The Lost Abbey | Judgment Day

The Lost Abbey's Judgment Day, a Belgian style Quadrupel ale brewed with raisins. 180 pounds of raisins per 30-barrel batch to be exact! It also has to be said that this beer has a pretty bad ass label.

Poured into a Chimay Chalice glass, Judgment Day, has a dark almost-opaque ruddy brown color, a fizzy tan head that recedes to spotty surface foam, and good chunks of lacing. The aroma is very boozy, lots of sweet alcohol, lots of sweet dark fruit like figs, raisins (it is brewed with raisins after all…), black cherries, some vanilla, spice, and a hint of bananas. This thing smells like a beast.

The taste starts with big malt sweetness, and a definite alcohol presence, but not nearly as boozy as the aroma hints at. Again, fruit flavors of figs, raisins, plums, etc. There's tons of rich maltiness in this thing; biscuity, chewy, and just really tasty. The finish gives a taste of some spicy yeast mixing with the sweetness that lingers for a while after each sip. Definite alcohol warmth with this one.

Speaking of sipping, Judgment Day is not a beer you want to drink fast. At 10.5% ABV, and the insane amounts of malt and fruit flavor, this beer is a monster. This would be an excellent beer to cellar for a while, as the bold malt and high ABV will lend to a smoother more rum-like product over time. If I had more self control I would age this one, but I know it wouldn't last more than a month. Sure would be nice to see what some time will do to this beast though.

Judgment Day was a little too over the top for my palate, but still an excellent beer. It almost seems like more of a dessert than just a beer. Maybe I should have paired this with some late night chocolate cake? If you think this will be a bit too boozy for your taste as well, but are still interested in the style, Lost Abbey's Lost & Found would be a great option. Lost & Found is sort of the kid brother to Judgment Day, still a Belgian strong ale (a Dubbel) and brewed with raisins, but toned down just a bit.

Back to Judgment Day:

Personal 7.5/10, for the style 8.5/10

The Lost Abbey | Devotion Ale

Ah... the famed Lost Abbey. To pick up with a bit more of the history lesson started in the review of "Port Wipeout IPA"....... The Lost Abbey is a brand of Port Brewing Company, and they are both brewed in the same brewery. As previously mentioned, that brewery, started in 2006, is in fact the old brewery of Stone Brewing Co. They (Stone) needed to expand and sold their brewery to Port. Though Port and The Lost Abbey share a brewery, the brands are geared at very different markets. Port Brewing is aimed at the American West Coast style of beers, generally very bold and hop forward. Or in the case of their darker beers, just well-made versions of American favorites. Lost Abbey on the other hand, focuses on complex Belgian style beers, many of which are barrel aged, and some are inoculated with a wild yeast strain called Brettanomyces. But, if you're a beer geek like we are, chances are you'll be interested in both brands! Anyway, lets pop the cork on this bottle.

Devotion Ale, the Belgian Pale/Golden Ale from The Lost Abbey. Poured into a Chimay chalice glass, this ale has a very hazy amber color with a big foamy white head. The head recedes pretty quickly with bits of sticky lacing left on the glass. The aroma is very soft and unobtrusive; hints of sweet doughy malt, yeast (very slightly funky), spice, citrusy hop (lemon, orange), and apple. Instead of one ingredient jumping out and punching you in the face, everything is working together in unison.

The taste starts very crisp and lively with notes of grassy noble hops, grannysmith apple, and lemon. Extreme effervescence upfront quickly turns creamy smooth, opening up sweeter bready malt flavors, spice, and oranges. Towards the finish, this ale gets drier and has a bit of a yeasty band-aid funk / tartness to it mixing with more lemon. This might sound a little off-putting to some, but it really makes it quite mouth-watering and refreshing!

The crisp, light, highly carbonated mouthfeel of this brew makes it pretty easy to drink, and there is no hint of alcohol present. At 6.25% ABV, this isn't necessarily a "strong beer," but for how drinkable it is, it can sneak up on you. Although it's quite different from most pale ales we carry in the store, Lost Abbey's Devotion is worth checking out. While not the bold piney west coast IPA type, this beer still showcases noble hop and yeast flavors in perfect harmony. If you liked Brooklyn Local 1, you will definitely like this one. Enjoy Devotion on its own or paired with light fare like cheese, crackers, breads  etc. Personal 8.5/10 for a belgian style pale ale 9/10.

Port Brewing | Wipeout IPA

Please pardon my bad photo, I didn't feel like stealing one from Google this time.

Port Brewing Wipeout IPA, first off it needs to be said how great it is that Port Brewing/The Lost Abbey are now available in New Jersey. It was only two months ago that I had my friend from California stashing bombers of the stuff into his luggage when he came to visit.

In case you're unfamiliar with the name, Port started as "Pizza Port" in the 90's as a couple of pizza brewpubs around San Diego that gained a lot of attention for their locally crafted hoppy beers. Their popularity grew so much that in 2006 they decided to open up a real brewery. One year later, Port Brewing was named 2007 Small Brewery of the Year & their brewer Tomme Arthur was named brewer of the year at the Great American Beer Festival. Then only 6 months after that, they won Champion Small Brewery & Brewer at the 2008 World Beer Cup. Lets hope the coming years will bring more rare and delicious beers from Port Brewing to the east coast!

Poured into a chalice glass, Wipeout IPA has a hazy golden amber color with a big fluffy cream colored head. A good amount of sticky lacing is left all over the glass, and there is still a generous amount of froth atop the beer after sitting for some time. The aroma is very hoppy, with lots of resinous pine and citrus fruit. There is a mild sweetness accompanying the bitter aroma, but it's more of sweet mango and pineapple than malt sweetness.

The flavor is of juicy tropical fruit; mango, pineapple, grapefruit, as well as resinous pine. There is a slight bitterness that does more of balancing the sweetness rather than get too astringent. Lingering hop bitterness finishes each sip. The hop flavor in this IPA is honestly... incredible.

With a medium body and mildish carbonation, it's hard not to drink this beer in 1 minute because of how delicious it is. Depending on your tolerance to bitter hoppy beers, you may disagree, but I find this to be refreshing and very drinkable. Not to mention, one of the best examples of a west coast IPA I've ever tried (it's hard to believe this isn't a DIPA). Here's to hoping we have some bottles left when I get back to work tomorrow! Personal 9.5/10 for an IPA 10/10.