For centuries, Cistercian monastic monks, or Trappists, have been self-sufficient, eating foods they grew in fields surrounding their abbeys and making their own wine and beer for health (in the days before reliable drinking water) and sustenance. Many such monks migrated from France and Germany to what is now Belgium and the Netherlands, and abandoned winemaking for beer-brewing, as the northern climate was not conducive to growing grapes. Trappists also brewed beer for commercial sale to raise money for their monasteries and philanthropic endeavors.
Dubbel and Tripel (or Trippel) beer styles are attributed to Trappist brewing ingenuity and its ties to Belgium’s Westmalle brewery (Brouwerij der Trappisten van Westmalle). A 1992 Trappist ruling stipulated that authentic Trappist beers must be brewed inside the walls of a Trappist abbey under the watchful eye of the monks. Later, the International Trappist Association created a label to ensure consumers of the product’s origin and authenticity.
Abbey beers, on the other hand – also called Biers d’Abbaye and Abdijbier – are commercially brewed outside Trappist abbey walls. The idea came from monks who no longer had the resources to brew, and would license a commercial brewer to make beer for them under the abbey’s name. Today, several religious institutions license breweries, while other beers are simply named after an abbey ruin or local saint.
While thousands of monastic breweries existed in medieval times, today only 10 are recognized by the International Trappist Association to carry the “Authentic Trappist Product” label on their beers. Six are in Belgium (Achel, Chimay, Orval, Rochefort, Westmalle and Westvleteren), one is in the Netherlands (La Trappe), one is in Austria (Stift Engelszell), one is in France (Monts des Cats) and one is in the United States (Spencer). These 10 breweries are entitled to use the Trappist name and display the seal of Trappist authenticity on their beers and other products, such as cheeses.
