18 above.

Saruman

BeerNut wrote: »

See post #18 above.

Ah... missed that one

BaZmO*

BeerNut wrote: »

They're not empty. People who sell beer on eBay try to get round the law and the rules by pretending it's the bottle that's for sale, not the contents.

Hmmm interesting

Seaneh

Saruman wrote: »

Still, there is always ebay if you don't care for them! I heard Ireland got the same allotment of bricks as the US did

The was it was described to me was this.

"Imagine that I got one lot jobbie of bricks, and use that as the unit. Well I got one lot jobbie for Ireland, just the south, so one lot jobbie for 4.5 million people, well, the in the US they got two lot jobbie's between two different importers for the whole country, so Ireland got a fair amount"

Seaneh

BaZmO* wrote: »

Hmmm interesting

I have friends who mail beer to each other in the US by labelling it stuff like "Yeast sample suspended in moltodextrin solution" and so forth.

johnnyskeleton

Saruman wrote: »

What the hell is in there?

a big problem for people buying whiskey on online auctions is that the easiest scam to pull is to get an old empty bottle of eg highland park or port ellen, fill it up with a bog standard whiskey (eg black bottle) or even water, and reseal it. Brown bottles are even easier to fabricate because the colour of the liquid inside is not clear.

Not sure it is worth while making fake beers, but given the price of westvleteren and the ease at which it could be replicated, I wouldn't be surprised if what you get in the bottle is not westvletern or not even beer and if you've agreed to purchase a bottle for it's collectability only and not it's contents, then you may not have any recourse.

Saruman

Very good point. A bench capper and careful opening will reseal those bottles with none the wiser and who can you complain to? ebay don't allow alcohol sales so you were clearly buying a collectible bottle, or more to the point, bottle cap because the bottles are nothing special.

BaZmO*

Seaneh wrote: »

I have friends who mail beer to each other in the US by labelling it stuff like "Yeast sample suspended in moltodextrin solution" and so forth.

Although I'm guessing the clever word play would prick up the ears of many an over zealous post office clerk.

Fart

I hope I'm not digging up an oldish thread, but here it goes.

Does anyone know if anywhere in Dublin is stocking this beer? I see from the OP that around 50 euro for 6 bottles and 2 glases seems like a fantastic deal, considering I've looked online and one bottle is 14 euro.

Any info about further releases?.. I'm dying to try this.

Cheers.

johnnyskeleton

Fart wrote: »

I hope I'm not digging up an oldish thread, but here it goes.

Does anyone know if anywhere in Dublin is stocking this beer? I see from the OP that around 50 euro for 6 bottles and 2 glases seems like a fantastic deal, considering I've looked online and one bottle is 14 euro.

Any info about further releases?.. I'm dying to try this.

Cheers.

Their whole schtick is to only sell them in or around the abbey and not commercially. It's quite a marketing idea from those crafty monks.

so unless the roof falls in again, or they get greedy, it won't be available for general release any time soon.

You could visit the abbey, or you could pick one up second hand. Maybe there might be a brick still in one of the off licences if you look hard enough.

Martyn1989

johnnyskeleton wrote: »

Their whole schtick is to only sell them in or around the abbey and not commercially. It's quite a marketing idea from those crafty monks.

so unless the roof falls in again, or they get greedy, it won't be available for general release any time soon.

You could visit the abbey, or you could pick one up second hand. Maybe there might be a brick still in one of the off licences if you look hard enough.

Kellys Offlicence in Clontarf still have them.

Mr Benevolent

So it's not worth the €50 so - that's good enough for me.

Seaneh

I think it's worth it to be honest. It's a lovely beer.

People have no problem paying €8 a bottle for stuff like Tokyo and nogne o beers and they are often much inferior beers (I happen to think Tokyo is septic).

Even if you just bought it as an investment it's worth it.

johnnyskeleton

Confab wrote: »

So it's not worth the €50 so - that's good enough for me.

At c. 7.50 a bottle, you can buy as good if not better trappist beers. For me anyway it feels like you are paying a premium because of its exclusivity rather than because of its quality. For €50, you could get a much better selection of beers.

However, as a once off novelty it's probably worth the money just to try one. As a beer that has a sort of cult status as the best beer in the world (of online beer reviewing, anyway) it's not going to blow you away, but it certainly is a good beer, there's no denying that.

If you know a few others who are interested in trying it, you could split a brick which makes it seem more reasonable.

