St. Bernardus Prior 8

Brewed by St. Bernard Brouwerij
Style: Abbey Dubbel
Watou, Belgium

A nice reddish beer with a stunningly lasting head. Aroma of figs, plums and subtle, sexy hops. Tha flavour is quite full, with loads of fruit, malt and some odd roquefort-like fatness. Quite fine! Disclaimer: tasted along with a 2003 Amarone.

Pours a murky, deep brown with two fingers of frothy, beige head that leaves behind patchy lace. The nose is of rum-raisin, brown sugar and ripe plums finishing with a light, malty booziness. Medium-bodied and creamy with a spicy, flinty finish that dries the front third of your tongue. Raisin bread dough, spicy yeasty, brown sugar, plums and light alcohol. Well balanced and quite drinkable for a beer of this complexity, but it lacks the overall refinement and mouthfeel of its "big brother", Abt 12.

Pours dark, transparent amber with beige head that’s moderately long lived. Nice lacing. Smells strongly sweetly with dried fruits dominating and some roasts and plum hiding in the background. Taste is a nice balance between roasted malts and hops, with the sweet fruit dominating others specifics. The balance is fantastic and the taste is probably better than the overwhelming 12, but it wasn’t the same complex/fulfilling for me.

Smells like a spicey plum. Nice dark dirty brown color. The plum scent tastes more like a spicey licorice stick or rasin with a little bitterness. ABV is very well hidden, good beer.

750 mL bottle poured into a Chimay chalice. Pours very dark brown with a tint of red. Head is small beige and lasts pretty well. Aroma is very sweet and fruity, raisins and plums mainly. The taste is also very sweet, like it smells. Nicely balanced. The alcohol taste is not very strong, but it comes through enough to give a nice, dry finish. Good, drinkable beer.

Pours a clear cream soda brown with a small tan head. Aroma is sweet dates and cherries as well as caramel. Flavor issweet and malty initially then more fruity. Long sweet finish. Light to medium body.

On tap @ redlight redlight. Pours a deep brown with a fine white head, leaves some nice lacing on the glass. Aroma of yeasts, dark fruits, slight alcohol and big sweet malts underneath. Flavor was much in line with the aroma. Lovely creamy mouthfeel, very very gorgeous. Glad to try it on tap!

Tap at Redlight, Redlight. Deep brown into a trappist glass, nice head. Aroma is dominated by yeast, some bananna and fig and alcohol. This is one of the best tasting beers I’ve had though, perhaps its because this is only my second tap belgian. HUGE sweet dark chocolate up front with a toffee middle and finishing with some bananna and raisin notes. This beer absolutely rocks from the tap. I’ve had it bottled and it wasn’t close to as good.