La Trappe Bockbier - Bierbrouwerij De Koningshoeven B.V.

Sunnanek

Sweden

4.25/5  rDev +5.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

A: Pour is all pale brown head at first; thick and creamy head. After a while the head settles while the liquid rises; dark copper, clear. Rich lacings.

T: Rich sweet dark malts. Almost honey-like sweetness. Lots of dark dried fruits. Yeasty and even a bit chocolaty.

M: So very sweet, and roasted dark malts. Kind of bready. Rich dark dried fruits. The taste is all about heavy sweet malts.

M: Body is syrupy full while carbonation is kind of forgotten - nice. Aftertaste is sweet but also a bit vineous.

O: Very sweet, complex and nice. If your pleasure is hops and not malts - avoid! If not - this fantastic!

Serving type: bottle

05-08-2013 16:36:21 | More by Sunnanek

HabiMendes

Rhode Island

4.51/5  rDev +11.9%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

The amber-brown La Trappe is transparent, with a lightly-tanned neck, very well retained (perfect to style). The bready aroma displays very well the malty character of the beer, showing also caramel tones and alcohol content (perfect, again). The taste brings a well-carbonated, medium-body beer, with hops well harmonized with the malty body, the latter slightly sweet (once again, perfect to style). The end is somewhat long, bringing, again, the whole malt/caramel story. What an excellent beer!

Serving type: bottle

04-06-2013 03:49:00 | More by HabiMendes

UCLABrewN84

California

3.96/5  rDev -1.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

On tap at Congregation Ale House in Pasadena, CA.

Pours a clear dark orange with a foamy khaki head that settles to a small cap on top of the beer. Foamy rings of lace line the glass on the drink down. Smell is of malt, dark fruits, and brown sugar. Taste is much the same with a fruity flavor on the finish. There is a mild amount of spice bitterness on the palate with each sip. This beer has a lower level of carbonation with a slightly crisp and medium bodied mouthfeel. Overall, this is a good beer that is tasty and easy to drink.

Serving type: on-tap

03-11-2013 03:09:51 | More by UCLABrewN84

CrazyDavros

Australia

3.71/5  rDev -7.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 2.25 | overall: 4

Pours dark brown with a large, lasting head.
Nose shows caramel, chocolate fudge and toasty, bready malt. Very sweet-smelling.
Not as great flavours, but still showing some of the bready and toasty characters. Also a little booze.
Too much carbonation.

Serving type: bottle

02-11-2013 10:51:33 | More by CrazyDavros

safaricook

Netherlands

3.85/5  rDev -4.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Got this delivered by my wife from a work colleague, who picked it up directly in Tilburg at the Koningshoeven brewery. I poured into an Orval chalice, after letting it warm up a little bit from the fridge.

It pours gigantic beautiful beige finely pored head. Body is of dark clear amber with some fine carbonation visible.

Wonderful rich smell of yeast, malt, plums, roasted nuts and cocoa.

Tastes is a let down compared to the smell. I get surprisingly moderate taste of burnt malt and bread with a slight metallic aftertaste.

What a creamy nice head that sticks to your lip! The liquid part though is a bit watery with little carbonation.

Overall an interesting beer with ups and downs. Nevertheless, certainly not to forget when talking about Dutch bockbier. A country that is full of the style around the dark times of the year.

Serving type: bottle

01-07-2013 20:40:00 | More by safaricook

Arborescence

Finland

3.68/5  rDev -8.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Appearance: Jumps out of the bottle and pours a massive, thick head that persists. Very dark brown, hazy, with a slight ruby tint.

Aroma: Malty, with a hint of cherry. The aroma is quite mild though.

Taste: There's a certain softness before the robust malt hits. Not a lot of sweetness here, but some hints of dried fruit are present. Solid flavour, but nothing overly interesting.

Mouthfeel: Rich, smooth, and creamy. Medium to full-bodied. Medium carbonation.

Overall: It's a peculiar concoction -- a trappist bock -- but I don't think it brings anything sublime to the table. It's tasty though, not a bad representative of a strongish bock.

