Mo' Betta Bretta - The Lost Abbey

metter98

New York

3.5/5  rDev -2.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A: The beer is hazy dark golden yellow in color. It poured with a finger and a half high off white head that quickly died down and left lacing on the surface and a thin collar around the edge of the glass.
S: There are light to moderate aromas of lemon and orange citrus in the nose.
T: Like the smell, the taste has flavors of orange citrus along with hints of sourness and tartness.
M: It feels medium-bodied on the palate and has a moderate amount of carbonation.
O: This beer feels a little heavier (and maltier) compared to other wild ales. It doesn't deliver as much sourness compared to other beers in the style but it still has some interesting properties and is very easy to drink.

Serving type: bottle

10-11-2012 03:52:28 | More by metter98

OStrungT

California

3.65/5  rDev +1.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

This beer pours a cloudy yellow color, with a thick, light yellow head. The fluffy head fades very slowly, leaving a thick lace.

This beer as a Belgain funky aroma. I detect a mild banana presence. Slight clove as well. Some coriander and grains of paradise mix in.

This beer tastes like it smells. Funky, with some banana and spice flavor.

This beer is well carbonated. It leaves a spicy, clovey aftertaste.

This beer would make a decent session beer. The funkyness might become cloying after a while though.

Overall: This beer was one of the first rare beers I learned about in 2004 when I was making my journey into craft beer. I have wanted it since then. Now that I have had it, i feel let down. it want bad, but I put it on a pedistal.

Serving type: bottle

10-10-2012 19:27:48 | More by OStrungT

cpetrone84

Pennsylvania

3.15/5  rDev -12.3%
look: 2 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

pour is a hazy dirty yellow with a thin bubbly head. The nose has nice signs of Brett, light dust and leather with notes of pineapple. However, that is accompanied by stale grain and bread. The taste is less Brett and more stale grain and bread. Same Brett notes just more muted and the nose wasn't bright in Brett. There is also an overly sweet candied lemon in te finish. The body is fairly well carbonated especially for la, it's light and a bit grainy in feel.

Serving type: bottle

10-09-2012 16:44:31 | More by cpetrone84

Jmamay22

New York

3.15/5  rDev -12.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

The beer pours a brilliant burnt orange with ecru head and cloudy haze. The scent is disappointingly muted. I'm hoping as I let it warm some it will improve, but no luck. Faint scent of pear with a yeasty background. I expected more from a wild ale. A little funk or complexity.

The taste also falls short of my hope as well. A bit of hope on the finish with a peppery hope finish, but otherwise a bit listless. The body is on the lighter side of medium. I expected more bang for the buck and from these breweries. I had also anticipated greater complexity seeing this is a wild ale. Altogether not a bad beer, but not great.

Serving type: bottle

10-08-2012 00:41:56 | More by Jmamay22

KYGunner

Kentucky

4/5  rDev +11.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

This poured with a thin carbonated head that wisped away quickly. The color is a yellow around the edges with a cloudy apple cider brown in the middle. The scent is a vivid clove with a sweet citrus note. The texture is smooth and light much like the taste. Smooth floral and citrus flavored yield to a banana nut finish. A fully enjoyable experience.

Serving type: bottle

10-07-2012 23:42:56 | More by KYGunner

dbrauneis

New Jersey

3.58/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

A: Pours a hazy medium straw yellow in color with light amounts of visible carbonation. The beer has a finger tall fizzy white head that reduces to a very thin film that covers the majority of the surface of the beer with a thin ring at the edges of the glass. Minimal to light amounts of lacing are observed.

S: Slight notes of banana + clove with stronger aromas of lemon/orange citrus. Lighter presence of brett sour/funk than I expected.

T: This beer almost tastes like a hefeweizen with some very light amounts of brett added. Light to moderate flavors of banana, clove, and lemon/orange citrus with a very light note of brett sour/funk.

M: Slightly heavier than medium bodied with moderate amounts of carbonation. Light dryness in the finish and slightly prickly from the acidity.

O: Based on the name of this beer, I was expecting a lot more brett sour/funk...so I was a little disappointed in this beer. There is a strange almost hefeweizen like flavor in this beer which was quite unexpected. Not sure I would get this one again.

