Witch's Wit - The Lost Abbey

Onenote81

North Carolina

3.53/5  rDev -6.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

750ml corked & caged bottle. My first from Lost Abbey. Poured into a pint glass. Pours a slightly cloudy dark gold with a thick inch and a half white head resting on top. Good retention; fair lace left behind. The nose is sharp with grass, lemon, yeast, mild funk. Pretty pungent.

The mouth is a little on the spritzy side to start out, but mellows as I continue to sip. Mild citrus flavors meld with a green earthy flavor. Light yeast on the back end. This was good, but far short of great. Something about it made me wish I would have split this with some friends rather than try to tackle the big bottle myself. Cool label though.

Serving type: bottle

03-02-2011 18:31:12 | More by Onenote81

champ103

Texas

2.4/5  rDev -36.7%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 1.5 | overall: 2

A: Pours an incredibly murky, yeasty, golden orange color. A one finger bubbly white head forms with pour retention. No lace. Dead and lifeless.
S: Dry, slightly tart apple cider in the nose. Sweet malt as well. The least offensive part of the beer.
T: Cloying sweetness, honey, light apple flavors. Buttery malt. The sweetness is really a problem for me here, with nothing else for any resemblance of balance.
M/D: No body, and no carbonation. Really dead. The lifeless feel and cloying sweetness makes this really hard to drink.

Another let down from Lost Abbey. I have said that a lot lately. Though, IMO this is one of the most over rated breweries I can think of.

Serving type: bottle

02-06-2011 02:03:46 | More by champ103

Tone

Missouri

3.95/5  rDev +4.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Pours a clear, gold color. 3/4 inch head of a white color. Great retention and good lacing. Smells of sweet malt, yeast, wheat, hops, and a hint of spice. Fits the style of a Witbier. Mouth feel is sharp and crisp, with an average carbonation level. Tastes of pale malt, slight sweet malt, wheat, slight yeast, slight hop, hint of citrus (lemon?), and hint of spice (clove?). Overall, good appearance, aroma, body, and blend.

Serving type: bottle

01-11-2011 23:38:13 | More by Tone

scottfrie

California

3.68/5  rDev -2.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

750ml bottle into Mc Chouffe goblet.

A: Pours a slightly hazy light gold with a thin fuzzy white head that slowly faded into a thin bubbly film that left a ton of wispy lace down the glass.
S: Strong notes of coriander, clove and dried orange peel. A touch of fruit as well, maybe apple.
T: Tastes like spiced apple cider. Starts off full of lemon and orange, then the spices and apple take over. The finish is sweet and sticky but doesn't necessarily taste like the honey this is brewed with. Wheat notes are not huge in this one. Aftertaste has a touch of bitterness to it.
M: Carbonation really froths up on the palate, but surprisingly the body is fairly thin. Mouthfeel is pleasant enough though.
D: Very good for the style, and not a bad beer all around. There's something about it that doesn't make me love it though. Hard to pinpoint. Maybe the aftertaste. Darn good though.

Serving type: bottle

12-30-2010 04:14:33 | More by scottfrie

feloniousmonk

Minnesota

2.95/5  rDev -22.2%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

The Lost Abbey Witches Wit, Malt Beverage brewed with honey and spices.

The label art depicts a medieval village, wherein an act of fatal violence is perpetrated against a purported black arts dealer. Florid, over-wrought, heavy-handed label copy goes on and on describing the scene, and only bothers to describe the ale as "a light and refreshing wheat beer", and as "exactly the sort of thing you'd expect to find being passed around the center of town on witch burning day." Whatever the hell that means.

Lightly hazed, pale yellow aroma, very small head, slims to nil in a minute. Bit disappointing.

Aromatics, light spices, minor fruit. Not smelling much like a wit, not feeling the orange or coriander, or the wheat.

