Mayan Apocalypse Judgment Day - The Lost Abbey

TempeBeerMan

Arizona

4.4/5  rDev +19.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4

Poured from a growler into a tulip glass.

A - Pours an almost opaque dark brown lightening to ruby around the edges. One finger khaki colored head. Leaves some lacing, but it doesnt stick.

S - Nice healthy aroma of raisin/prune, dark chocolate, and spice (getting both cinnamon and chile). A hint of Belgian yeast funk. Smells really complex and inviting.

T - Taste follows the nose pretty well, with raisin, prune, date, and fig leading the charge. Big cinnamon and white pepper hit in the mid-palate. Chiles carry the finish, with the chile taste being a hot "green" chile (tastes like poblano or hatch). Chile heat builds as you sip. Sublte Begian yeasts play a supporting role. Hint of sweet dark chocolate throughout. Complex and challenging. Also, delicious!

M - Medium body, with velvety spot-on "high side of medium" carbonation. Slightly drying, which works well with the sweet tastes because honestly a syrupy finish would have ruined it.

O - I really dug this, and found it to be WAY better than the standard Judgement Day. The spice blend really complements the base beer perfectly. Crap, I've fallen in love with a one-off beer. How am I going to get more when it's gone? :)

Serving type: growler

01-06-2013 22:11:14 | More by TempeBeerMan

Flightoficarus

Washington

4.33/5  rDev +18%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

A - Uncorking the bottle leads to a loud POP! Luckily, it didn't lead to a mess. Pours an opaque black hue, with a persisting single-finger tan head. Lacing is excellent.

S - Smell is of dates, figs, plus/other dark fruits, Belgian yeast/candi sugar, and spices (cinnamon is most noticeable).

T - Taste is of a thick, malt-forward profile. Lots of complex dark fruit flavors, with hints of cocoa. Aggressive yeast and candi sugar is present. The spices are most noticeable in the finish, with the cinnamon being most dominant, and the chiles offering a unique flavor, without making it too hot or spicy. Very nice twist on this style!

M - Full bodied beer, with slightly above average carbonation for the style. This is a sipper for sure, but appropriately so with the flavors going on here.

O - I seem to like this one more than some of the others on here. Maybe it's been too long since I've had a good BSDA, or maybe I'm so hooked on spicy food that the slight kick in this beer makes me love it more. Either way, this was obviously a limited release we will probably not see again. So - I will savor every last sip of this one, and try to find the regular Judgement Day in the near future! But if you come across this version, don't pass it up.

Serving type: bottle

01-12-2013 12:09:51 | More by Flightoficarus

notchucknorris

California

4.28/5  rDev +16.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

A: Pours a deep brown color that looks almost black in the glass. A nice one finger tan head leaves tracks of lace down the glass.

S: Really great smell. Mexican chocolate, powdery serrano chiles, cinnamon, hints of plum, fig and caramel. I'm really digging this one.

T: A big malty hit right off the bat that slowly leads into some faint dark fruit, burnt raisin, cinnamon bread and some earthy Belgian yeast. Finish brings a bit of dryness with a creeping chili presence that leaves just a trace of heat. If the tamarind is in there, it's in the hint of sweetness that comes on the finish. I wasn't a huge fan of the regular Judgment Day, but this one is really tasty.

Serving type: bottle

12-20-2012 23:05:01 | More by notchucknorris

dogfishandi

New York

4.19/5  rDev +14.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Thanks to Grant35 for the bottle.

12.7 oz. cork and caged bottle at fridge temp poured into a snifter. "Best After 10/21/12" stamped on the neck of the bottle.

Pours out a very dark ruby color, almost appears black. A small light tan colored head that keeps about a 1/4 inch the whole glass, decent head retention, just a small spot or two of lace. Just a little bit of sediment settles at the bottom of the glass after awhile.

Not a huge aroma when compared to the taste. Lots of plum like dark fruits, phenoly Belgian yeast esters, a bit raisin and grape.

Lots of complex flavors. Every kind of dark fruit, mainly plum, raisins, grapes and figs. Phenoly Belgian yeast, hints of a cinnamon like spice, dark candied sugar syrup, molasses, a bit on the sweet side.

Medium to almost heavy in body with a slightly sticky sweet feel with just a bit of alcohol heat.

A really nice Belgian dark, one of the better ones I've had in awhile. You can't really detect any of the extras put into this beer (chilies, cinnamon, raisin, tamarind, etc.) but I'm sure they definatly add to the beer as I've never had the base Judgement Day. A worthy brew that I'd drink again if it wasn't so hard for me to get. I've yet to have a bad beer from Lost Abbey.

