Westvleteren Extra 8

Brewed by Westvleteren Abdij St. Sixtus
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
Westvleteren, Belgium

pours a dark brown with a large creamy tan head that lasts throughout the beer. aroma has a slightly sour tinge with dark fruit, grains, and caramel. more carbonated than the other westy beers. bitter with lots a caramel and dark fruit.

A tasty beverage for sure! Poured a hazy brown color with a rich tan head. Aroma was slightly malty and had slight phenolic character. Nothing was dominant but as it warmed, the volatiles became more evident and the aromatic complexity deepened to include dried cherries. Carbonation was on the high end of moderate which gave the beer a rich, persistent head. Falvor was a balance of malt, molasses and dark fruit. Some "belgian character" was evident and evolved as the beer warmed, but was not the dominant flavor. Like the Blonde, this beer featured an assertive bitterness in the finish which was surprising to me. Palate was surpringly balanced... a silky, creamy texture cut by the carbonation created a light body while the mouthfeel was quite pleasing, maybe slightly drying but only by a nudge. Overall, this is a great beer. 99th percentile, not sure, but it did provide me one of the best beer experiences of 2007.

Pours cocoa brown with a thick, creamy lace. Sits full on the tongue with a sweet roasted malt feel. Tastes of chocolate, raisins, and caramel. Finishes clean with a nice burn. Best served at room temperature.

Finally entering all my "Better Know a Style: Belgian Strong Ale" tasting 07 results. Very big nose of dark fruit, yeast, and molasses. It looks amazing, with nice brown and large off-white head and good lacing. Flavor is malt sweet and dark fruits, and slight alc. Creamy and full body. I’m glad I was able to share this one with the guys.

Numerous bottles over winter 2006, courtesy of Swen Vincke at Larian (thanks so much. I was expecting a bottle or two, not a crate!) Like the 12, this is an outstanding beer and letting it age a little brings out the best in it. Pours a dark brown with a thin lacy head. The aroma is a heady mix of caramel, plum, burnt sugar, cocoa, nutmeg and more. The flavour is complexity personified, with roasted malt, chocolate and rich fruit cake flavours jointed by a host of tantalising hints, different in every bottle you drink. The finish is creamy with bitter dark chocolate notes. Whisper it, but at its best, this can be a better beer than the 12.

after the oustanding 12 quadrupel i had big expectations for this, also at the price of 6 euro. however i found it to be a slightly weaker rival of the (much cheaper) rochefort 8. hoppy, smooth flavor, a little bit of fruit and bitterness. very small finish, i was hoping for more but obviously still great

Bottle sampled with Dennis Bell Thanks to stegosaurusfor this brew. Pours brown thin head with good lacing. Aroma of belgian spices, bread, and fruit. The flavor is very smooth when it warms up, with a fruit, breadiness, and hint of alcohol. Great brew. I recommend drinking at room temp as it really becoms a better brew as it warms. Better then the 12.

Great beer initially. Has a nice chocolate, slight licorice and residual sweetness. Then nothing! Oh man, there is almost no finish to this beer. Seriously. I get a little astringency and a very slight bitterness in the finish, but really, almost nothing. This beer is not a disappointment by any means, but the finish is so lacking that I cannot really give it a higher rating.