Serving type: bottle

12-27-2012 19:15:22 | More by Arborescence

IPA35

Netherlands

4.28/5  rDev +6.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

A top fermenting trappist bock.
This one breaks all the rules. A trappist bock? Shows this is not Belgian as bock is quite big in the Netherlands. A top fermenting bock? That's not how it is supposed to be either but then again trappist beers are not bottom fermented either.

Anyway, interesting.

Quite a pretty beer, dark ruby amber, a huge off white head. Fine bubbles with some big ones floating in the middle. Hazy of course, swirled it to get all yeast.

Smells nice, big on the dark fruits, a darker malt profile with caramel and rye bread almost. A bit spicey. Typical bock medicine as well.

Tastes not like your usual dark trappist beer. A firm malt forward brew with darker malts. Aside from that it starts out nice and sweet but it finished quite bitter with both the malts and the hops at work there. I see where others get the coffee from. Very tasty.

Mouthfeel is medium to full with quite low carbonation. Nice.

Overall a good beer. Still, I prefer the classic Belgian dark ales over bocks.

Serving type: bottle

11-20-2012 21:33:43 | More by IPA35

BlackHaddock

United Kingdom (England)

4/5  rDev -0.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Sunday 20 Oct 2012 sees me sat outside in bright sunlight: Valkenburg, Holland. I walk passed a board advertising La Trappe Bockbier on tap, I put myself into reverse and have two lovely glasses of this and watch the world go by.

Deep brown/ruby red in body colour: the sunlight dancing on the ruby tints. Large cream coloured head when brought to my table: soon turns into a wispy covering and collar (what a pity).

Malts and yeast esters vie for your smell senses with the malts easily winning. Add a hand full of crushed dark, red berries and a spoon full of all spice and you've got the aroma.

The malts rule the taste as well, malty molasses giving the beer a rich, smooth feel and flavour. Most likely the best Bock I had while on the trip. Another bar was having a Bock Fest and had around 8 on tap, so I managed to try a few, as you do!

Serving type: on-tap

11-05-2012 15:10:25 | More by BlackHaddock

Douberd

Netherlands

4.35/5  rDev +7.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

ABV 7%
Untill now this is the best bock beer I've tried this year. Those monks really know what they're doing.
This is the only Trappist bock beer and the only bock beer that continues to ferment slightly in the bottle, at least according to their website.
Small bottle of 300 ml. Ingredients arewater, barley, wheat and oat malts, yeast and aromatic hops. Some yeast can be found in the bottle of course.
Pours a very dark ruby coloured beer, with a huge beige head of 3-4 fingers in height, thick and creamy, with excellent retention. Heavy lacing around the glass as the foam is going down, but never away. A thin layer of foam persists around the glass, while a big chunk of it lingers on the centre of the beer's surface. Shake your glass a bit and another thin line of foam appears again, with almost the same sustainable retention.
A fantastic aroma on the nose from the hops. Light caramel , alcohol, some apricot, plums and other dark fruits.
Taste is great too. Sort of sweet at first but with a definitely bitter aftertaste. Caramel, coffee and dark bitter chocolate flavours.
Medium thickness on the body and average carbonation.Quite dry on the palate, with this dryness helping the bitter taste to stay longer in the outh.
As I wrote before, this is the best bock beer I've tasted this far. I will surely get some more to drink during the cold days of autumn plus another couple to keep in my cellar.

Serving type: bottle

10-12-2012 22:11:13 | More by Douberd

eric5bellies

Australia

4.48/5  rDev +11.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Drank from my Ciney sniffer

A - Pours a classic dark deep mahogany colour with an off white head that retains very well.

S - Very pronounced sweet malts, classic bock style. Slightly Sally.

T - Very nice molasses with a sweet malt with a sweet boozyness, the maltyness is pronounced and classic bock style.

M - medium to full body with minimal carbonation

O - A great beer from La Trappe that is a take on a classic German style.

