173882 Thu Mar 31 13:22:37 -0800 2005 8 14 Washington DC & Baltimore Area 0 934893 I posted about this on the Manhattan board, and I've received some worthy leads. I figure that, since I'm currently working down here around DC, it couldn't hurt to see what you folks had to say as well. Does anyone know if this particular beer can be found in the DC area? A common opinion seems to be that trappist beers from the Westvleteren Monastery are among the best the world has to offer. Thu Mar 31 13:22:37 -0800 2005 0 big o 1 934895 Westvleteren is delicious (and not just the 12). It's also the hardest trappist beer to find due to limited production and distribution. Try Chevy Chase Wine (5544 Connecticut Ave NW) . I believe they've had it on rare occation (but it wasn't cheap-- I passed on it the last time I saw it there). Should you be passing by on your way back to NY, one place that definitely used to carry it was the Wegman's in Princeton, NJ. Unbelievably, it was only $4 a bottle. Or you can make a road trip to the amazing Vintage Cellar in Blacksburg, VA-- they have just about every Belgian beer you can find in the US, including Westvleteren (http://www.vintagecellar.com) Thu Mar 31 13:40:00 -0800 2005 934893 0 Spade 2 934899 That Vintage Cellar is looking like a winner. It's the first online option I've seen with a shipping price that didn't far outpace the already-high beer prices ($45 shipping from one place and 200 Euros(!) from another). Thanks for that. Thu Mar 31 14:24:15 -0800 2005 934895 0 big o 1 934898 Restaurant Eve in Alexandria has a pretty impressive group of beers, several Belgian. Not what you are looking for, but their bartender is great and loves talking about this sort of thing. He might well have sources and you could both get some for yourself and get Eve to start stocking it. Thu Mar 31 14:12:02 -0800 2005 934893 0 Bob 1 934905 I've seen the Westy 8 in a couple places in D.C. recently, namely Cairo Liquors on 17th in Dupont and the WholeFoods in Glover Park on Wisconsin. The former is out of them I think. I haven't seen the 12. You may want to post on the relevant forums at ratebeer.com or realbeer.com. You'll get better info there. Thu Mar 31 15:19:40 -0800 2005 934893 0 tbear 1 934910 Be patient. It is my understanding that the importer currently bringing it into the US can only get it once in a blue moon. Once in the country, it is extremely limited. I spoke with some merchants around the country that were allotted tiny quantities (i.e. "cases" of 8) simply because not much of it gets over here. I will say that more of it seems to get to Philly than the Balto-DC area, as I have seen it up there from time to time. Good luck. It is truly an amazing beer. That said, try the Victory V-12, which is sort of a Westy 12 knock-off in my humble opinion. Thu Mar 31 15:49:17 -0800 2005 934893 0 aubzamzam 2 936375 Shangy's in Emmaus, PA carried it but he said he can't get in anymore. There are still a few bottles at the Spinnerstown hotel near Quakertown, PA. Mon Apr 25 16:18:00 -0700 2005 934910 0 Terry 1 934947 Whole Foods in Vienna is your best bet. Ask for Jim the beer guy. If he has any (he usually does) he can hook you up. And yes it is a superb beer. Thu Mar 31 20:36:16 -0800 2005 934893 0 JeffC 1 934948 Adding to my previous post. If you can not find it keep looking and in the meantime try St Bernardus 12 and Rochefort 10. Both are Belgian Quads (aka Abts) like the Westvleteren 12 and nearly as good, cheaper, and far more accessible! The Westie will usually set you back in the neighborhood of $10 for a 330ml bottle. The Rochefort is proabably around $7 for a 330ml bottle and the St Bernardus is maybe around $4 for 330ml. The brewery that brews the St Bernardus used to actually brew the Westvleteren a while back and I believe that the same person formulated both the St Bernardus and the Westvleteren recipes. One last thing, if you see any bottles of Allagash Quad buy one and try it. It is an American brewed quad that is quite good. Enough of my beer geeking... Link: http://www.ratebeer.com/ViewUser.asp?UserID=8263 Thu Mar 31 20:48:36 -0800 2005 934893 0 JeffC