Rochefort 6

Sharp, and then super earthy with a dull chocolate or coffee bitterness. Hints of wheat in the background, but the earthiness is the main thing. A little simpler than the 8. Apple.

2/24/09: I taste not as much bitterness this time, and more spiciness. I don't know if I can rank the 6/8/10, every time I have one of them again I feel like it's my favorite.

Corsendonk Pater

Reminds me of surfing and San Diego cars for some reason. A nice oaky, earthy taste with lighter fruit overtones. Hints of bitterness and wheat.

Bush De Noël

The 12% is all in the first half second. Kind of quad-ish, some fruit, but with wheatier notes shining through at the end. I don't taste the Christmas so much.

Maredsous Dubbel

I feel like I've had this before. It's very similar to one of the previous posts, but I can't remember which. A little bitter, nutty, sightly medicinal and flowery. A bit of molasses sugaryness.

Maredsous Tripel

Starts a little strong, goes flowery, berries, and finishes with some wheat. Seems a little stronger near the bottom. Complimented by a peanut + squash sauce I happened to have.

Weyerbacher Merry Monks

Bubblegummy. Pleasant at first, but one dimensional by the end.

2/4/09: I taste more now. Still incredibly vinous and sweet, but there is a lot of fruit, too. There is something vaguely chocolate-y/earth-y about the aftertaste on the back of the tongue that reminds me of a wet dog. It's really nice, surprisingly. Should probably be paired with a cheese, or a big meal where it's drunk in large sips.

Chimay White

I didn't taste the complexity of the Chimay Blue. Seems bitter for a tripel, but not overwhelmingly so.

May 7th, 2009: I didn't really understand this at the time. Has some tart-sourness, very grape-juicey vinous characteristics, a little spice and a very smooth body.

Leffe Vieille Cuvée

A friend of the olives. I imagine more berries and citrus here, maybe a little more medicinal and less sweet than the blonde.