St. Bernardus Abt 12 Special Edition

Formerly brewed at St. Bernard Brouwerij
Style: Abt/Quadrupel
Watou, Belgium

Finally got to get to this brew. Awesome pour, dark amber with a thick tan head. Smell is sweet, with a hint of alcohol. Taste is also sweet, caramel, malt, and a nice slight alcohol burn at the end. Great brew, but not up to par with the regular Abt. 12.

Name: Abt 12 Special Edition
Date: July 23, 2006
Mode: Bottle
Source: Green’s, Atlanta
Appearance: dark ruby red, creamy beige head, nice drippy lace that turns nearly solid
Aroma: sweet fig and other ripe fruit aromas and maybe even a hint of tart cherry plus just the lightest touch of floral hops
Body: carbonated body
Flavor: rich malt flavor, lots of ripe fruits, nice sweetness, a bit of hop character keeps some balance but holds back the ripe fruit, some age will be nice, picks up a bitter finish once the yeast is stirred in

Name: Abt 12 Special Edition
Date: April 12, 2008
Mode: bottle
Source: thirsty monk
Body: carbonated body is still a bit high
Overall: the ripe fruit is in full force now that the hops have subsided

Name: Abt 12 Special Edition
Date: December 28, 2008
Mode: bottle
Source: cellar stock, served at cellar temperature
Appearance: opens with a loud pop that scares the puppy, big frothy beige head stays under control, thick sudsy lace
Aroma: huge sweet dark fruit aroma with lots of fig and dates, light spicyness
Body: light and creamy body
Flavor: rich fruit flavor, caramel sweetness brings out the ripe fruits, combination of dark fruits and lighter ones as well, light spicyness adds a touch of balance

Aroma: 8/10; Appearance: 10/10; Flavor: 8/10; Palate: 6/10; Overall: 17/20
Rating: 4.1/5.0
Drinkability: 8/10
Score: ***+/4

750mL bottle in a scotch tin. aroma of sweet caramelized malt, raisins, and spiced raisin nut bread. flavor of bread, must, chayenne. Spicy, Belgian greatness.

750ml bottle. Pours a hazy dark amber color with a medium sized off white head. Aroma of yeast, alcohol, fermented fruit, plums and caramel. The flavor is intially semi sweet of malt but a hop background coming forward in the end. The taste is complex and lingering with all of the above elements combining for a good solid Belgian style ale. Nice smooth, dry finish.

Not perfect, but great. Wonderful brown pour marked with large carbonation, small brown head, vanishes leaving good lace. Nose of malts, coffee, dried fruits, Belgian yeast. Usual collection of Belgian flavors ... coffee, dried fruit, a hint of cherries, some sourness, and a long sour and bitter finish. Good solid mouthfeel. I will try this again and see if I can get more of the bread and yeast that I expect in a Belgian. Not quite a Westvletern 12 but just fine and nice to see that even the Belgians are getting into the Allagash and Stone game of limited release beers.

Pours deep mahogany with a crimson hue and a smallish tan head. The aroma has dates, figs, biscuit, earthy Belgium yeast, caramel, toffee, dark malt, spice and noticeable alcohol presence. A very nice aroma. Medium body with overly sharp carbonation. This was thinner and harsher than expected and of those in the upper tier of this category. The flavor starts thinner that the aroma predicted and included dark fruits, some yeast and a bit of sourness. The finish adds some astringency and metallic traits. As it gets closer to room temperature some welcome breadiness starts appearing in the taste. This did not meet my expectations at all. I have more, but will probably hang on to it for a good year or two more before opening. I hope at that point I’ll be able to raise my score for this.

Tasted side-by-side with the standard Abt 12., this one was the clear favorite. The pour is cloudy, dark brown and amber/mahogany at the perimeter. A very tall, fluffy, cream-colored head has remarkable, albeit typical for the brewer, retention and fantastic webs of lace. Full retention, very pretty. The aroma is doughy biscuit malt, chocolate, caramel, herbal and grassy hops, banana, plum, caramelized brown sugar, sweet alcohol notes, flowers, lemon peel, orange peel, raisins, figs and apricot juice. Absolutely loaded with complexity, layer upon layer, magnificent. The yeast component is more subdued than the standard version, even in a fresh bottle versus a year old bottle of the regular Abt 12. The flavor is, for me, quintessential Belgian elegance and excitement, slowly unraveling across the tongue. Malt and hops are both easily discernible and fresh, glorious quantities of both. The taste is mildly to medium sweet, lightly bitter, very lightly bitter with very mild astringency mostly doused out by the sweetness. Fruits are everywhere and mingle pleasantly with the hops. Chocolate that was a mere fleeting nuance in the nose is full bore in the flavor undecided upon whether it wants to sting with bittersweet biting or coat with silky sweet candy textures. Alcohol warmth is substantial but not even half of what it could be, nicely incorporated into the entire flavor. The mouthfeel is monstrous but remains quenching and silky, even when the hops and alcohol are at their most firm and drying moments. Carbonation is high, further lending to a explosive experience and dispersing the flavor evenly across the palate. The finish is at first chocolatey and hoppy, then settles to a warming, fruity, moderately dry fade that lasts nearly an eternity. Caramel and brown sugar, as well as spice and a touch of yeast, linger. This is my favorite quadrupel that isn’t produced at a Trappist brewery. The first sip I ever took of this beer was more exciting than Westvleteren 12, though that excitement was fleeting and probably can be chalked up to quite the unique interpretation of this style. A marvelous breweries’ best work yet.

Poured dark amber with creamy off white head. Aroma of fruit and sweet malt. Very distinct smell. Flavor was the same as the aroma. Sweet and smooth. Couldn’t taste the 11% at all.