Serving type: bottle

02-08-2013 23:05:53 | More by dogfishandi

DeanMoriarty

California

4.11/5  rDev +12%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

The wife got me a 12.7 OZ bottle from Olive Tree Market to celebrate the end of the Mayan calendar - I finally got around to crackin it - poured into a Plan Nine Alehouse stemmed tulip.

A: Pours dark as sh*t - like a stout with a fatty tan head that sticks around a while leaving good amounts of lacing from start to finish.

S: Spicy roasted malt - black pepper, ginger - dark chocolate, cherry and plum - earthy grass and a hint of booze.

T: On point with the nose - dark chocolate is dominant with hints of espresso and red chili.

M: Barely medium-bodied ale with vigorous carbonation...wish it was a bit more "meaty" - seems a bit watery for the style...although an extremely easy drinker for a 10.5 % ABV.

Overall tasty ale and a clever in regards to the Mayan theme with the Mexican chocolate flavor that is dominant and hides the high ABV. Wish it had a bit more body to it. This would be outstanding if aged a bit in a barrel. No complaints though! Would definitely revisit.

Serving type: bottle

01-27-2013 06:09:40 | More by DeanMoriarty

UCLABrewN84

California

4.1/5  rDev +11.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

On tap at Boneyard Bistro in Sherman Oaks, CA.

Pours a murky dark brown with a foamy dark khaki head that settles to a film on top of the beer. Foamy swaths of lace form around the glass on the drink down. Smell is of malt, brown sugar, dark fruits, cinnamon, and spices. Taste is much the same with a cinnamon and slight chile flavor on the finish. There is a mild amount of spice and roasty bitterness on the palate with each sip. This beer has a lower level of carbonation with a slightly crisp mouthfeel. Overall, this is a good beer with a great smell and tasty flavors.

Serving type: on-tap

01-21-2013 05:23:23 | More by UCLABrewN84

StonedTrippin

Colorado

4.09/5  rDev +11.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

judgment day brewed with chilies, cinnamon, and tamarind for the 12-21-12 mayan calendar thing. looks like we made it. pours chalky dark brown color with just patchy tan foam spots throughout, no real head. the nose is cinnamon, dark malt, cocoa powder, and something oddly citrusy, and the flavor is identical, just add a touch of chili pepper without any head, and some smokiness. turns out the citrus aroma is coming from the tamarind, a bitter tree pod fruit i associated with india more than the mayans, but ya learn something new every day. its got a semisweet acidic bitterness to it, and a texture like a gummyworm, and all of those elements manifest themselves in the taste of this brew, much to my liking. the finish is dry and not too sweet, which surprises me. there is a powdery sort of dryness though, which i think hurts the feel a little bit. mellow carbonation is adequate, and the body is quite full. the alcohol is hidden well, and would not have placed this one at 10.5%. overall a cool beer, and an affordable on by lost abbey standards. we'll see what they come up with for the next apocalypse.

Serving type: bottle

02-02-2013 21:03:03 | More by StonedTrippin

HopHead84

California

4.05/5  rDev +10.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

12/08/2012

On tap at Strong Ale.

A: Deep brown with a reddish tinge and a mountainous beige head. Lacing is scattered.

S: Pronounced raisin, plum, and date with rich bread-like notes. Light cinnamon presence and just a touch of chili pepper. There's a little chocolate as well. Rich malt and aromatic esters. Smells great.

T: Rich bready malt with strong Belgian yeast character. Firm dark fruit presence, reminiscent of raisin and grape. A dash of cinnamon and chili. There's some date in there as well. Rich malty finish.

M: Full body with upper medium to lower high draft carbonation. Mouthfeel is smooth and sticky with substantial warming.

Overall: A nice variation on Judgment Day. The chili and cinnamon are light but pleasant additions.

Serving type: on-tap

12-10-2012 05:21:37 | More by HopHead84

PeterIngemi

Massachusetts

4/5  rDev +9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured from a 12.7 oz bottle into a Firestone walker tulip.

A: pours a deep cola brown with two finger of cola looking browned head, aggressive carbonation bu. les can be seen rushing up the sides of the glass and there is audible carbonation crackling if you hold the beer close enough... Seriously reminds me of a glass of coke.... Not much lacing to speak of.

