[narcout]

I couldn't resist.

[HoosierBrew]

Three awesome beers.

[homoeccentricus]

Except for the duvel. I had a blind beer recognition test in my beer judge course this afternoon and I failed to recognize the duvel.

[pete b]

If that's all you got you have more restraint than I.

[Big Monk]

Westmalle is the one for me. Westmalle and Chimay are the most consistent of the Trappists in my opinion. I have a good idea what I'll be getting with them.

Rochefort is glorious if you get the right example. In the end though, Westmalle Dubbel and Tripel are the cream of the crop in my eyes.


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[HoosierBrew]

Westmalle is the one for me. Westmalle and Chimay are the most consistent of the Trappists in my opinion. I have a good idea what I'll be getting with them.

Rochefort is glorious if you get the right example. In the end though, Westmalle Dubbel and Tripel are the cream of the crop in my eyes.

I agree but add the Rochefort beer as consistently excellent, too. I love those beers every time I try one. And I think Chimay Cinq Cents is a very underrated tripel, where Westmalle deservedly gets attention.

[Big Monk]

The way I've always tried to think about it is this:

Chimay - the most consistent, the biggest and somewhat bland (very relatively speaking here in terms of Trappists). I know exactly what I am going to get every time I crack one. Note that when I say "bland" I typically mean a suppression of some of the characteristic esters and phenols from the Belgian yeasts.

I love them. Here I am sipping a Premiere:



Westmalle - very, very consistent as well on account of being the second largest after Chimay. The Dubbel is incredible with a fair bit of age on it. The Tripel speaks for itself. I enjoy the 750 ml bottles.

Rochefort - very tough to classify with any certainty. There seems to be a consistent characteristic phenolic character that I don't enjoy all that much. It's been stated that fast fermentation is the cause but I can't say for sure. Rochefort seems to be the least consistent of the "big 3" (Westmalle, Chimay, Rochefort) but is the most glorious when presented with a prime example. As much as I enjoy Westmalle, a prime Rochefort 8 is the most incredible of all the Trappist beers.


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[HoosierBrew]

I agree with Chimay beers being comparatively a bit more bland though I love them. I guess I just like the fermentation character of Rochefort more than you do as a whole - I have no issue there. My mood at the time determines whether I prefer the 8 or 10. They're just sublime IMO.

[Big Monk]

I agree with Chimay beers being comparatively a bit more bland though I love them. I guess I just like the fermentation character of Rochefort more than you do as a whole - I have no issue there. My mood at the time determines whether I prefer the 8 or 10. They're just sublime IMO.

Rochefort 6 is very underrated and probably my favorite of the three. It's tough to get because it's brewed with less frequency than the others.

[HoosierBrew]

Yep, love it too. I mean, we're splitting hairs anyway. Belgian beers, especially Trappists, are just amazing, period. I haven't made a big Belgian haul from my favorite liquor store in a while - this makes me want to. There'll be some De Dolle beers in there, too. Maybe next Friday.   

[Big Monk]

Yep, love it too. I mean, we're splitting hairs anyway. Belgian beers, especially Trappists, are just amazing, period. I haven't made a big Belgian haul from my favorite liquor store in a while - this makes me want to. There'll be some De Dolle beers in there, too. Maybe next Friday.   

I live in Central NY and the Wegmans chain of grocery stores has an incredible beer selection.

I can get Westmalle Tripel, all of the Chimay beers, Orval, Rochefort 8 and Rochefort 10 there. I make special trips for Rochefort 6 and Westmalle Dubbel.

[hopfenundmalz]

The way I've always tried to think about it is this:

Chimay - the most consistent, the biggest and somewhat bland (very relatively speaking here in terms of Trappists). I know exactly what I am going to get every time I crack one. Note that when I say "bland" I typically mean a suppression of some of the characteristic esters and phenols from the Belgian yeasts.

I love them. Here I am sipping a Premiere:



Westmalle - very, very consistent as well on account of being the second largest after Chimay. The Dubbel is incredible with a fair bit of age on it. The Tripel speaks for itself. I enjoy the 750 ml bottles.

Rochefort - very tough to classify with any certainty. There seems to be a consistent characteristic phenolic character that I don't enjoy all that much. It's been stated that fast fermentation is the cause but I can't say for sure. Rochefort seems to be the least consistent of the "big 3" (Westmalle, Chimay, Rochefort) but is the most glorious when presented with a prime example. As much as I enjoy Westmalle, a prime Rochefort 8 is the most incredible of all the Trappist beers.


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Rochefort is not big. ~18,000 bbls year. Much smaller than Chimay or Westmalle. Königshaven is the biggest.

[Big Monk]

The way I've always tried to think about it is this:

Chimay - the most consistent, the biggest and somewhat bland (very relatively speaking here in terms of Trappists). I know exactly what I am going to get every time I crack one. Note that when I say "bland" I typically mean a suppression of some of the characteristic esters and phenols from the Belgian yeasts.

I love them. Here I am sipping a Premiere:



Westmalle - very, very consistent as well on account of being the second largest after Chimay. The Dubbel is incredible with a fair bit of age on it. The Tripel speaks for itself. I enjoy the 750 ml bottles.

Rochefort - very tough to classify with any certainty. There seems to be a consistent characteristic phenolic character that I don't enjoy all that much. It's been stated that fast fermentation is the cause but I can't say for sure. Rochefort seems to be the least consistent of the "big 3" (Westmalle, Chimay, Rochefort) but is the most glorious when presented with a prime example. As much as I enjoy Westmalle, a prime Rochefort 8 is the most incredible of all the Trappist beers.


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Rochefort is not big. ~18,000 bbls year. Much smaller than Chimay or Westmalle. Königshaven is the biggest.

I didn't mean size. They are just the most popular and well known of the Trappists. That's why I used the quotation marks. Orval is definitely bigger than Rochefort as well.

[hopfenundmalz]

The way I've always tried to think about it is this:

Chimay - the most consistent, the biggest and somewhat bland (very relatively speaking here in terms of Trappists). I know exactly what I am going to get every time I crack one. Note that when I say "bland" I typically mean a suppression of some of the characteristic esters and phenols from the Belgian yeasts.

I love them. Here I am sipping a Premiere:



Westmalle - very, very consistent as well on account of being the second largest after Chimay. The Dubbel is incredible with a fair bit of age on it. The Tripel speaks for itself. I enjoy the 750 ml bottles.

Rochefort - very tough to classify with any certainty. There seems to be a consistent characteristic phenolic character that I don't enjoy all that much. It's been stated that fast fermentation is the cause but I can't say for sure. Rochefort seems to be the least consistent of the "big 3" (Westmalle, Chimay, Rochefort) but is the most glorious when presented with a prime example. As much as I enjoy Westmalle, a prime Rochefort 8 is the most incredible of all the Trappist beers.


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Rochefort is not big. ~18,000 bbls year. Much smaller than Chimay or Westmalle. Königshaven is the biggest.

I didn't mean size. They are just the most popular and well known of the Trappists. That's why I used the quotation marks. Orval is definitely bigger than Rochefort as well.

Big 5 then?

[narcout]

I went to the store just for the Duvel as I want to do a side by side against a homebrewed BSG I currently have on tap.  I was hoping to find the smaller bottles, but they have been impossible to locate recently.

My favorite Belgian beer at the moment is actually Golden Draak.