
Support the Trappist Catholic Monks and have yourself a Trappist Beer on Good Friday and earn Merit points with God - There are only seven true Trappist Breweries in the world and they ALL make wonderfully fantastic beers, matter of fact the seven breweries are recognised for making some of the best beers in the world - hands down.
Trappist Breweries:Chimay Brewery ("
Bières de Chimay")
Chimay Rouge (Red), 7%
abv. In the 75 cl bottle, it is known as
Première. It is a dark brown colour and has a sweet, fruity aroma.
Chimay Bleue (Blue), 9%
abv darker ale. In the 75 cl bottle, it is known as
Grande Réserve. This copper-brown beer has a creamy head and a slightly bitter taste. Considered to be the "classic"
Chimay ale, it exhibits a considerable depth of fruity, peppery character.
Chimay Blanche (White), or
Chimay Triple, 8%
abv golden
tripel. In the 75 cl bottle, it is known as
Cinq Cents. This crisp beer bears a light orange colour, and is the most hopped and driest of the three.
Chimay Dorée (Golden), 4.8%
abv ale, brewed from very similar ingredients as the Red, but paler and spiced differently. It is a
patersbier, intended only to be drunk at the abbey or at the nearby inn
Auberge de Poteaupré, which is associated with the abbey. The monks themselves drink this variety rather than the stronger three. The
Dorée is not sold commercially and the rare bottles which make their way out are through unofficial sources. Even the brewery's own web site makes no mention of this variety.
Orval Brewery (
Brasserie d'Orval)
Orval is the main brand. It is a 6.2%
abv beer. It was first made in 1931, and has a complex and unusual flavor and aroma produced by a unique strain of yeast. The beer is light in color, slightly cloudy, and has a large, foamy head. There is a complex aroma of leather, spice, and many other earthy components.
Rochefort Brewery (Brasserie
de Rochefort)
Rochefort 6 (red cap, brown
beer, 7.5%
ABV). Reddish colour, very consistent texture with a slightly spicy aroma and an intense taste of caramel, fruit, and hints of raisins. It is only brewed about once per year, representing approximately 1% of total beer production, thus is quite difficult to obtain.
Rochefort 8 (green cap, brown beer, 9.2%
ABV). Yellowish-brown colour, with a more pronounced aroma, more fruits and a slight amount of
Demi-Sec. This variety constitutes the largest proportion of production.
Rochefort 10 (blue cap, dark beer, 11.3%
ABV). Reddish-brown colour, with a very compact head and an aroma of figs, feels like honey in the mouth. The alcohol profile is a major component in the flavour of this rich ale. It is very similar to 6 and 8, but has much more of everything.
Westmalle Brewery (
Brouwerij der Trappisten van
Westmalle)
Westmalle Dubbel is a 7%
abv Dubbel.
Westmalle Tripel is a 9.5%
abv tripel, was first brewed in 1934 and the recipe has not changed since 1956. It is made with pale candy sugar and has a very pale colour produced from a mash of light
pilsener malts.
Styrian Goldings hops are used along with some German varieties and the classic
Saaz pilsener hop. After a long secondary fermentation
Westmalle Tripel is bottled with a dose of sugar and yeast.
Westmalle Extra is a 5%
abv beer with limited availability, i.e a
patersbier.
[4][5] It has been speculated that
Westmalle's choice of three types of beers was based on the
Holy Trinity.
Westvleteren Brewery (
Brouwerij Westvleteren)
Westvleteren Blonde (green cap), 5.8%
ABV, introduced on 10 June, 1999.
Westvleteren 8 (blue cap) (formerly
Extra), 8%
ABV.
Westvleteren 12 (yellow cap) (formerly
Abt), a 10.2%
ABV, introduced in 1940.
Achel brewery or
Brouwerij der Sint-Benedictusabdij de Achelse KluisAchel Blond 5°, 5%
ABVAchel Bruin 5°, 5%
ABVAchel Blond 8°, 8%
ABVAchel Bruin 8°, 8%
ABVAchel Extra, 9.5%
ABV Brown (75cl only)
De Koningshoeven Brewery (
Brouwerij de Koningshoeven) The Only Dutch Brewery.
La Trappe Blond (6.5%
ABV)
La Trappe Dubbel (7%
ABV)
La Trappe Isid'or (7.5%
ABV)
La Trappe Tripel (8%
ABV)
La Trappe Quadrupel (10%
ABV)
La Trappe Witte Trappist (5.5%
ABV)
La Trappe Bockbier (7%
ABV) (Seasonal)
Apart from the La
Trappe brand, the brewery produces
Tilburg's Dutch Brown Ale mainly for export. The water for the beer is drawn from five 200-metre deep wells on the abbey grounds, and all beers except the
Blond are
bottle conditioned. The
spent grain remaining after the wort is filtered from the mash is used to feed the abbey's own herd of cows. Originally there was an
Enkel which was the
monk's table beer[4], but it was replaced by Blond in the range.