Description
The history of the Trappist monastery goes back to 1831, in 1839 the first brewery was built. The abbey and the brewery cannot be visited, but the “Claustrum” as an information center on monastic life and a bar serving monastic specialties at the “In de Vrede” café in the immediate vicinity of the abbey are available. The beer is bottled in 0.33 l bottles, they are without a label. The content can only be recognized from the crown cap. The beer is only sold at the monastery or in the café “In de Vrede”. There is no distribution of the beer through dealers. According to their own account, the monks don't live to brew, they brew to live. Only limited quantities are produced and not all types of beer are always in stock. The current inventory can be requested via a "beer phone". A maximum of two wooden boxes of 24 bottles each are sold. Buyers must request a pick-up date from the monastery, stating their vehicle registration number. Such a reservation is only possible every 60 days. The beer is only sold against my word of honor not to resell it. Westvleteren Trappist beer is voted into the very top ranks on international beer rating websites. Westvleteren 12 was even voted the world's best beer on "RateBeer.com"; The monks of the Sint Sixtus Abbey already feel disturbed by the hustle and bustle caused by this in their monastic life. After a supermarket managed to get 300 crates of Westvleteren beer in 2019 and these were then sold for 10 euros per bottle, the sales process was changed. The sale is now on the Internet
