Beer Spotlight!

Spotlight on Trappistes Rochefort Ale Triple Extra

$7.99 for the 330ml bottle
Trappist Tripel / Triple

In southeastern, French-speaking, Belgium sits the small town of Rochefort — the home of the Abbey of Notre-Dame de Saint-Rémy. Notre-Dame de Saint-Rémy is a Trappist monastery that was founded in 1887, and though the monks started brewing soon after the founding, it wasn’t until a brewery overhaul in 1952 that they were able to make beer that they could sell to the washed and unwashed alike. Immediately, the monks produced three beers — a Quadrupel, a strong ale, and a Dubbel — and that holy trinity has represented the abbey’s Trappist brewing … until now.

For the first time since 1955, Trappistes Rochefort has a new release — the Triple Extra! Yes! Rochefort has added a Tripel to its lineup! (“Tripel” in Flemmish, “Triple” in French.)

The Triple Extra is unfiltered and is playfully complex. Some of us get a slight nuttiness, some get slight fruit notes. One thing, for sure, is that the monks have leaned on the hops, allowing a strong spiciness to follow the malt. Lighter bodied than you expect, the Triple Extra surprises you by leaning more towards “a quaffable beer” than a “sipping beer.” Also surprising is how tasty it is, since there must be something sinful in the monks making something this fun to drink.