Re-sampled November 25, 2003 [a bottle expired May 2000 - in a vertical tasting to one expirering July 2005]: What a great difference cellaring can do. When the bottle was opened it rose out of the bottle - even after so many years - there was no lack of carbonation. The color dark brown so you almost couldn't see thru it (a lot darker than the fresh one) and with a small brown disappearing head. The aroma a lot more powerful than in the fresh version and fantastic of cloves and spices. The flavor is great and it explodes in the mouth with spices, cloves, and wood. All in all a heavenly beer experience. A good advice - keep this in Your cellar. Sampled July 16, 2003: [7/2/8/4/16] The aroma is powerful, sweet, and fruity with notes of plums. The color is an unclear dark brown, it has an OK but disappearing head. The texture is very soft, and the flavor is rich on fruit, it prickles the tongue and contains hints of alcohol, plums, caramel, coriander, and a little earth. A very nice beer.

2024-06-15, bottle, bb 01 06 23, 4 years old, 7-4-7-3-15=36
Still well carbonated, producing a large, rather frothy, head. The aroma is gently fruity. The mouthfeel is a bit thin for this times, but it's lean and clean; mild flavour of dark caramel and candi sugar, with light fruity esters (strawberry jam and plums), no particular yeast character, and moderate alcohol in the finish. Good, but without depth.

2019-11-17, bottle from Firefly, Vancouver, bb 19.04.22, 7-3-7-3-14=34
Gushing bottle. Thin body, without malt depth; anise-like esters are a bit too strong; highly carbonated.
This bottle is probably 2+ years old and didn't hold up too well.

2012-05-15, bottle at La Cervezateca, Torremolinos, bb 25.10.16, 7-5-8-3-15=38
Malt and caramel aroma, sweet but with austerity. Full bodied, with good malt and caramel flavor, but also a metallic character. Too young.

2012-04-01, draught at Mikkeller Bar, Copenhagen, 7-5-8-3-15=38
Cloudy dark amber color, with generous creamy head. Moderate malt aroma, with very light dark fruit, honey and smoke. Full bodied, with good malt flavor, caramel, hint of dark fruits and chocolate, ordinary bitterness; there is a warm alcohol feeling; solid, but overall not exciting, and weak in the final. Good, but seemingly young.

2003-07-08, bottle, 7-5-9-4-15
Deep amber color; huge rocky head. Strange spicy aroma, alcohol, light liquorice, carbonation. Very good malty body, a pleasant sweet liquorice. Quite long final, but not enough bitter/aromatic.

Strong dark fruit notes in the nose, along with banana. Very rich copper/brown body, topped with a nice, creamy tan head. Intense, rich flavor of candied fruit, fermented banana, tart, and caramel. A liquid pleasure.

Muddy brown colour with a slightly tan head which is about 1 inch tall in my goblet. Slightly yeastie aroma with a very faint sweet smell as well. Trillions of small bubbles rising on the side of the glass the way a good belgie should. The first taste is great, very complex and very malty. Definate chocolate and malt undertones with some fruit and yeast flavours hitting in the very back of my palate. This is less malty than the Westy 8 and Rochefort 10 (which I prefer) and I would say is more complex because it isn't overriden by malt. I would rank this one lower than Westy 12 (still the best beer ever in my book) but higher than both Rochefort 10 and Westy 8. A great beer for a great price. Definately try to get your hands on this beer if you don't want to spend the money on those earlier named beers or if you've tried all three of them.

Dark brown beer with a good frothy head. Excellent malty/fruity nose, with a hopped fruity flavour. Overall a very good beer.

Pours a dark reddish-brown with a very thick beige head. Thin lacing. Aroma is pleasantly fruity, with some malt, spice and alcohol as well. Medium-bodied and sweet, with flavors of malt, licorice, cherry and raisins. Flavor became more rich and easier to drink as it warmed. Pretty good Belgian.