I have, currently, in my possession, at this very moment, the BEST BEER IN THE WORLD!

“But Kyle,” you say, “That is an incredibly subjective statement, who’s to say what the best beer in the world is?” You couldn’t be more wrong.  Ask any beer connoisseur, check any beer related website, ask any monk from the Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance and they’ll all tell you that there is one beer that reigns supreme over all other beers: the Trappist Westvleteren 12 from the Abbey of Saint Sixtus of Westvleteren. Please, take the time to consult the BeerAdvocate list of the Top Beers on Planet Earth. Now check out RateBeer’s Top 50. Notice where my Westy 12 sits? That’s right, the very top of both lists.

“But Kyle,” you say, “What’s the big deal?  I could go out and buy a bottle at the liquor store.” You couldn’t be more wrong.  You see, the monks at Saint Sixtus are Trappists and have devoted their lives to the tenants of St. Benedict’s Rule – stability, fidelity to monastic life, and obedience.  Did you see making money off beer in that list?  No?  That’s because they have sworn to only sell goods that directly benefit the monastic life, and not to sell so much beer that they have more money than needs to be met.  Westvleteren beers are sold only at the Abby itself, in Belgium.  Not only that but you must reserve the beer you would like to purchase before you arrive, and they will only accept one order per car per telephone number per month . Now it’s a little trickier, isn’t it.

“Wow, Kyle, that’s amazing!” you say, “You must have a really special occasion to get a beer like that.” You couldn’t be more right.  Caitlan and I will open this mother-of-all-beers at the reception of our wedding, New Year’s Eve.  We’ll dance our first dance, lovingly cut our wedding cake, and lock arms while we sip the finest mixture of hops and grains man has ever made.  It will be the second best moment of the day.

Our beer, I took it out for these pictures and had to have Caitlan put it back before I drank it:

Further Reading:

The abbey of Saint Sixtus of Westvleteren: http://www.sintsixtus.be/eng/home.htm

USA Today Article on the brewery: http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/food/2005-10-03-beer-usat_x.htm

An idea of what people are willing to do for this stuff: http://cgi.ebay.com/24-WESTVLETEREN-12-8