St. Bernardus Abt 12 Special Edition

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

Cloudy dark cherry poor with a thick foamy light brown head with sticky lacing. Aromas of brown sugar, prunes, apples, cinnamon, sweet grapes, cloves, dates, alcohol with hints of bourbon vanilla. Very creamy smouth balanced mouthfeel. Its still a bit young i find, especially after trying a 6 year old ABT 12. Full bodied and nicely effervescent. Crisp dry finish, long lasting sweet bitterness. Added flavors of apples, pears, salty and a wide variety of nuts.

750ml bottle. Soft but appealing aroma of sweet, darkly sugary malts, vinous, estery and lightly spicy with touches of plum, clove and raisin. Mostly clear deep mahogany color with a lasting, creamy head. Flavor revolves around the combination of sugary sweetness and dark, dried, gently tart fruitiness, further enhanced by a doughy, nutty yeast character, spicy hops and hints of peppery alcohol. Mouthfeel is smooth, warming and semi-dry, body is full and rich. Most expressive when allowed to warm sufficiently. Fairly impressive, also serving as an aging experiment in the making.

Bottle tasted 8/2/07.

Pours a deep and lovely brown with a modest head; I get a big fruity aroma, lots of plums and dates, along with ample dark caramel and spice. The flavors is rich and full, just the right amount of sweet dried fruit atop spicy yeast notes, some chocolate, brandy. Alcohol is quite subdued on the tongue, though one can feel it through the sinuses, the body is rich but not at all sticky.

Very, very nice. I think with a couple of years the flavors are going to really meld together beautifully, and I’m glad to have a few more bottles waiting in the cellar.

Rating #3600: I picked this one up for myself for Christmas, but I guess I’m getting too old to have any patience with aging. Nice looking ale, a clear brown body highlighted in ruby with a modest yet sustained ecru head. This has quite a fruity nose - plums, dark cherries, raisins, dates - and has toffee, chocolate, and faint floral scents. The alcohol really isn’t apparent until it enters the bloodstream. Medium-to-light bodied, a light brown spicing and some aniseed join into the flavor along with a mild floral bitterness. A very pleasant sipping beer, mayhaps a bit too warming for July, but quite enjoyable nonetheless.

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The pour reveals a clear brown color with a thin offwhite head. Excellent aroma and flavor of malt, chocolate, licorice, raisins, plums, the malt is round and rich. The body is medium with a liquorous texture and gentle carbonation. World class.

I loved the tin container this came in, a collectable item. Pours with an opaque ruby red color with an initially large off-white head, fairly even. Aroma is crisp, fresh rain water, not usually assosiated with a Quad, a sweet yeast comes out, straw and some spices, but no alcohol. Taste is mildly sweet but the hops really come out with some slow tasting, strong Belgium influence obviously but it ties in nicely with the crisp aroma. Finish is mildly off for me, faintly metallic but overall an outstanding beer.

Bottled. Touch fuller with a bigger body than the Abt 12. Aroma is quite fruity and spicy. Beige head chestnut brown color.

Pours a deep copper brown with a huge just off white head. A lighter belgian yeast then other quads. The light spice/lemon hops and candi suger malt are very balanced. Not as intense/complex as rochefort, but very smooth.