Taste: Light bodied and flavorless. Watery. Little mouthfeel or texture.
Extremely minor spice, and fleeting wheat character. A bit of celery, with a drizzle of lemon. No reason to call it a wit, if it ain't. Or is this a joke? Did I get a bad bottle, or was this their intention?

This is what they'd be drinking when they murder on witch suspicion? Does that imply that witch burners have terrible taste? I've got half a mind about witch burning image was a desperate ditch at drumming up sales on this loser.

blah!

Serving type: bottle

12-15-2010 06:39:27 | More by feloniousmonk

stakem

Pennsylvania

3.85/5  rDev +1.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Review from notes taken on 11/23/10.

Appears a lightly hazed straw yellow color with constantly rising bubbles of carbonation. 2 fingers of creamy white head hold strong and long supported by the rising bubbles. A solid amount of lace clings to the glass.

The aroma is lemon filled with other fruity suggestions and is lightly spicy. A bit earthy with a slight sulfur note. Overall the nose is dominated by lemon that seems too bold to be natural.

The taste is lemony and lightly fruity, spiced, yeasty and the grain comes through tasting like wheat. Some estery alcohol is evident. The lemon flavor seems exaggerated with an artifical taste.

This is a light bodied brew with a high level of carbonation. The lemon aspect is a bit oily and clingy inside the mouth that lasts. This would make for an excellent summertime brew.

Serving type: bottle

12-13-2010 18:48:44 | More by stakem

Gobzilla

California

4/5  rDev +5.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured a hazy pale yellow with a finger worth of head and left some good lacing sticking to the glass. The aroma was pretty big on citrus and yeast character but also had bready spice honey notes to add to the nose. The taste was also pretty citrusy but the spice was a little bit more mellow on the palate alongside. Some yeasty, bready, and honey like accents. The brew was medium in body with a good amount of carbonation which had a sweet, citrusy, wheaty, and slight crisp finish. It drank very good and was really refreashing while grubbing down on some pizza. Witches wit is a pretty solid wit beer and has been tasty the few times I've tried it.

Serving type: bottle

11-21-2010 19:37:31 | More by Gobzilla

Chaney

District of Columbia

4.1/5  rDev +8.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

My buddy Blake brought this one back for me from Philly (along with the entire LA lineup) last week. Blake, as soon as you join BA (or at let me know your BA name), I'll let the whole community know what an awesome dude you are!

A: Poured, a VERY cloudy apricot orange color, with a one finger head, and moderate carbonation. Yep, I could have pegged it as a Witbier in a lineup!

S: Overripe citrus fruit (actually in a good way), honey, with funky yeastiness, and a little more than a twist of lemon.

T: Ahhh.... very refreshing.... which I feel is the #1 goal of this type of brew. It has a nice full and fruity body. This brew narrowly escapes what I feel is the trap many Witbiers fall into: they have kind of a vomit, or stomach acid kind of taste. Thankfully, this brew is definitely more on the thirst-quenching, alkaline side.

M: The carbonation is bubbly and refreshing, and since the ABV is extremely low, this allowed the fruit, honey, and spices to fill out the palate. They do that very nicely!

D: This was sessionable for sure at 4.8% ABV. The Lost Abbey continues to impress me.

Serving type: bottle

11-19-2010 04:31:52 | More by Chaney

kingcrowing

Vermont

3.5/5  rDev -7.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 3.5

750ml corked & cages bottle poured into a Piraat tulip.

Pours a hazy light yellow color with a super thin white head. Nose is bready, yeasty an fruity. Lemon zest and citrus notes.

Taste is bready and yeasty, not really and fruity at all. Mouthfel is thick and rich, overall a decent beer that's easy drinking.

Serving type: bottle

11-13-2010 20:43:58 | More by kingcrowing

beagle75

Iowa

4.33/5  rDev +14.2%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Poured from a 750 ml bottle into a tulip glass.

A: Very hazy, medium golden color with over one finger of diminishing white foam head. No lacing remains on the glass. Specks of rusty brown sediment are visible at the bottom of the glass.