Serving type: bottle

10-07-2012 21:31:53 | More by dbrauneis

corby112

Pennsylvania

3.38/5  rDev -5.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Pours a hazy golden orange color with lighter banana colored edges and a one finger white foam head that quickly settles into a lasting ring. Visible carbonation bubbling up and sporadic spots of lace left behind.

Aroma is similar to that of a wheat based beer with zesty spice, bread, citrus fruit and pale malt notes. Slightly earthy but the brett presence is weaker than I expected. A little musty and funky but I'm getting more lactic sourdough bread and some subtle sulfur. Reminds me of a tame Berliner weisse.

On the thinner end of medium bodied with a decent brett presence but again, tastes more like a wheat based beer with subtle funk. Crisp and refreshing with some zesty spice followed by bready yeast, citric acidity, light fruit and faint musty funk. Slightly lactic but not very sour or acidic. Peppery spice with some coriander and ginger followed by some banana, bread and strong lemon juice presence. The wild yeast adds subtle farmhouse funk and light tartness in the finish. Refreshing and easy to drink but not all that interesting.

Serving type: bottle

10-04-2012 07:46:34 | More by corby112

bum732

Maryland

3/5  rDev -16.4%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

S: Clean pils malt, slight phenolics, some hay

L: Cloudy, golden yellow, little head

T: Belgian yeastiness up front with a clean maltiness. Medium low spicy bitterness with some phenolics following. Finishes clean with lingering spiciness.

M: Medium low carbonation, medium bodied.

Meh, pretty mediocre. Where is the Brett in this beer? Solid base beer, but little to no Brett aroma and flavor. Disappointing.

Serving type: bottle

10-02-2012 01:24:19 | More by bum732

harrymel

Washington

2.68/5  rDev -25.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 2 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

Bottled May, 2012

Pours golden with a solid quilt of bone white foam that falls to a central dome in a minute. Smells of sweet grain, a saison like yeast quality, some hay, a little grass, some artificial apricot, and a hint of clay. Flavor reminds me mostly of a belgian blonde - with overtly savage yeast. Too belgian for me. Sweet with grain and plenty of yeast - nearly a unibroue intensity here. Not sitting well with me. Some hints of grains of paradise. Medium on full bodied with lively carb and a wet finish. Glad I only grabbed one.

Serving type: bottle

09-27-2012 07:54:44 | More by harrymel

tobelerone

New Jersey

3.53/5  rDev -1.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

375ml bottle, pours a hazy dark gold/orange with a fluffy white head that settles down slowly and some patchy lacing. Nice appearance, mild aroma; getting a lot of Belgian-style yeast notes and peppery spice, almost like a saison; not much brett apparent in the nose at all.

Flavor follows suit pretty closely; maybe I should have stuck this in the cellar for a few years because the brett really hasn’t made much of an impact on this beer after only a few months. Faint, very faint aspects of hay and grass, funk notes are extremely subdued, mostly tastes like a run-of-the-mill Belgian pale, with yeasty spice and pepper, light citrus notes, and a touch of pale, biscuity malt. Low bitterness, dry finish.

Light-bodied, moderate carbonation, decent crispness but slightly watery. A bit forgettable and not the big bretty beer I was hoping for. If you have this one and are thinking about opening it I’d recommend forgetting about it for a while and letting it develop in the bottle.

Serving type: bottle

09-23-2012 14:17:19 | More by tobelerone

brewandbbq

New Hampshire

4/5  rDev +11.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

375ml bottle.

Pours hazy gold after a nice pop of the cork. A half inch head of dense white settled to a solid skim coat on the surface with a few dots of elongated lacing for the duration.

Aromatics lead off with honey-drizzeled pineapple spiked with peppercorns. Shades of cut grass and wheaty biscuits follow through. A bit subdued in the brett department if one is hoping for horsey, barnyard notes.

Light bodied with a creamy, slightly crispy mouthfeel. A bit tacky.

Sweet, bready malt with toasted biscuits and honey start the palate. Pineapple skins, cut grass, cloves, green apples, and pepper-dusted bubblegum run underneath.

Finishes with honey-drizzeled pineapple and grass-rubbed peppercorns.