Serving type: bottle

09-29-2012 22:44:37 | More by eric5bellies

falloutsnow

Illinois

4.05/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Bottle from Brix in Omaha, NE
"K31H7" stamped on bottle, but that doesn't say much for freshness
Poured into an Ayinger Celebrator doppelbock glass

Almost like a doppelbock in its focus on heavy, caramel malts and brown sugar influences, this beer still retains enough of its subtle nutty and toasty elements to remain in a classic, though big, bock. The taste is complex and enjoyable

Pours a 2cm head of dark tan, smallish, bubbles. Head retention is about average, dissipating within a few minutes to a patchy cap of foam atop the body, later just a ring around the glass. Lacing is modest, one or two lines and swirls left along the sides of the glass. The beer's body is a semi-transparent wood stain brown to amber red color, light bringing out the red hues. Carbonation is visible streaming up from the bottom center of the glass, substantial, but very sluggish.

Aroma seems to focus on brown sugar, toasted bread, and dried brown figs. It's a bit similar to the Schell's bock from this year, but much less robust and assured of itself. This may be a freshness issue, but the bottle does not have a readable date on it to determine if so. As it stands, the aroma is rather withered, and I have to inhale deeply to pull the elements from it.

Taste is built upon heavy caramel and brown sugar flavors and sweetness, which plays with a bit of roasted malt at the front of the palate. Mid-palate brings out continued heavy caramel and brown sugar flavors with dried date and brown fig esters, also adding a bit of toasted nuts, bread, and roasted or chocolate flavor lingering underneath. Back of palate continues brown sugar sweetness with some more roasted, chocolate malt. Lingering aftertaste of roasted malt and some coffee notes, which adds some bitterness to the beer to prevent it from becoming cloying.

Note: don't add the yeast; I did for the second half of the bottle, and it only diluted the flavors I was initially picking up.

Beer is medium-bodied with mid-level carbonation that's a bit prickly on the tongue at first, but quickly levels off to create a crisp and well-flowing mouthfeel. Carbonation could be toned down just a bit and this would not suffer. Just a hint of ethanol in the nostrils and back of throat when closing out a sip. Finish is dry, with some stickiness left around the edges of the mouth due to residual sugars.

Serving type: bottle

06-20-2012 15:31:47 | More by falloutsnow

killianf

4/5  rDev -0.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

330ml bottle into Duvel tulip

A: Pours a dark ruby-brown colour with a very big 3-4 finger soapy head. Great retention and lacing. Not the most active beer.

S: Malt, chocolatey sweetness, dark fruits, boozey smell. Smells quite rich and deep. Some spice here too.

T: Malt - biscuity flavours initially, with caramel and fruity finish. The aftertaste is slightly bitter, but the beer itself is more on the sweet side.

M: Decent carbonation fizzing on the tongue, medium bodied, very drinkable.

Overall: A very enjoyable beer, if it wasn't for the price I'd happily have 3 or 4 in a sitting. I served mine straight from the fridge, which I wouldn't do next time. And there probably will be a next time - good, tasty beer, flavoursome but not overly complex. Would personally prefer this brewery's ales.

Serving type: bottle

03-30-2012 18:37:26 | More by killianf

papat444

Quebec (Canada)

3.65/5  rDev -9.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Thanks to slovaksniper (ratebeer) for this one.

Poured from a 330ml. bottle, best before 07/2012.

Appearance: A dark brown body with major ruby hues. Fluffy light tan head with good lacing and excellent retention.

Smell: Figs, nuts, caramel and berries.

Taste: Good mix of bread, caramel malt and dried fruit. Flavor is good but lacks some fullness.

Mouthfeel: Carbonation is felt and it has a melt in your mouth quality. The only problem is it feels a little thin.

Overall: I liked it but could have been better.

Serving type: bottle

02-26-2012 03:23:42 | More by papat444

beerpirates

Belgium

4.03/5  rDev 0%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

33 cl bottel poured into my list abbey stemware glass

Typical robin red bock coloured appearance, creamy head, mostly lasting during the drink.

A sweet caramel malt, little burned aroma, I sense some wheat and fresh hops in the background.

Fine taste, base is bitter – light sweet, caramel malt and a bit of hop-bitterness. Body is medium/full.