S: Prominently featured in the smell are wheat and yeast, also joined by bright lemon citrus and faint banana.

T: Begins with bright, acidic grain, followed by lemon and lime citrus and cloves emerging in the middle. Wheat begins to blanket the palate late. Dryness prevails throughout this beer's flavor profile, becoming particularly evident in the crisp, but slightly astringent, finish.

M: Medium viscosity, soft and creamy on the palate, with moderate carbonation.

D: This beer represents a very strong effort to capture an idealized Belgian-style wit--hardly unique nor extreme, but classic. In fact, it reminds of one of the greats of the style--St. Bernardus wit--as much as any other bottled American wit (and blows away those few other west coast renditions that actually make it into the bottle). Such a comparison is not given here lightly; while it is remarkable that this beer is a San Diego rendition of the style, no handicap is necessary to compare it to the best around.

Serving type: bottle

10-27-2010 05:04:10 | More by beagle75

tigg924

Massachusetts

3.68/5  rDev -2.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Appearance: 1/3 inch head, hazy, caution light yellow in color, high carbonation

Smell: funk, hay, clove, and wheat

Taste: lemon, hay, wheat, and citrus

Mouthfeel: sweet with some funk, light bodied with high carbonation.

Drinkability: An above average witbier that at times takes on saison characteristics. I appreciate the multiple layers in this beer. That being said, I am not sure I would fork over the high price to get another.

Serving type: bottle

10-18-2010 14:40:11 | More by tigg924

Zorro

California

3.55/5  rDev -6.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

Cloudy gold colored beer with a small white colored head.

Smell is spicy with a strong coriander scent. Little bit of bread and vanilla in the scent. Little bit of ginger and wild flowers in the scent.

Starts out neutral with a bit of bitter in the finish. Mildly flavored. Not a lot of complexity here.

Mouthfeel is good.

Drinkability is just OK. This would be an OK beer at $7 a six pack but at $9 for a 750 ML bottle I'm feeling cheated.

Serving type: bottle

10-11-2010 02:21:33 | More by Zorro

jrallen34

Illinois

3.73/5  rDev -1.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

750ml bottle into a De Stuise glass...A darker than average with, hazy, not the nice neon color I like, decent white head, a little light and whispy, ok retention but not great lacing...Super strong aroma, too strong burns the nose hairs, coriander, wheat, lots of alcohol...The taste is thankfully much lighter, loses the bite and the alcohol, leaves what you should get from a wit, a light refreshing yet flavoful beer. Sweet to start, wheat, a little honey, coriander, oranges, a little ginger....Feel is nice to start but a very light and watery finish...Easy to drink.

A wit that's all over the place, but after a rough start enjoyable enough to barely recommend.

Serving type: bottle

09-17-2010 23:32:10 | More by jrallen34

tedsox31

Illinois

4.15/5  rDev +9.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Poured from a 750 ml into a tulip glass. The color is pale golden/orange and a small white head that quickly dissipates. Some lacing.

The smell is very nice. There is a strong presence of citrus, both from fruit and hop additions. Some coriander is also evident.

The taste follows the aroma, with citrus very strongly up front and coriander in the middle-back. The end is somewhat wheaty in character.

The mouthfeel is carbonated and dry. Very refreshing.

A very drinkable beer with more depth than your typical wit. I would go back to this beer again and again.

Serving type: bottle

08-29-2010 21:55:29 | More by tedsox31

stimulus

New Jersey

3.15/5  rDev -16.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

750 mL bottle, corked and caged.

A: Pours a pale gold with a light white head, but no yeast appears to be present.
S: Some light spices, but not your typical wit.
T: Very sweet, sugar and honey appear before the light spice, but the honey/sugar dominate the palate.
M: Light bodied and well carbonated.
D: Just a bit too sweet to drink more than one glass. Honey instead of orange peel and coriander doesn't appeal to me that much.

