Tuesday, September 8, 2009

Trappist Rochefort 8


This dark brown, hazy bottle of liquid gold is often considered the cream of the crop in Belgium. The local that introduced me to this brew literally dragged me to 4 different bars in search of this elusive concoction. It's not the rarest Trappist beer (18000 hl compared to Westvleteren's 4700 hl) and is not even the strongest of the brewery. Rochefort 10 is 11.3 % abv where Rochefort 8 is 9.2%. However it is, in my opinion, the best tasting. Rochefort 10 is extremely heavy and is best sipped at room temp. The water for the beers is drawn from a well located inside the monastery walls.


Rochefort 8 is considered a demi-sec (half dry) beer with a strong sweet aroma and a hint of fruitiness.

The taste is extremely complex but not as heavy as the alchol content might dictate. It is extremely sweet however after a second the fruitiness of the yeast and bitterness of the hops starts to dominate the sweetness.

The head is pretty weak yet creamy. Its color appears to be a combination of cream and tan.

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