S: I get raisins and darkfruit with a very faint hint of cinnamon along with some Belgian yeast aromas. A little bit of chilie pepper in there as well bit you have to really look for it.

T: a faint hint of chocolate along with some earthy vegativness from the peppers are what i pick up on up front, followed by some light raisin and dark fruit, the earthy Belgian yeast character seems to come in on the finish with some cinnamon notes and a very faint chile bite on the end. All the flavors work very well together here, alot of subtle complexity going on.

M: medium body with a bit of creamyness to it, very drinkable considering the abv, nice moderate carbonation, which kinda suprised me, from the sound and appearance I expected it to be very aggressive. Dry on the finish and a faint touch of heat, very faint, becomes noticeable towards the end of the glass.

O: this was pretty solid, I like that the spices and chili peppers didn't overhelm the brew, but were instead used to compliment it. I enjoyed this one And would not hesitate to drink it again in the future... Tasty.

Serving type: bottle

12-22-2012 04:44:09 | More by PeterIngemi

johnmichaelsen

Oregon

4/5  rDev +9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

On tap at the Eastside club tavern today.

The beer pours a somewhat murky dark brown color with very good head retention and light lacing. The nose is exotic, as I pick up considerable fig, dates, chocolate, light vanilla and a hint of coffee. The flavor profile replicates the nose in this fairly sweet beer, and the melange of flavor is pretty interesting and impressive. Mouthfeel is medium bodied, with a fairly long, sweet, spice infused finish. Alcohol is well integrated into the flavor profile, and the beer is not at all heavy or tiring on the palate.

A nice enough beer, though I'm not sure it's some I need to try again any time soon.

Serving type: on-tap

12-24-2012 04:28:01 | More by johnmichaelsen

LiquidAmber

Washington

3.95/5  rDev +7.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Poured into a Lost Abbey pint glass. Pours dark, hazy, ruddy brown with a massive half glasss light brown head with good retention and massive lacing. Aroma of Belgian yeast and spicing with cinnamon, pepper and a hint of chocolate. Flavor is earthy dark dried fruit, roasted malt, Belgian yeast, cinnamon, licorice and brown sugar. Finishes with dark malt, dried fruit and a slight bite from chili peppers. Medium bodied. A nice off beat dark ale with plenty of interesting flavors, well integrated.

Serving type: bottle

12-23-2012 04:08:32 | More by LiquidAmber

Mattyb79

Virginia

3.95/5  rDev +7.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

Poured from a 375 ml cork and caged bottle into a tulip.

Appearance: Made quite a pop when the cork came out of this one. Huge amount of carbonation requiring multiple rests to get the entire contents into my tulip. Thick tan head on top of a very dark muddy brown liquid looks amazing in the glass.

Smell: First thing I get is cinnamon, and a lot of it. Going back for a second sniff, I get a bit of the malt sweetness from the base quad and just a touch of the peppers. As the beer warms, the sweet candy sugar smell comes through over the spices a bit more.

Taste: Peppery spices are the first thing noticed on the tip of the tongue, but that quickly gives way to the sweet caramel malt flavors of the quad. I get some dark fruit flavors in the middle of the tongue. the beer finishes dry, with the spices (not sure if it is pepper or pure cinnamon) coming back and leaving a tingle on the back of the tongue.

Mouthfeel: Feels a bit strange in the mouth with the huge mix of spices and the abundance of carbonation. A little thin for what I would expect from such a big beer.

Overall: I'm not as impressed with this as I'd hoped to be, but it was by no means a let down. I think this could have been a real winner, but it seems they went a little overboard on the spices which drowned out the base beer a little too much.

Serving type: bottle

05-05-2013 00:48:11 | More by Mattyb79

GarthDanielson

New Hampshire

3.94/5  rDev +7.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

Poured on-tap and served in a tulip, the beer is a dark brown coloring with ruby highlights and a frothy, light, filmy, clingy, light tan head. Nose of earth and tannins, grapes, cherries, date and fig, a touch of roast, and a touch of booze. Flavors of bold, rich date and fig sweetness, with boozey overtones throughout. Light bodied with effervescent carbonation. Roastiness on the tongue with more of the rich flavors leading into a boozey, oaky, earthy aftertaste. Very light, slightly filmy finish, despite all of the heaviness throughout. Very tasty, and this one is a big, chewy sipper. Glad I was able to get my hands on this one.

Serving type: on-tap

02-01-2013 02:31:42 | More by GarthDanielson

rudzud

Massachusetts

3.93/5  rDev +7.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Picked up one of these while at Julio's. Well, got two actually.

