Brewer: St. Bernardus
Style: Quadrupel
ABV: 10.5%
IBU:
Serving Type: 33cL bottle poured into a St. Bernardus chalice
"Rich mahogany" sounds to me like either a joke or pretentious, but I can think of nothing better to describe this beer's appearance. A deep and dark brown with a touch of red, lightening slightly at th edges of the glass. A tan finger of head settles quickly to a tin film. Minimal lacing. Raisin and plum and banana on the nose, brown sugar and a little oak rounding it out. A really fantastic aroma.
Sweet, caramel malt and a lot of dark fruits; raisin, plum, and fig are all there, with some banana and cherry thrown in for kicks. Balances with a slightly earthy, slightly spicy bitterness. Very smooth with a pleasently prickly carbonation. A nice alcohol warmth is felt all the way down. Finishes sweet and lingering.
Best of the St. Bernardus lineup and an incredible example of the style. The Rochefort 10 edges it out in my book, but that doesn't stop it from being world class.
My score: 5/5
Beer Advocate: 98/100
Rate Beer: 100/100
Pintley: 4.4/5
Brewer: St. Bernardus
Style: Trippel
ABV: 8.0%
IBU:
Serving Type: 33cL bottle poured into a St. Bernardus chalice
This one pours a hazy gold with a hint of orange and a solid finger of pure white head. Seems more persistant and with better lacing than the previous St. Bernardus offerings. Lots of banana and clove on the nose and maybe a little earthy or spicy bitterness.
Banana and clove are evident from the first sip, with some tropical and/or citrus fruit coming through at the end with a slight, but quenching, acidity. The alcohol is invisible, an impressive feat at 8%. It has a light to medium body, very crisp and highly carbonated. Finishes dry and very refreshing, with a hint of lemon.
Extrordinarily easy drinking but certainly no lack of complexity. I could almost knock back a few of these on a hot day if not for the high price and alcohol. A really fantastic brew.
Brewer: St. Bernardus
Style: Dubbel
ABV: 8.0%
IBU:
Serving Type: 33cL bottle poured into a St. Bernardus chalice
Murky and brown like the 6, maybe a little lighter. The head pours off-white and maintains at a little under a finger. Ok lacing. Nice Belgian aroma, with plum and raisin. Puts me in the mind of jam spread over just barely toasted bread.
Flavor fills the whole mouth with just a sip. Taste is a lot of raisin and maybe a hint of cherry. There's also a pleasent brown sugar sweetness. Not at all bitter. A noticeable alcohol warmth. Very creamy mouthfeel paired with a prickly carbonation.
Nice overall, though I think my preference so far is for the 6. There's just not much here to balance the sweetness, and it can almost border on cloying.
My score: 3/5
Beer Advocate: 92/100
Rate Beer: 96/100
Pintley: 4/5
Brewer: St. Bernardus
Style: Dubbel
ABV: 6.7%
IBU:
Serving Type: 33cL bottle poured into a St. Bernardus chalice
The Pater 6 pours a murky brown to amber if you squint at it just right, with a finger of ivory head of fine bubbles. Settles down to a thin but persistent film. Lots of Belgian yeast on the nose. Behind that is all subtleties, but I can find dry fruit and some honey-like sweetness. There's also an ever so slight hint of alcohol, surprising at 6.7%.
The taste comes in quite sweet, but well-balanced, not cloying at all. A complex blend of fruit and spice notes, including byt not limited to fig, raisin, and clove. Bitterness comes afterward, cutting through the sweet but without any definitive hop character. The body is very medium (is that a thing?) and fairly high in carbonation. Tingles the whole mouth with just a sip. And again, a slight warmth of alcohol, even at less than 7% ABV.
All around a great beer. Many will disagree with me, but for the style this is probably about as close to "sessionable" as you're going to get, in spite of my comments about alcohol. Would be an excellent bridge to some of the stronger Trappist brews. All of the trappings are there, but not in quite the same volume as the Abt 12 or a Rochefort 10.
My score: 4/5
Beer Advocate: 92/100
Rate Beer: 96/100
Pintley: 3.9/5