Serving type: bottle

08-05-2010 13:47:43 | More by stimulus

Huhzubendah

District of Columbia

4/5  rDev +5.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A: Hazy yellow, straw hues with moderately low levels of head and lacing.

S: Wheat, citrus, spices.

T: Decent beer, though slightly odd. The unconventional ingredients Lost Abbey use in brewing this witbier give it a distinctive flavor. This is a very complex beer, especially considering the style and low alcohol.

M: A bit thin. Decent feel.

D: An unusual and cool beer unlike the other witbiers I have had. One small serving was plenty for me. Worth a try.

Serving type: bottle

05-09-2010 04:47:17 | More by Huhzubendah

WesWes

New York

3.6/5  rDev -5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

The beer pours a nice gold color with a thick frothy white head that slowly fades to lacing. The aroma is good. It has a light pale and wheat malt scent along with a weak coriander and orange peel spicing. It has a thin citrus feel with a light to mild yeast fruitiness. The taste is decent. It has a rather bland pale and wheat malt flavor. The spicing is weak as is the yeast character. It's watery and not very complex. The mouthfeel is above average. It's a low bodied beer with with adequate carbonation. This is probably the weakest offering from Lost Abbey. It's an easy drinker, but a forgettable wit.

Serving type: bottle

03-29-2010 20:13:40 | More by WesWes

Rayek

Colorado

3.6/5  rDev -5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Poured into a tulip.

A: My bottle didn't have much of a pop to it when it opened. As such, a strong pour only netted a small foamy head that quickly retreated to a thin ring. The bright peach color had a nice swirling cloud of yeast. A nice amount of lace was left in the beer's wake.

S: Pretty mild. There's a lot of orange at work, plus some lemon and a light sourdough twang.

T: Tart orange rind and lemon zest do most of the work here. A sourdough biscuit flavor has nice toasted quality to it. Bitterness is extremely mild and has just enough of a spicy bite to counterbalance the other flavors. Finishes very tart, with a pronounced yeastiness.

M: The light body is slightly doughy. The carbonation feels low for the style.

D: The low ABV helps this beer go down quick. Very easy to session with. The flavor lacks the traditional Wit spiciness, but is still quite pleasant. A nice pickup.

Serving type: bottle

02-25-2010 01:49:06 | More by Rayek

srandycarter

California

3.9/5  rDev +2.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A - Pours murky light honey, stark white head. Leaves fast to ring.

S - Not much there. A little barn fun, but light. A little straw.

T - Definite straw, light malt, nice clean taste.

M - Light bodied, very lager type mouthfeel, good balance and fair coating.

D - Super easy to drink.

Serving type: bottle

02-05-2010 05:06:20 | More by srandycarter

ClassicBrad

Pennsylvania

4.03/5  rDev +6.3%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Poured this 750ml, corked bottle into my DFH signature glass a pale, cloudy, straw yellow. Head fizzled away like soda but left a ring of lace around the glass.

Nose is mostly of pale wheat malt. Not a lot going on with the smell.

Such a crisp and refreshing beer; lacks your traditional coriander spice and orange zest, but makes up with an original burst of wheat malt and a strong suggestions of honey with hints of what I can only describe as dark berry fruit.

Carbonation is vigorous and makes the beer a thirst quenching experience.

Drinkability is average for a beer under 5%, but still feel like I should give it props for being so darn refreshing!

Serving type: bottle

01-27-2010 02:41:49 | More by ClassicBrad

corby112

Pennsylvania

3.85/5  rDev +1.6%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours a clear golden yellow color with a one finger creamy white head that quickly fades into a thin ring. Not much in the way of lacing.

Bready yeast aroma with crisp light fruit, citrus notes and subtle spice. Hints of apple and lemon peel with some spicy pepper and lemon zest as well as a bit of lemon zest.

