Trappist Ale. (warning, music on first link.) The six Belgian breweries Achel (little English), Chimay, Orval, Rochefort (unofficial site), Westmalle (no English), and Westvleteren, along with the Dutch brewery De Konigshoeven/La Trappe (first is English link to monastery, second is non-English brewery site.) are the only recognized producers of Trappist beers, although the latter was only recently granted the appellation after several years without it. Ranging from the relatively commercial and large-scale operations of Chimay and La Trappe to the other extreme of Westvleteren, who want to live quietly and don't want their beer distributed, these beers are considered some of the best in the world.
posted by TheOnlyCoolTim on Mar 4, 2006 - 38 comments

CSS Trappist Monastery. Like the Zen Garden, but without any images (other than the "chosen twelve").
posted by brownpau on Feb 13, 2006 - 29 comments

Building Coffins Boosts Monks' Coffers. Trappist monks at the New Melleray Abbey in rural Iowa turned to casket-making five years ago after their farming operation went under. But the casket business is good. So now, in between prayers, the monks can be found in the wood shop.
posted by bluedaniel on Oct 25, 2003 - 8 comments