High ABV: Is This Important?

There has recently been some debate over ABV and quality of beer. Does higher alcohol content mean more taste? Can you get good taste without it? Is there a time when it may be more appropriate not to hit them?

Personally I find that you can have good taste without higher alcohol, unless you like the alcohol taste, which you can only get with the higher ABV.

Plus, it tends to make bold flavors even more bold, like the fruit esters in a Belgian will be much more pronounced. For example, I shared a bomber of St. Bernardus Abt 12 last week with my neighbor and it was right on the heels (actually a day apart) of a bomber of Chimay red. Granted, one is a quad and the other a dubbel, but I think the gravity or alcohol level is the difference here and while they were both delicious, I would have to say the Abt 12 was more flavorful.

I have found that the more commercial breweries I go to, like Ram or Rock Bottom, will only brew an Imperial at specific times of the year, and not have one on their menu all the time. Whereas the Livery, for example, has at least three Imperials or other big beers (9, 10, 12%). This may be due to the cost being prohibitive enough for some therefore not worth hogging a tap spot in many other brew pubs.

Here is a link to a list of the beers with the highest alcohol content available. Please note this is a private list so many breweries might not be represented.

What do you think? Can you have good flavor with the high alcohol content? Are there times when it is more appropriate not to? Do you even bother to order these at all since they are usually a lot higher priced?