LKR: The meaning of Trappist

Thursday morning CJ and I volunteered to take our turn driving and navigating, which suited me fine because I was starting to come down with a cold, and because it would give us more time in Bruges. We had fun perusing some shops and adding chocolate truffles to our lunch menu. On our drive to the Westvleteren Abbey, or Abdij St. Sixtus, we happened upon a great bike shop where I was able to get replacement parts from the great mechanic there (some things, like numbers and bike parts, are universal in language) and we found Emily a nice set of the paneers she was looking for.

I think someone has probably already blogged about the rarity of Westvleteren beer – the monks make only a limited supply and most beer stores run out early in the season – so I thought I’d add a bit about where the name “Trappist” comes from, as I’d been wondering our entire trip: (*Dave, note also…I think I’ve discovered where the “1664” beer name comes from…)

From Wikipedia: The Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance (O.C.S.O.: Ordo Cisterciensis Strictioris Observantiae), or Trappists, are a contemplative Roman Catholic religious order (see list of Catholic orders), that follows the Rule of St. Benedict. They are a branch of the Cistercians and like the other Cistercian orders they also have a women's branch commonly referred to as the Trappistines.

The order takes the name of "Trappist" from La Trappe Abbey or "La Grande Trappe" in Normandy in France, where it began as a reform movement in 1664, in reaction to the relaxation of practices in many Cistercian monasteries. The reform was led by Armand Jean le Bouthillier de Rancé, originally the commendatory abbot of La Trappe. As commendatory abbot, de Rancé was a layman who obtained income from the monastery but had no religious obligations. After a conversion of life between 1660 and 1662, de Rancé formally joined the abbey and became its regular abbot in 1663.

The 48th chapter of the Rule of St. Benedict states "for then are they monks in truth, if they live by the work of their hands." Following this rule, most Trappist monasteries produce goods that are then sold to provide an income for the monastery. The goods produced can range from cheese, bread and other foodstuffs to clothing and coffins. As the order does not require abstention from alcohol, some monasteries produce and sell alcoholic beverages. Some monasteries in Belgium and the Netherlands, such as Orval Abbey and Westvleteren Abbey, brew beer both for the monks and for sale to the general public. Trappist beers contain residual sugars and living yeast, and, as bottle-conditioned beers do, will improve with age. These have become quite famous and are considered by many beer critics to be amongst the finest in the world.