Tasty beer, but I was hoping for more of a "wild", rustic, and pronounced brett character. It tastes more like a BPA with some brettt added at bottling.

Serving type: bottle

09-22-2012 20:01:47 | More by brewandbbq

Teleweizen2

New Jersey

3.98/5  rDev +10.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A - pours very clear pale yellow. Upon the second pour into my goose island stemmed glass the yeast turns the beer a hazy marigold. Surprising lack of foam just a fingers worth of white head which quickly dissipates.

S - a fairly intense nose with lots of sweet fruit from the Belgian yeast strain. Ripe banana peel and juicy fruit gum are in the forefront while hints of lemon oil and green apples add even more brightness to the aroma. With a crusty bread backbone.

T - sweet doughy and crusty bread flavors up front. Flavors of green apples, banana and hints of lemony acidity enter mid palate. As the beer warms on the tongue there is a touch of earthy hops in the background. Finish is smooth with a bit of lingering sweetness.

M - medium bodied with a smooth, creamy yet slightly grainy texture. High carbonation with tight scrubbing bubbles.

O -  A very well made ale. The brett character is very reserved which is something I would have liked to see more of but I have put a few other bottles aside and am looking forward to seeing how they develop.

Serving type: bottle

09-21-2012 02:16:48 | More by Teleweizen2

dhbiker0889

Colorado

3.65/5  rDev +1.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

A: Kind of a cloudy golden blonde color. A very little bit of head and lacing. Reminds me of a wheat beer.

S: A sweet blend of pineapple and banana. Similar to other Brett beers with a little bit of a wheat characteristic. Has a little bit of a bite at the end.

T: Very mild taste with a little bit of a wheat beer characteristic again. A little bit of citrus and not too much brett characteristic.

M: Normal carbonation with a pretty light body.

O: A very drinkable brett beer but not my favorite. A lot of wheat beer characteristic to this one. A little too light on flavor and the alcohol is very noticeable for only being 6.5%. Probably wouldn't buy again at a 9 dollar price tag.

Serving type: bottle

09-19-2012 01:55:48 | More by dhbiker0889

angrybabboon

Rhode Island

3.2/5  rDev -10.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Cheers to Goblinmunkey7 for sharing this

Appearance: Clear golden orange, pours with a little white head, leaves some nice spots

Smell: Yeasty - straight-up, yet mild Brett funkiness - some clean barnyard, mostly hay - some light tropical notes, like pineapple - lightly sweet, lightly cooked pale malts

Taste: Yeasty pineapples? - lightly tart, mildly funky - more mild than the aroma suggests - some light citrus, pineapples, and other light fruits - lightly spicy with some mild bitterness - perhaps a tad watery - pale malts, lightly sweet

Mouthfeel: Medium body, nicely carbonated, smooth with a clean finish

Overall: Strange, but worth a try

As one would expect, this is similar to its New Belgium counterpart. This is slightly more yeasty. Yet, overall this still has some flaws... It feels oddly unfinished. Tasty, but it lacks complexity.

Serving type: bottle

09-16-2012 21:32:50 | More by angrybabboon

Goblinmunkey7

Massachusetts

3/5  rDev -16.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

Appearance: Pale straw/gold. Head is bright-white bubbly and drops to an almost non-existent cap and collar almost instantly. Almost no carbonation.

Smell: Straight up yeasty funk. Pale malts, grass, hay, and some minor lemon. Damp musty basement. Some backing floral elements. Minor touches of banana and spiciness. Yeasty and a touch earthy. Ripe banana.

Taste: Ripe banana and some mild clove spiciness. Sweet pale malts. Lemon cake. Bright, fresh bready yeast. Earthy and sweet. So much banana. Yeast punches through as the beer warms. Grassy lager-like finish. Pushes something like wheat. Less wild and more wheat and yeast. Less Brett-y than I expected. Very sweet.

Mouthfeel: No carbonation on a smooth barely over light body. Smooth with a lingering spiciness.

Overall: Mo Betta Bretta...a whole lot be better.

Banana and spice but it's nothing super nice. Rather one-dimensional. Sweeter than the New Belgium version, and that hurt it.