Flavor is very similar to the aroma in that it has a nice balance of bready yeast, citrus flavor and subtle spice. The peppery zesty spice is prominent up front with lots of clove and corriander. Light crsip citrus fruit, especially lemon and orange peel with a touch of honey that adds a nice sweet element. This helps balance the spiceiness and subtle bitterness from the hops. Pretty quaffable with a slightly dry finish.

Serving type: bottle

12-06-2009 16:39:48 | More by corby112

bulletrain76

California

3.88/5  rDev +2.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Bottle at the brewery. Hazy blonde with a big white head. Floral yeasty spice and orange/grapefruit aroma. Dry flavor with light wheat and a slightly tart, herbal finish. Light bodied and spritzy. Nor really a traditional wit, but pretty tasty and drinkable.

Serving type: bottle

11-12-2009 05:34:06 | More by bulletrain76

Mora2000

Texas

3.78/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours a glowing, hazy golden color with a small, white head. Smells like you expect a Belgian wit to smell, with spices and malt being the predominant flavor. Taste is corriander and orange, with a finish of lemon. I don't detect any honey in the aroma or flavor even though the bottle says it contains honey. A very drinkable beer and I could drink several of them, but not the best beer of this style I have ever had.

Serving type: bottle

10-21-2009 03:00:01 | More by Mora2000

katan

Colorado

4.05/5  rDev +6.9%
look: 5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

750 mil into a goblet

A - Pours a light golden golden color - very effervescent looking. Not much for head formation, only a light film remains. Not at all hazed like I would expect a wit to be, but this may be a symptom of not dredging up the yeast sediment.

S - A light yeast-like bready scent leads the way, with only the most subtle honey backdrop. No hopping, or any other off-notes present.

T - Starts off with a light malt sweetness that is immediately accompanies by a dry honey flavor. Mid-stream shows only the lightest hint of bittering, no hops. Yeast notes, as well as coriander and orange peel are difficult to find. Finishes with a direct sour-acidic note, indicating some wild yeast introduction. Aftertaste is clean.

M - Moderate to light in body. Comes across dry. Carbonation bite is very light. Clean finish, no after taste or clinging sensations.

D - Very drinkable beer. ABV is easy drinking. Flavors are smooth and well integrated. Sourness is the only portion of this beer which may get just a little bit bothersome.

I always struggle with knowing for sure if the Port/Abbey beers live up to the reputation of their brewer. In this case, I'm very pleased with the results.

Serving type: bottle

08-08-2009 03:19:02 | More by katan

nomomentwasted

Oregon

3.93/5  rDev +3.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Had this today out a bottle today that I got on sale from Freddy out at Beverages 4 Less. $6.99's a pretty good deal on any Lost Abbey, and I drank it with good friend and fellow BA @tahlstro. Poured into a Hefeweizen glass.

Appearance: Beautiful, just like I'd want a Witbier to look. Unfiltered, opaque, and golden-yellow, with a nice little bit of head and beautiful lacing. Wished for just a little more head as it was relatively minimal, but other than that it was spot-on.

Smell: Light with some spiciness, with sweet honey and clove and a bit of lemon to it. Refreshing and light, but a little less than I was expecting.

Taste: Clean, sweet, and a little clove to the front-end, with a slight bit of sourness on the finish. The honey and wheat are definitely the two main ones here, and I traced a bit of raisin to it as well. Definitely not super-complex or multi-layered, but tasty and super refreshing on this hot San Diego night.

Mouthfeel: Crisp but not too dry, with a nice coating and simple aftertaste of slight sourness.

Drinkability: For the ABV it's actually a bit slower than I'd imagine, but still very quaffable in this summer heat. Served this relatively cool too and was very refreshed. 10 bucks would be steep for this, but on sale it was a great bottle to add to the collection and a very refreshing summer Wit.

Serving type: bottle

07-22-2009 05:19:31 | More by nomomentwasted