FOOD NEWS
A 19th Century Monastery Created A Rare Trappist Beer
BY NIKITA EPHANOV
A Trappist brewery is an active monastery where monks oversee beer production and utilize profits for monastic purposes. Six Trappist breweries remain active in Belgium.
The Brouwerij De Sint-Sixtusabdij in Vleteren, Belgium has been brewing since the 19th century and crafts what is considered the rarest beer in the world, the Westvleteren XII.
It is a Belgian quadruple-style brew known for its flavors as much as its scarcity. Expect a sweetness with chocolate and raisin-like notes underpinned by boozy, nutty complexity.
Brouwerij De Sint-Sixtusabdij is the smallest of the Trappists by output volume. Since the monks craft beer for only 70 days a year, finding a bottle can be difficult.