Spencer Trappist Ale

Brewed in Spencer, Massachusetts at The Spencer Brewery, Spencer Trappist Ale has the notable distinction, at least as of the time of writing, of being the only certified Trappist beer brewed outside of Europe. The brewery is affiliated with St. Joseph’s Abbey, and has been brewing their 6.5% blonde ale for a few years now—I’ve been wanting to try it ever since I read about the stuff some years back, so I was pretty thrilled when I saw it sitting on the shelf at a Toronto beer vendor.

 The beer has a cloudy appearance and a thin but stubborn layer of eggshell head. STA has a fruity, yeast-heavy nose, with notes of apple and cranberry. The flavour is somewhat uncharacteristic for an abbey beer, in that isn’t particularly funky or rich in Belgian-style yeasts. That’s not to say that the beer isn’t yeast-driven, but it is a bit less tart and tangy than some of the longer established Trappist beers from Europe. The flavour is well-balanced, with slightly sour fruit notes and breadiness sitting on either end of the seesaw.

After downing the better part of a corked and caged 650mL bottle of the stuff, my conclusion is that Spencer Trappist Ale is an interesting addition to the tightly regulated and prescribed world of Trappist ales. It’s a nice blonde ale, but it lacks some of the verve I’ve come to expect when I see the “Authentic Trappist Product” icon on a beer label. However, I suspect that some of my findings were due to my own mistaken expectations—I wanted to open a bottle of North American Chimay or Achel, without accounting for the fact that Spencer is not a Belgian brewery, with all of the history and baggage that comes with. Instead of comparing this ale to one from Westmalle, I should have been appreciating it on its own merits a little more. In that context, it stands up well as a pretty decent gold ale. I’d really have liked a bit more booze and  depth, and a fuller mouthfeel, but for a first offering, Spencer Trappist Ale was pretty good. I’m interested in seeing what direction the monks head in from here; a dubbel or trippel could really knock my socks off if done well.

Rating: 7.0 out of 10.