A - Poured into my Duvel tulip a nice deep, dark cola hue with a nice thin one finger khaki head that faded away quickly to leave a very thin wisp of a halo. No real lacing to speak of here.

S - Aromas of chocolate, lots and lots of raisins, slight faint spice (peppers), and some booze. I do get that faint rootbeer aroma as well that someone else mentioned.

T - Taste is pretty good. Raisins, chocolate, faint peppery spice, and cinnamon. Not nearly as sweet as I would have thought it would be. The pepper spice offsets the alcohol nicely as well.

M - Wow! Who would have guessed a Lost Abby beer to have solid carbonation?! Very, very nicely carbonated here. Good sharpness here, brightly carbonated. Well done. Easily the high point of this beer for me.

O - Overall, I thought this was quite the enjoyable beer. not sure if it was a huge step up from the base beer, but the raisins, cinnamon, and spice mix things up quite nicely. Enjoyed it greatly.

Serving type: bottle

12-27-2012 21:55:41 | More by rudzud

katan

Colorado

3.88/5  rDev +5.7%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

500 ml into a goblet

A- Brown with amber highlights. Super huge head formation, mocha in color. Looks to be very thick.

S - Dark fruits, cherries, somewhat earthy. Hops are fairly well hidden. Belgian yeast strain sneaks in there somewhere, some esters.

T - Starts off fruity, sweet, with a backdrop of some spices like cinnamon. Mid-stream the belgian esters take over, along with a more grainy undertone. Finishes a bit hot, with more dark fruits, grapes, almost wine like.

M - Full bodied, moderate carbonation. Seems to be well carbonated but just doesn't hold up the heft. Some alcohol warmth and some retained stickiness.

O/D - An interesting beer that doesn't neccesarily distinguish itself in any one way. Good belgian strong ale, although it could hide its booziness a little bit better. Certainly a slow sipper in both terms of ABV and how filling it is.

Serving type: bottle

02-09-2013 19:47:29 | More by katan

portia99

Massachusetts

3.86/5  rDev +5.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

375ml C&C bottle poured into a Lost Abbey stemmed glass.

A - Certainly no lack of carbonation here...a slow and careful pour yields a foamy explosion of tan colored head that rapidly fills the glass and threatens to overflow its confines. After a lengthy pour requiring several stages and intermediate rests, a body of extremely dark brown settles in the glass with a massive, rocky, tan head that just won't quit. Requires a bit of patience, but the end result is a truly beautiful beer in the glass.

S - Spicy with cinnamon taking center stage, Belgian yeasty spiciness too with some cloves, chile pepper that shows subtlely.

T - Peppers make a stronger statement in the flavor. Pepper flavor with some warmth up front. Sweet malt, caramelly sugar in character. Cinnamon spiciness. Bittering elements balance things very well, giving a bit of a dry impression on the finish.

M - The maltiness of the base quad comes thru, but is masked by the peppers and the spices. Overall, there is a dryness to this beer with the peppers taming the malty sugars. Body is medium full with an assertive carbonation. A bit of alcohol warmth comes thru past the peppers.

O - Interesting interpretation of the style Peppers and spices really balance and/or cover up the sweetness of the malts in the base beer. Makes this a little more drinkable...although I think I'm gonna regret this one in the morning...or more likely in the middle of the night - heartburn seems inevitable.

Serving type: bottle

03-29-2013 23:11:56 | More by portia99

Halcyondays

California

3.85/5  rDev +4.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

12.7 oz. bottle,

A: Pours an opaque black with a somewhat fizzy off-white head. Some good thick lace, solid head retention.

S: Notes of orange peel and citrus, some nice raisin character I'm assuming from the quad base. Soft undercurrent of cinnamon as well.

T: Lots of cinnamon and dark malt, almost a Belgian Christmas beer feel. Christmas cookie, slight hint of chile, like a chile chocolate mix (Dagoba Xocolatl), there is a nice spice on the back end. Good mix of flavours, not going crazy, but a real nice change from some of the beers I've been drinking lately, I like the complexity.

M: Full-bodied with a frothy carbonation, crisp biting feel at the end,bit of cloying sugar doesn't help it, but that should go away with time.

O: Really a completely different beer from regular Judgment Day, the spices/adjuncts really make their presence felt. The price is still pretty good, so fans of Mexican chocolate especially should try to find a bottle.

