Rochefort Trappistes 8

Brewed by Brasserie Rochefort
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
Rochefort, Belgium

33cl bottle BBD 25.12.07 I could smell this before the glass was half full. Deep brown/burgundy color with chocolate/tan head. Smells of cocoa, raisins, lether, alcohol, slight cappochino, plums & cherries a bit. All that goes into the full, velvety lingering palate. Alcohol is a highlight in this massive rich carmelly sweet brew that finishes with sharp bitterness, leaving me dreaming of fig newtons dipped in rich chocolate milk. alcohol warming, maybe a bit of port...Taking on a mothball aroma as it breathes, or is that malted milk balls? Nutmeg? Just doesn’t get much more complex and yummy than this. I’ve been disapointed by a few bottles of the 8 in the past, but this one knocked me out.

Bottle @ Pub Italia, Ottawa. Hazy, cloudy dark brown pour. Alcohol and sweet caramel aroma. Small long lasting head. Crispy mouthfeel, yet lots of malt "substance" - assertive. Complex sweet flavours with sharp hop bite at the end. This beer releases more flavours as it warms, one of the more remarkable I’ve ever tried in this sense, as hints of molasses, and chewy toffee emerge. And this is all with hardly any hint of the substantial alcohol. Fantastic.

This is another wonderful belgian beer. The presence of fruits is slightly detectable, and the flavor holds it’s own, and more flavors appear the longer you let the glass sit out and warm up a little. I recommend this beer to lovers of the belgian strong ale like me.

Poured into a Delirium Tremens tulip. Huge beige head formed atop of a beautiful dark rubyish body. Tons of lace. Aromas of rum raisin, black cherry, and plenty of candi syrup. Very malty and rich, yet light on the tongue. Syrup, molasess, exotic sugars, peppery. Slight alcohol burn. World classic in every sence of the word.

The "overall" pretty much gives you my take, eh? I made the beerdrinkers’s Haj to Belgium earlier this month, and this was the finest thing I tasted there, in a week of some fairly intensive effort in that regard. And if you can make it there... Enough has been said about the Rochefort Trappistes 10 -- the 8, too, is the real deal. Brewed onsite, BTW, by the the order’s monks (not outsourced to local megabewers like some "Trappists"). Provides badly needed proof that organized religion is still capable of positive things. Brought some back; ordered a case locally on my return that arrived two days later. Not cheap, but well worth every penny. PS -- DO NOT CHILL (!). Serve at cellar temperature, or you are cheating yourself.

From bottle at The Bier Garden, Portsmouth, VA. Deep, cloudy brown with a light brown head. Sweet caramel-fruit nose. Complex, dark fruits - fig, date, raisin all sprinkled in brown sugar. Gets even more complex as it warms in the glass, the malts and caramel come through. Silky mouthfeel leaves your mouth aching for more, as the flavors hang in your mouth, you don’t want it to end. Better, I think, just slightly, than the 10 - same beautiful flavors, no alcohol burn to interfere. Just pure beauty...

The best dark Trappist ale in my view, together with Westvleteren 8 and Rochefort 10. A very balanced beer with an extremely rich taste. Hints of chocolate, coffee, burning wood and ripe dark fruits in the taste and aroma. This beer does not disappoint and is great after a good meal. A classic!

Had this after the 10, in many ways I actually like the 8 better. As all three Rocheforts use the same recipe, the appearance is about the same, beautiful, burgandy-brown with a tan head that laces and never completely goes away. The smell has a little more plum and less of the hint of alcohol the 10 has. The taste is almost the same, with that same incredible finish and smoothness that I will love forever like a long lost lover. I find the 8 a little less decadent and more drinkable.