Konings Hoeven Quadrupel Trappist Ale

This is a speciality company that Fonnie suggested to me that makes classic Belgian Strong Ales. He got two of their wares as birthday brews from his father, so here we are now testing them.

It pours a nice amber color that is very transparent. It has a soft carbonation with a brilliant head. It smells of sweetness; honey, perhaps. It's rather mellow and has the standard trappist ale scent with a dash of hops. The taste comes in mellow, with a dash of honey. It moves onto a bitter taste from the roasted malts and a slight bite at the end from the alcohol. The texture is quite curious. It was very carbonated to start, has a quick transition to the end with the alcoholic bite. It leaves an aftertaste of the bitter malts.

Overall, a very interesting and well done trappist ale. It's not the best we've had, but we've had some very very good trappist ales. For the untrained tongue, a fantastic intro to the trappist ale category.

Appearance - 4
Smell - 4.1
Taste - 3.7
Texture - 3.8
Overall - 3.9/5

Konings Hoeven Quadrupel Trappist Ale

Another Quadrupel, which is probably my favorite style, lets see how this holds up since it is the first beer from this brewery that I've had. Like all brews in this style it has a rather high ABV and comes in at 10%. It pours dark amber brown with a nice robust off-white head. It is extremely carbonated. The aroma is of golden malts, honey, wheat, I can't smell the alcohol at all. The taste is very similar to the smell and quite nice all around: honey, dark malts, dark fruits, and has a slight alcohol sting at the end. Very smooth and an all around good Quadrupel, I would recommend to anyone wanting to try something with a kick but as smooth as ice (should be everyone).

Appearance - 4.2

Smell - 3.8

Taste - 4.2

Texture - 4.0

Overall - 4.05/5

Brew Tasting the Eighteenth

Continuing on...more reviews. This will be our last one before Thanksgiving break. We might have a couple solo reviews between now and then but no promises. Listing after the break.

1) Konings Hoeven Quadrupel Trappist Ale

Samuel Adams Winter Lager

This is yet another simple, yet appealing, Samuel Adams brew for me to test. Sam Adams is one of those companies that never makes anything that's totally out of this world and insane - but they make consistently awesome brews that go great with food and other social activities. I think that's what this company aims for and they are good at it.

The Winter Lager had a very nice, dark, amber color with a red hue. It had a clear composure and a simple frothy head that fell pretty quick. It smelled of a slight spice (cinnamon is cited on the label) with a bit of citrus and the classic, lager scent. It also had a nice roasted smell from the hops and barley. The taste followed suit with the roasted taste that gave it a spicy and bitter composure. It started bitter, settled in the middle with spice and bite and a hint of the citrus at the end. This brew is pretty low on the body - it has a thin texture. It also has a pretty sudden bite at the end from the bitterness. It has a very warming feel though which is very appropriate for a winter beer.

Overall, this is not an amazing beer that matches up with the biggest and baddest from companies like Dogfish Head and Southern Tier. But, it is very decent and worth a try if you're looking for something new that's not only cheap but easy to find.

Appearance - 4
Smell - 3.6
Taste - 3.4
Texture - 3.1
Overall - 3.54/5

Westvleteren Abdij St. Sixtus Extra 8

This Is It. And no - it's not a movie about a pedophile. It's the review for one of the most coveted beers in the world of brew - Westvleteren. This is the first of our 2 beers that we have made by this monastery. At the 6 month we reviewed the 8 and at the year anniversary we will review the 12. Let's get started.

It pours out a classic Trappist Ale opaque brown that is very cloudy with the sediment from the bottled-brewing process. It maintained a wonderful, bubbly head in Fonnie's glass and a film in my own. It smelled very sweet and fruity. It had a hint of honey and almost no scent of alcohol in it. The taste followed suit with the sweetness. It had a very bold flavor with a slight hit of raisin. It was also a little bitter in the middle of flow, which was strange. The texture was very frothy and smooth as hell. It had a very warming and wholesome feel with an extremely good flow of flavors.

It is kind of obvious that Fonnie and I are huge fanboys of this brew. But, with good reason. We both loved it and it reflects in our reviews and ratings. We just wish it was easier to get. I guess that's what adds to allure of the beer - the hunt to find it.

Appearance - 4.3
Smell - 4.7
Taste - 4.4
Texture - 4.3
Overall - 4.43/5