Saruman

Don't forget you are helping the poor monks fix their roof.

I have 2 bricks. I have not had any but I have had it before. I will decide one of these days to just open one. I plan on letting some age and trying again in a few years.

johnnyskeleton

Saruman wrote: »

Don't forget you are helping the poor monks fix their roof.

I have 2 bricks. I have not had any but I have had it before. I will decide one of these days to just open one. I plan on letting some age and trying again in a few years.

True, those monks need an extra strong roof to stop their god from noticing that they've set up a brewery in the basement.

Mr Benevolent

Well, I bought a six pack with the glasses. I'll try one tonight and report back!

oblivious

Confab wrote: »

Well, I bought a six pack with the glasses. I'll try one tonight and report back!

Enjoy

stuchyg

Confab wrote: »

Well, I bought a six pack with the glasses. I'll try one tonight and report back!

any word yet

Mr Benevolent

any word yet

Divine nectar. I gave my girlfriend the first taste and her reaction was 'Wow.' Mine too. The mouthfeel is perfect, the aroma is just right and taste is, well, impossible to describe. Malted heaven. My six bottles were sitting in McHugh's for a year before I got them, so letting them sit is unnessecary imo. The glasses (goblets apparently) are a treat too.

In conclusion: The best beer I've tasted so far. I've already tried the competitors, St. Bernardus Abt 12 and Rochefort Trappistes 10. In reality there is no competition. Well worth the money.

Fart

So I've just picked up a case of this, but will try one at Christmas with my dad . I got it in a Molloys, and they just informed me that they will be stocking a good few bottles of Rochefort in future. Mmmmm.

A question about the yeast at the bottom, or if there is any yeast at all. Should I try keep this at the bottom of the bottle and not allow it into the beer in the glass? I've read mixed opinions on this.

I'll hope to age at least 3 bottles too, for a couple of years.
How long will this beer last and how long is too long?

Cheers.

Edit: I've also found this. :eek:

BeerNut

Fart wrote: »

Should I try keep this at the bottom of the bottle and not allow it into the beer in the glass? I've read mixed opinions on this.

For something that strong and dark with a yeast-forward flavour it's not going to do much harm. Throw it in.

Fart wrote: »

How long will this beer last and how long is too long?

That's a microbiological mystery. You should be safe enough up to five years at least, I reckon.

Mr Benevolent

I'm drinking Hercules Double IPA atm and I have to admit it rivals Westvletern 12. Hoppier of course, but a wonderfully balanced beer.

BaZmO*

Confab wrote: »

I'm drinking Hercules Double IPA atm and I have to admit it rivals Westvletern 12. Hoppier of course, but a wonderfully balanced beer.

Chalk and cheese though.

Saruman

Confab wrote: »

I'm drinking Hercules Double IPA atm and I have to admit it rivals Westvletern 12. Hoppier of course, but a wonderfully balanced beer.

A bit like comparing a Jaguar E type with a modern Jaguar XKR.

One is a temperamental ass but also arguably the most beautiful car ever made.
The other is a modern, comfortable, sports car with a lot of power and would wipe the floor with an E type. But it's not an E type :cool:

I do love Hercules though.

enda1

Picked up twelve of these a while ago. Will have to try some and report in!

Wookie

If anybody missed this the first time around I notice that they have come back in again at Redmonds.

Saruman

I opened my first bottle in October. It was not nearly as good as my first Westvleteren 12 but you can read my thoughts here.

Wookie

I tried one and I really enjoyed it. I can’t claim to have the kind of pallet that seasoned beer tasters would have so I would struggle to come up with a complex breakdown of the flavours. The box/brick with its combination of 6 bottles and 2 mini goblets is very cool and gives the whole process a sense of occasion. Strong flavours, sherry like I guess, with plenty of alcohol, it leaves a really nice after taste and I didn’t want open another beer afterwards (and I don’t plan to dip back in to the other 5 bottles for a while) while the nice flavours were still in my mouth. I guess it will work best if you have tried a couple of stronger Belgian beers and have a developed a bit of a taste for them. In my case I tasted it after a family meal and everybody around the table enjoyed the beer and we all had a bit of fun trying it.

Seaneh

Saruman wrote: »

I opened my first bottle in October. It was not nearly as good as my first Westvleteren 12 but you can read my thoughts here.

I'd wager the first one you had was a few years old. The ones that were sold here earlier in the year were bottled about this time last year, so they are very, very young.