A little dry mouthfeel, and a burned hop-bitter, little malt aftertaste.

Without doubt a nice bockbeer, and face it: the only trappist bock in the world.

Serving type: bottle

02-05-2012 19:57:11 | More by beerpirates

patra7

Greece

3.95/5  rDev -2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Served in a stange glass, almost 2 years before exp. date.
Appearance: Deep brown-reddish color; brown, very thick head that hangs on for ever with almost immovable bubbles.
Smell: Strong smell of alcohol, caramel and coffee with a momentary smokiness.
Taste: Same as smell. Bitterness manages to peek through the mostly caramel, siropy feel giving it a slightly more balanced character.
Body: Full body. Carbonation just enough to give the beer a fresher character and balance out the mellowness.
Drinkability: Very interesting beer; more than any other bockbier I’ve drunk. Perhaps a bit too sweet for some.

Serving type: bottle

01-15-2012 23:12:51 | More by patra7

megahurts4

Louisiana

4.15/5  rDev +3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

La Trappe Bockbier

Appearance: dark brownish read, huge head, and some good lacing.

Smell: wheat, slight fruit, and yeast.

Taste: wheat, yeast, and a semi-sweet maltiness.

Mouthfeel: medium.

Overall:
This is a great beer for sessions. It is easily drank and has a good amount of flavor. The brew isn't too complex, however.

Serving type: bottle

01-08-2012 03:57:45 | More by megahurts4

Phyl21ca

Quebec (Canada)

4/5  rDev -0.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Bottle: Poured a clear burgundy color ale with large off-white foamy head with good retention and some light lacing. Aroma of light residual sugar with some caramelized malt. Taste is a good mix between some caramelized malt with light toffee notes with some residual sugar. Boyd is about average but has a nice creamy texture with good carbonation. Easy drinking with nice level of complexity for style.

Serving type: bottle

12-07-2011 20:38:03 | More by Phyl21ca

Jason

Massachusetts

4/5  rDev -0.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

33cl brown bottle, freshness date on the label.

Clear rudy dark amber, great lacing.

Spicy, toasted malt, fresh baked dark bread, dark confections & dried grass in the nose.

Very malty palate, toasty bread, slightly dry, hint of bubble gum, grassy, herbal, toasted husk.

A spectacular bock, lively and a joy to drink. La Trappe is doing it right.

Serving type: bottle

10-25-2011 20:01:37 | More by Jason

Thorpe429

Illinois

4.3/5  rDev +6.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

From the bottle at De Kelk in Brugge during last week's trip to Belgium. Reviewed from notes.

Served in a La Trappe chalice.

Pours a moderate brown color with a huge off-white head and loads of lacing on the way down. Persistent head and a cap throughout.

The nose brings some light chocolate and a bit of caramel plus some bread crust. Faint dark fruits and a bit of a hoppy character. Flavor has some mild sweetness and a good dosing of bitterness.

Light body with good carbonation and a semi-dry finish.

Very well made.

Serving type: bottle

09-15-2011 20:00:20 | More by Thorpe429

Knapp85

Pennsylvania

4.22/5  rDev +4.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

This brew poured out with a nice deep amber brown color with a light tan colored head on it. The smell of the beer has a good amount of malts on the nose and even a touch of spice and yeast. The taste of the beer gives off a nice subtle caramel sweetness upfront that fades into a dry toasted flavor. There seems like there could be some autumnal spices in this as well but they're very faint. The mouthfeel is smooth and has a good amount of body too. Overall I really enjoyed this brew, I still enjoy their Quad the most but this is probably the next best thing La Trappe puts out.

Serving type: bottle

08-30-2011 15:27:28 | More by Knapp85

woodychandler

Pennsylvania

4.25/5  rDev +5.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Bock me! I found an 11.2 Fl. Oz. bottle in my cellar today. Like the bottle in "Alice in Wonderland", it said, "Drink me!" and so I shall.