Serving type: bottle

12-24-2012 05:08:27 | More by Halcyondays

HuskyinPDX

Washington

3.83/5  rDev +4.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Bottle opened on 12.23.12

A - Pours a dark cola brown with a foamy two inch light brown head.

S - Roasted malt, coffee, slight chile.

T - Roasted malt, subtle coffee with a spce kick - cinnamin, chile finish.

D - Good carbonation with a heavy body and a spice finish.

O - Spices added to the Judgement Day, ok, a subtle chile tingle at the end.

Serving type: bottle

12-24-2012 07:38:05 | More by HuskyinPDX

jlindros

Massachusetts

3.79/5  rDev +3.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75

With the impending end of the world imperial blizzard, I might as well crack the apocalypse beer.

Pours a big fizzy fluffy 2 finger slight brown colored head fades at a med pace with some foamy lacing, super dark beer with very faint hints of ruby light barely finding a way through, pretty much the color I expect the sky to be at the apocalypse.

Nose is a big Belgian dark beer, lots of booze at first, with more Belgian esters and phenols galore, followed quickly by fruits, dark fruits with booze soaked raisins, hint of fig paste, some brown sugar and toasty brown malts, English like biscuit malts, chewy like, little caramel and molasses, faint hint of cocoa dust. There is also an interesting herbal hop aroma, grassy earthy herbal like and with the booze and phenols slightly vegetal perhaps.

Taste starts with the herbal earthy flavors, slight vegetal like but not much, which blends into the phenols again, plenty of phenols and esters, booze is fairly strong and slightly fuesel. Bitterness is there with those herbal grassy hops, U.K. style, and that leads to light biscuit flavors, chewy toasty brown malts, and into molasses, and syrupy sweetness, fairly sweet, brown sugar, toffee, caramel, faint cocoa powder. Then fruits, brandy soaked raisins, fig paste, and faint baking spices. It's fairly over carbonated too, so it's harder to swish around the mouth and get all the complex flavors. Finish is sticky sweet, little booze and some phenols lingering, as well as more earthy grassy hops, little herbal, semi bitter, more of the brandy soaked raisins and fig fruits, and plenty of dark brown malts.

Mouth is med to fuller bodied, way too much carbonation, and plenty of warming tingly booze.

Overall not bad, but not what I was expecting. Aside from the over carbonation, I think a couple years of sitting would really benefit this, except I would expect it to be a gusher at that point with the already huge carbonation level. Also booze is a bit high although it is a 10.5% beer. The dark fruits, faint spices and sweet flavors, malts, etc, are quite nice though, so it has potential if it's tweaked a little.

Serving type: bottle

02-08-2013 01:17:40 | More by jlindros

tectactoe

Michigan

3.73/5  rDev +1.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

Thanks to Benny for bringing this one to the tasting. Pours dark brown with some deep, ruby-red along the edges, topped off with a light-tan colored head that settles quickly and doesn't leave much behind. This one's a bit tart on the nose and pretty sweet otherwise, full of deeper fruits, raisins, plums, and black cherries. Light caramel and bready sweetness from the malts, as well as a bit of spice - expected from a Belgian style ale. The nose leaves a bit to be desired; this one is labeled as a BSDA, so naturally I'm expected a super-huge and complex aromatic profile - perhaps I've come to expect to much. But this one seems a bit lacking and not as up-front, robust, and/or complex as it could be.

Light, sweet caramel malts lay the base for this brew, along with some mild molasses and maybe even light cocoa powder notes. Boozy raisins take center stage, starting off sweet, but quickly jetting into a light tartness; black cherries and plums enter as well. As with most Belgian style ales, the presence of spices does not go unnoticed - I'm picking up some clove and maybe even light coriander and mild chili powder (similar to that found in the Chocolate Oak Aged Yeti). This one was a bit warm with a noticeable alcohol character, woody and boozy on the finish with the dying tartness and lasting sweetness of the raisins and plums. Medium-thick body with a hefty dose of carbonation.

I think I was expecting a little bit more from this one and I was slightly let down by it. Still a very good, solid brew, but doesn't quite take me back like I've come to expect from most Belgian strongs.

Serving type: bottle

02-10-2013 20:58:37 | More by tectactoe

spoony

Colorado

3.69/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

From a 375 ml (best after 12/21/12...) into a chalice.

A-The brew is nearly pitch black. Opaque. The head is decently sized for the ABV, nearly two fingers of dense, mocha-colored foam. The head is slow to fade, but doesn't leave any lacing.

