THE
REVIEW REVUE OF TRAPPIST ALES
REVIEW
#2: WESTVLETEREN 6 (GREEN CAP)
- Product Reviewed: Westvleteren 6 (green cap)
- Brewed By: Brouwerij Westvleteren, Sint Sixtus Trappistenbdij
- Form Reviewed: bottle at Bier Circus, Brussels
- Date Reviewed: July 13, 2000
- Style: Trappist ale
- Originally posted to Usenet: February 8, 2001
- Added to the Tasting Notebook: February 8, 2001
Initial Impressions:
This is the second review in an intermittent series on the Trappist ales. These beers are widely available in my new surroundings, cheap, and fresh. I’ve started this series with a comparison between the two lightest of the Westvleteren offerings, the 6 Red and 6 Green.
Last year, prior to my second visit to Belgium, I learned that the red cap was replaced by a “new” green cap 6. When I was out in 1998, the red cap was had enough to locate; I never saw a green cap. Yet Jackson mentions both the red and the green in the 5th and 6th editions of his Pocket Guide (and perhaps earlier editions). Webb identifies the yellow, blue, and red, while mentioning a “dubbel” at 4% ABV that is produced for the exclusive consumption of the monks. The green cap 6 lists on the bottle at 5.8%, but Jackson pegs it in the 6th edition as 4.5%. Perhaps the new green is a different beer entirely?
The most distinctive feature one notices when pouring the green cap Westvleteren 6 into the appropriate glass is its color. Unlike the other Westvleterens I have had, this is a blonde beer. Highly carbonated, a big foamy white head forms quickly and is slow to dissipate. If carefully poured, this beer is close to bright.
Nose:
The aroma is dominated by estery fruitiness, perhaps more towards banana, and a hint of cloviness. Again, unlike any Westvleteren I’ve had in the past.
Flavor:
The green has a relatively thin body, and the high carbonation adds to the thin body and dry character. It opens fruity, but without the banana I perhaps erroneously noted in the nose. A light, neutral maltiness is found in the middle, while a phenolic spiciness with some modest, but noticeable hop bitterness closes out the beer.
Final Analysis:
This is a perfectly adequate beer, and I imagine quite refreshing on those mythical warm summer days. However, I found it not as deep or interesting as the former red cap, but still worth seeking out to try for yourself at least once.
Rating:
(Good on my 5-star scale)