St. Bernardus Abt 12

Brewed by St. Bernard Brouwerij
Style: Abt/Quadrupel
Watou, Belgium

12 oz. bottle from Total Wine and More in Tampa. Aroma is very nice but not that strong. Definately fruity...apple and raisins. Pours reddish brown with a pretty thick tan head...Actually looks like a root beer float. Bottle has a cool shape to it. Flavor is malty...raisins, somehow reminds me of cinnamon roll. Quite a bit of alcohol...its not necessarily very strong but it leaves almost a vodka taste in your mouth. Actually kind of a bourbon flavor. Palate is a little harsh...I could actually feel the alcohol burning my nostrils a little bit. Overall...its not my favorite...but it’s definately very good...I can’t really compare it to any other beer I’ve had...but if you like the stronger stuff...It’s as good as the rating.

For my 100th rating, finally I’ve got a St. Bernardus for my St. Bernardus glass. 750 mL bottle. Pours reddish brown with a fizzy light tan head. Fruity aroma of raisin, apple, grape, hint of anise. Malty flavors of raisins and grapes, a little tart apple, caramel, and a fair bit of alcohol. Nice palate with medium carbonation. Very good and flavorful, but not quite amazing.

Bottle Cloudy apperance Very sweet in aroma and taste. Not complex and therefore a less interesting chooice than other abby ales

Pours dark and cloudy with an incredibly resilient head. Everyone talks about how good the flavor is, but... to each his own. I found the flavor excessively alcoholic and chalky overall. This beer was ruined for me when I realized it tastes like Flinstone Chewable Vitamins.

Quite intresting Abij beer (near to the trappist beers). Very complex aroma, taste of malt, fruits, caramel as well as yeast. The finish is not so coherent and bitter. This beer is seen as a clone of the Westvleteren but for me there is a gap between them. Anyway the candy smell is very fine at the end.

Bottle. Hazy dark brown colour. Big head. The aroma is sweet with a touch of soy. Flavor is sweet and reminds me of port wine. A lot of dried fruits, raisin... But it´s too sweet and therefore not very complex.

Delicate beer, more delicate than I’m used to. Has a very homebrewed quality. Me and my girl thoroughly enjoyed it. Not a beer to be taken lightly, please sip with full enjoyment. I picked it up for 10.95 per 1pt9.4oz.

Carbonation swells up out of the bottle and thoroughly disturbing the chunky layer of sediment in the bottle--no chance for a clear beer here. Pours a dark mahogany brown with garnet highlights and a big, medium-loose tan head. Dark fruit esters in the aroma with caramel malt and spicy hops along with dates, spicebread, and some alcohol sweetness. More dates and dried figs in the flavor with a dark caramel and molasses maltiness. Additional general spicy hop flavors and fermentation esters. Though hints at some complexity here, it end result is not terriblycompelling. The flavors tend to die out in the light, somewhat watery mouthfeel. This impression is confusing, however, because of the high alcohol content--it is well hidden. Certainly a good beer, but doesn’t leave me with an impression of great depth.