S-The smell is quite sweet with a little warming alcohol. I pick up little hints of tamarind and chile and light whiffs of dark, malty fruit.

T-The taste tracks the smell. It is quite sweet with mildly malty, SWEET dark fruits. I did not pick up much of the chile or tamarind on the palate, unfortunately. Not unpleasant, but not particularly thrilling.

M-The brew is medium to full bodied with a good kick of carbonation that may be a touch aggressive for the style.

O-I had high hopes for this beer after pouring it and giving it a whiff. It sort of let me down by being a bit simple and one dimensional. That being said, it wasn't a bad-tasting beer, and it had a pleasing aroma and it hid the taste of 10.5% alcohol admirably if you're into that.

Serving type: bottle

01-16-2013 04:04:03 | More by spoony

drabmuh

Maryland

3.68/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Decent beer, Lost Abbey oddity on draft at a restaurant. Beer is dark brown and hazy with a thin head of small bubbles, served in a huge fuck off chalice of a glass.

Aroma is yeasty and sweet, smells like a Belgian ale.

Beer is medium in body and served way too cold, the yeast in there and there is some other flavor that I can't really describe, maybe they added chiles to this beer? It is hard to tell, it is pretty drinkable but there is an after taste that I don't appreciate. Probably not a repeat but worth a look.

Serving type: on-tap

12-29-2012 16:59:42 | More by drabmuh

rawfish

California

3.68/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Pours cola brown with a two finger high clumpy mocha head. Lots of clumpy yeast at the base of the glass, slightly pinkish maybe full of chilies. Decent retention but no lacing.

Base malt is very sweet with chocolate, toffee, brown sugar. Hints of spices and holiday cookies. Hefty alcohol mingles with the sweetness of this not a hint of any chilies.

Brown sugar, cinnamon, dark chocolate, molasses and licorice. Flavor evolves some with hints of gingerbread spice and chilies towards the back end. Finishes a bit acidic and sweet. Alot of the chilies is stuck in the yeast, agitating the settled yeast increases the spice and helps the balance of this brew.

Sticky, medium bodied Belgian strong ale, good carbonation and alcohol is integrated well. This beer really depends on the chilies to keep the sweetness from overpowering it entirely.

More interesting than normal Judgement Day, pretty good but also very sweet. Complex as this beer is, nothing really stands out, the cinnamon and the chilies are subtle at best. Tasty but I don't see this really evolving much, also agitate that yeast so that the chiles aren't ignored.

Serving type: bottle

12-31-2012 04:04:19 | More by rawfish

Dope

Massachusetts

3.68/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

A: Pours a very dark reddish-brown. Big fluffy and effervescent light brown head. Fades pretty quickly, excellent head retention. Not really any lacing though, just little dots here and there.

S: Dark fruits; primarily raisin and grape. A touch of chile pepper is notable. Decent caramel.

T: Up front there is primarily raisin and caramel. Get some smoky chipotle heat (just a bit), then a BIG burst of cinnamon. Cinnamon slowly fades away, leaving a bitter charred finish. Long lingering char finish with hints of spices (mainly cinnamon). Maybe just a bit of heat from the chile pepper.

M: Medium bodied and smooth. Does not feel like a 10.5% by a long shot. Maybe 7%.

O: A unique but odd beer. Has some quad-like characteristics but is overshadowed by a mountain of cinnamon. Less cinnamon and more chile heat could have made for a tasty, balanced brew. As it stands, this is basically a cinnamon/spice bomb. And I'm a big fan of spicy stuff. Meh.

Serving type: bottle

01-03-2013 04:54:06 | More by Dope

donkeyrunner

Massachusetts

3.58/5  rDev -2.5%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Brown pour with an eggshell tan head. Quick to skim into a lazy swirl. It hurts my eyes to read the small, mildly smudged print on these tiny LA bottles. My wife bought this to ward of the apocalypse.

Mexican hot chocolate spices, brown sugar coated raisin and root beer aroma.

Dry raisin and brown sugar with a mildly dry, roasted and crusty lean. The chiles and cinnamon are obvious but I can only find the tamarind if I go searching. Flavors come on all at once rather that being layered.

A dryer BSDA vs. juicy dark fruit versions. While I think I prefer the former it was a somewhat disappointing beer. Was it good? Yes. Was it Lost Abbey good? No. At least the world didn't end.

Serving type: bottle

12-22-2012 13:10:07 | More by donkeyrunner