Serving type: bottle

09-16-2012 21:31:07 | More by Goblinmunkey7

stakem

Pennsylvania

3.65/5  rDev +1.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Much appreciation goes out to BdubleEdubleRUN for sending me this. I am even more thankful after seeing this on a PA bar menu for 35 bucks. Seriously? What makes a beer get a 5x multiplier in price just for traveling across the country? Anyway...

Poured into a matching Lost Abbey Teku glass (again thanks go to Brett for this) the brew appears a clouded color of gold. Sitting atop is a finger and a half of white head that recedes slowly due to supporting bubbles that rise to the surface. A light swirl revives a finger of yellowish stained meringue. Spotty lace sticks to the glass.

The aroma opens up with some tropical quality. Pineapple and mango are noticed before the onset of some belgian phenolics like clove, pepper, bubblegum and banana. There is some grainy wheat inclusion that gives some freshness to the brew. As the brew warms up and is swirled, some grassy notes come forward with some earth and sulfur.

The taste is surprisingly a conglomeration of hefeweizen, saison and/or belgian blonde. There is an upfront fruit quality like mango, pineapple, peach, pear and apple that blends into some spicy yeast elements like clove, banana and pepper. There is a pretty significant wheat inclusion here that does a decent job transitioning the flavors of fruit to yeast and back. The aftertaste is mildly earthy, grassy and sulfuric.

This is a medium bodied brew with a modest amount of carbonation yet it feels creamy and smooth at times in the feel. For a brew that announces itself as a brett beer, I can see why people get their shit flung up in the air over this and are pissed that it isn't sour or more wild. The overall impression of this beer is something quite similar to a brew I made with brett C, so I would venture a guess that this is what was used here. I found it to be enjoyable in it's own right but really wasn't expecting this to be so similar to an everyday hefeweizen blended with a saison of sorts.

Serving type: bottle

09-13-2012 00:52:16 | More by stakem

Arbitrator

California

2.45/5  rDev -31.8%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 2

Chilled bottle into a glass. Thanks, John!

A: Pours a murky, dirty peach-colored body. Moderate carbonation.

S: Almost no aroma; surprising. What nose there was suggested a Belgian pale ale or saison; some straw, pale malt, pear, maybe some pepper. No brett.

T: No brett in the taste, either. This comes off as a light enkel (think Redemption). Mild citrus, straw, bread, and a light earthiness.

M: Medium-bodied; I was hoping this would be drier and a little more carbed. Truth be told, I was hoping this would be more like Orval, but maybe that's my own fault.

O: I'm never very impressed with Lost Abbey beers. This continues the trend. Although I received this from a trading partner, I did see it in stores around here for $9; pretty disappointing for that price.

Serving type: bottle

09-12-2012 04:37:43 | More by Arbitrator

danedelman

Pennsylvania

3.08/5  rDev -14.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

A-yellow with small head that quickly went away.

S-adjunct and a hint of funk. Almost like a lager smell.

T-I don't get any funk that I smelled and quite honestly, very disappointing. Tastes like a lager too.

M-mdium with low carbonation.

Not impressed at all with this one at all. Sorry.

Serving type: bottle

09-09-2012 16:00:54 | More by danedelman

DoubleJ

California

3.68/5  rDev +2.5%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Once again, good artwork and a good back descriptions sets up this Lost Abbey beee (whispers - and a little help from New Belgium too). From a 375 ml corked and caged bottle, on to the beer:

Pour it, swirl it, get a cloudy and murky yellow orange colored beer with a small head. Retention is fair, and is doesn't really show off with lacing. The aroma does show some of the brett, but the complexity and intendity it usually brings don't seem to be there just yet. The funk is mild, with breaks of leaves and a quick touch of manure.

It's refreshing and very crisp, that's for sure. Very appealing with its mouthfeel, so it's a little bit of a bummer that the taste doesn't meet my high expectations. A little funk rides the wave. A kiss of bubblegum, leaves, and vague spice enter the profile. Its alcohol, listed at 6.3%, does touch and go with a little solvent feel. A soft bubblegum aftertaste lingers.

Good drinking, refreshing, though could use a little time to develop.

