Trappistes Rochefort 8
Pours dark, dark red with a nice off-white creamy head. Lasts the whole time. Smells are great and burst through right upon opening the bottle, plum, raisin and booze. Taste is very good, complex. Figs, rum-soaked raisins, wheat, yeast, plum, dark cherries. Alcohol is definitely present but mixes in very well so it's not a bother. Whereas the 6 tasted more tart + light to me, this is definitely more rich + dark tasting which I prefer. Mouthfeel is full and rich. A great beer to sip and savor. **11/24/11 - more notes** Picked up a bottle for Thanksgiving, hadn't had it since the original review and wanted to give it another try. Didn't even notice til I got it home that it was 18 months old. Great flavor here, it's got that classic deep dark fruit/dark bread/Belgian yeast thing going on that the Trappist beers do so well. It feels a bit boozy at first but it starts to meld quickly. A slight flaw is the mouthfeel, feels overcarbonated but that also improves a bit with time. Doesn't quite match the 10 but a great beer in its right.