It certainly retained its carbonation nicely! I had about a finger of light-tan head that quickly fizzed its way out of existence. Color was a cola-brown with ruby highlights and NE-quality clarity. Nose was rich with a caramel malty sweetness. Mouthfeel was medium with a definite caramel taste on the tongue, almost a burnt caramel aspect. Finish was very sweet with the caramel flavor simply lingering well after the swallow. Wow! Bock at 0500 - I must not be working this summer. I would recommend this as more of a dessert beer than a wake-up beer.

Serving type: bottle

07-19-2011 09:19:51 | More by woodychandler

theboozecruise

Louisiana

4.2/5  rDev +4.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Picked up a large bottle (probably 750ml) of this at a Spec's in Houston... and poured it into pint glasses to share with a few friends. The La Trappe beers were some of the first introductions to belgian ales and I'm still a fan of the tripel and quad... so a bock from a Trappist brewery? Yeah, I'll give it a try.

The color is a brilliant ruby reddish brown, decent head, off white with some good retention and lacing. So far so good, another good looking brew from the monks.

The aroma is very complex... roasted caramel, dark fruits, a little bitterness from the hops, more roasted malt flavors, all blended together well. It definitely tastes more Belgian than German, and yet I know these guys are Dutch, but they brew Belgian-style.

The taste is a lot of the same flavor as the aroma. Very complex and layered, with different sweet notes combining with bitter hops flavors over a nice toasted malt base. Man, a really interesting and good beer.

The mouthfeel is pretty solid too... not quite as good as the previous categories, but it's a full bodied easy drinking beer for 7% with little alcohol taste to it.

Overall, it's an interesting Belgian-style take on this German style. It definitely varies from traditional bocks that I remember with much more rich flavors. A solid 4.0 from me overall.

Serving type: bottle

07-08-2011 04:13:34 | More by theboozecruise

treque

Mexico

4.28/5  rDev +6.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

A: a sand large creamy consistent head, a deep amber and some brown hue, medium body, not completely traslucent, waste left behing and nice retention on the head. carb constant altough is made of tiny bubbles

S: a tiny toast, much caramel and some alcohol notes, a clean smell

T: sweet notes at the beggining, some toast malts are noticed at this moment, after that you get the warmer sensation comming from the alcohol, the caramel notes appear after this making a good mix of flavour, a clean falvour, no bitternes at all, the end is not long on toast flavour but is persistent, chewy end

Serving type: bottle

06-03-2011 00:28:11 | More by treque

eduardolinhalis

Switzerland

4.1/5  rDev +1.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

330ml bottle served in a chalice.

A: Pours a brown cloudy color with a huge bubbled and persistent head that dissipates slowly leaving some lacings around

S: The better part. Very sweet, fruity and bready. Brown sugar, caramel malts, raisins and plums. Yeasts. Mild perfume of hops. A bit of alcohol in the end. BTW, it does not smell like a Bock beer

T: Pretty much like the nose. Sweet upfront. Brown sugar caramel malts, dark fruits. Strong on earthy yeasts reminding a brown bread. Nice light and dry bitter end

M: Medium creamy body. Not much molasses. Medium carbonation. A bitter-sweet beer

O: Don't expect a traditional Bock Beer here. In fact, I think that the idea behind it was producing a Bock keeping the characteristics of a Trappist. I like it and really recommend it

Serving type: bottle

06-01-2011 19:51:17 | More by eduardolinhalis

TheManiacalOne

Rhode Island

3.48/5  rDev -13.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Poured from an 11.2oz bottle into a US tumbler pint glass.

A: The beer is a deep brown color, with a large off-white head that fades slowly and leaves a thick lace on the glass.

S: The aroma contains brown sugar, dark fruit, caramelized malts, some lager yeast and a faint touch of hops.

T: The taste likewise starts out very sweet with flavors of caramel, dark fruit and honey. The malt character is hearty and there’s a mild hops presence that brings a little bit of balance. The after-taste is also quite sweet.

M: Smooth and a little crisp, medium-to-heavy body, medium carbonation, finish is sticky.

O: A little tasty, goes down easily, slightly filling, good kick, good but heavier representation of style, it’s a solid beer but not one of the first beers in the style that I would pick.

Serving type: bottle

05-19-2011 04:20:13 | More by TheManiacalOne