Serving type: bottle

09-02-2012 18:05:01 | More by DoubleJ

ThePorterSorter

New York

3.95/5  rDev +10%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

5/23/12, thanks MERC for sharing this
The beer pours a cloudy sunset orange with no head/lacing. The nose has a citrusy orange sweetness and funky Brett undertone. The taste is sweeter than expected with some orange and Brett mixed together. Very similar to a hefe and just as drinkable. It's sweetness helps build the medium body I prefer in a Brett beer, but isn't cloying due to the barnyard funk and notes of citrus. I like this beer and think it's relatively underrated.

Serving type: bottle

08-31-2012 20:06:30 | More by ThePorterSorter

merc7186

New York

3.93/5  rDev +9.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

I had this beer poured from a bottle into a chalice glass.

A: Orange Hue, Passes Some Light, White Head Ring, Mild Lacing

S: Oranges, Pineapple, Brett

T: Oranges, Brett, Pineapple, Mild Peach

M: Average Carbonation, Light to Medium Bodied, Mildly Sweet, Mildly Funky

Overall, a very drinkable brett beer...a great beer for someone trying to get into Brett beers.

Serving type: bottle

08-31-2012 19:59:16 | More by merc7186

BeerForMuscle

New Jersey

3.63/5  rDev +1.1%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Marked "Bottled 5/29/12" on the neck, this beer is pretty fresh.

A - Mildly cloudy golden blonde. Looks like a wheatbeer. A thin layer of carbonation.

S - A mixture of fruity notes, mostly of citrus and pineapple. Tangy aromas akin to a German wheatbeer.

T - The flavor is very light. Some sweet wheat notes, mild citrus. Faint fruit, skin and sweetness. Mineral water and a hint of alcohol.

M - Light bodied for sure, pleasantly carbonated. Highly drinkable body and profile. Much lighter than I had anticipated.

O - Well this beer isn't bad, but from this brewery and this style I had greater expectations and hopes. I love beers wild, tangy, funky etc. I wouldn't include this in any of those categories.

Serving type: bottle

08-30-2012 02:15:41 | More by BeerForMuscle

RblWthACoz

Pennsylvania

3.63/5  rDev +1.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

The nose on this one says nothing at all of a wild ale. It seems very much like a saison or a belgian pale ale; rather ordinary and uninspiring. Flavor is very much along the same lines with a sweet and bready character and a slight earthiness as well. If this were listed as a different style, I wonder if the scores would be much higher. That considered, I am curious how to score it, personally. I think the base beer is pretty good. There are just no wild ale tones to speak of at all.

A nice beer, but as a wild ale, very much a miss considering who is behind this one. A disappointment, unfortunately.

Serving type: bottle

08-29-2012 08:02:41 | More by RblWthACoz

beerandcycling88

Washington

2.58/5  rDev -28.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 4 | overall: 2

On tap at the Collins Pub

A Pours a nice golden yellow with a 2 finger white head.

S A bit of funk with some citrusy lemon.

T For a brett beer there really wasn't a lot of tartness or funk to the flavor and what there was seemed sour in all the wrong ways. There was also a bit of clove and pepper which didn't really work either.

M Very light and easy to drink.

Overall this is a subpar wild ale. There doesn't seem to be much brett funk in either the flavor or nose and what there was just didn't seem to work. I'm glad I got this one on tap instead of paying 14 bucks for the bottle.

Serving type: on-tap

08-25-2012 04:01:19 | More by beerandcycling88

inlimbo77

Delaware

3.58/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

12.7oz bottle
Lost Abbey tulip

A: Pours out a very hazy yellow orange color. Bright and vibrant. Initially about a quarter finger of bright white head. Fades quickly. Ring of white. Some tight carbonation bubbles off bottom of glass.

S: Initially I was getting lots of fruit on the nose: lemon and pineapple. Then I swirled and got the Brett funk. Also getting some Belgian notes of pepper and clove under the Brett.

T: First reaction, this is certainly not funky and Bretty enough for me. I want more. It tastes like a light Belgian blonde ale with some of those yeast characteristics. I get spice and lemon and maybe mild clove. I do get some of that pineapple on the back end. Some fruitiness.

M: It's light bodied and very easy to drink. Carbonation could be higher.

O: B- or maybe lower. Just cost to reward this is low.

Serving type: bottle

08-24-2012 14:07:49 | More by inlimbo77