Yes, ladies and germs, the Kolonel is back for a real post–enough of those trifling comments. Time for some substance. Or… perhaps… glubstance?

This Friday afternoon, or early evening, whatever it’s not important… we’ll call it late afternoon, I am reviewing an offering from one of the seven no-kidding monasteries that have been approved to label their concoction an Authentic Trappist Product. The Trappistes de Rochefort folks , whose name to me invokes the unfortunate aroma of stinky cheese (not a problem in its own right, but somewhat out of place when reviewing a beer… I’ll let it pass), produce three varieties, by the ubiquitous names of 6… 8… and 10. OK, I figured, must be their ABV, right? Wrong, because apparently those crazy monks use the “bizarro-metric” system, and the 6, 8, and 10 weigh in at a corresponding 7.5%, 9.2%, and–booyah–11.3%. I decided to go middle of the road, honestly because the 10 seemed overpriced at my favored vendor of sweet beer. OK, so I punked out, so what? WHAT??

Before I get to the assessment, the only thing that kind of peeved me as a Stupid American was their website’s lack of an English translation. I mean… come on guys, you’re not fooling anyone. I found your site using Google, not Le Googel.

She pours a nice, opaque, milk-chocolatey brown, with a medium, finely-bubbled head. Almost a perfect head, really, as one can see in the shot above. This kind of topper really allows the beer to breathe and release its aroma, without totally ruining the carbonation or requiring patience (or a nose-greased-finger attack, which would be sacreligious with one of these). The aroma is complex and verra nice. Got your typical hints of toast and caramel, with a little overlay of, hmmm, banana, apples, maybe some kind of outdoorsy, fresh gardeny planty type of thing? I dunno, kind of like you’re sitting in a bucolic belgian meadow in the spring. Whatever, it worked. The flavor… not bad, not bad. Definitely caramel, definitely ripe fruit, definitely noticeable alcohol content. The alcohol was not overpowering by any means, but it seems to thin the overall experience just a touch. Theres a momentary watery pause between the gulp and the aftertaste, the latter of which is slightly bitter but not overly so.

I’m interested to sample the 6 and the 10. The Rochefort 8 is a definite must-try, but for my money, a Chimay or a Unibroue delivers more of a grand slam experience. Nevertheless… good show, monks–good show.

Tomorrow the Kolonel joins the big leagues as he crafts his first homebrewed tripel. A grand undertaking to say the least… one fraught with boilover peril, under-sterilization catastrophe, and accidental yeast genocide at every turn. Perhaps I should shave the top of my cranium and wear a burlap robe and never again enjoy a piece of… hehh, no, I suppose I’ll let them have their fun. Silly monks. I say that with the deepest respect, of course.