St. Bernardus Abt 12

A very dark red almost brown beer with a good head. The aroma is of over ripe fruit and malt sweetness. The flavor is very powerful of a great malt blend with strong notes of caramel as well as hints of the alcohol, which also tickles the tongue. It ends with a good bitterness - all in all a really great flavor and therefore a really good beer.

Dark reddish brown. Fruity aroma, with hints of banana and apples. Very sweet, raisin flavour. Some toffee. When it warms up it reveals a a deep, complex malt character with notes of salty licorice, and a finish which is reminiscent of a madeira wood single malt whiskey.

(Bottle 33 cl) Very dark with a beautiful and stable head. Lots of malty flavours, caramel, dried fruits - all the best to find in a top-Belgian. Very full-bodied with awarming alcohol. Amazing average of this beer through no less than 541 ratings.... 260993

Ten years ago I picked up a gift pack containg four different of the Bernardus beers. At the time, I thought the 12 okay but the 8 the star of the show. Nobody agreed with me. It looks like people still don’t, but my preference is towards the middle versions of these similar lineups (Bernardus, Westvleteren, Rochefort). This is a dark murky brown with a thick foam. The aroma is unbalanced - all yeast (dust mainly, but some funk too), with hints of figs, plums and toffee. The flavour is better with chewy malt depths, more dates, a little bit of chocolate and a sturdy alcohol backbone. Actually, that alcohol is a little too sturdy. Fruitcake notes appear as well. The finish is quite alcoholic and sweet, with not nearly enough nuances to justify a rave. It’s rich, but not all that complex. Now, where can I buy that Prior?

Cloudy brown colour with an off-white head. Sweet aroma dominated by yeast and dried fruit with notes of alcohol and spices. Sweet aroma of yeast, chocolate, liquorice and dried fruit. Nice, but not the best quadrupel I’ve had.