Lost Abbey 2008 Sinners

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 9 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 8

Bottle generously shared by sloth. Pour was dark full burgundy brown, pretty clear body, thin swirly head on top, some lacing on the way down. The aroma was chocolate, light coffee, and sour fruits. The flavor was sour cherries first (thought I had ruined my glass from the previous beatification in it, pour rinse, but alas, no way, far too prevelant to be cross contamination of beers), but the cherries played around nicely with the cocoa (not so much chocolate) powder elements and oak. Also present was a gentle very light but pleasant sweet candy-fruits under it all in the aftertaste with a touch of a non-descript spice. Body is average for a sour style, light for a Belgian Strong, but the carbonation level is high for a sour, moderate to light for a Belgian Strong. Not sure what style this belongs in, but it's pretty nice.

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 9 | Mouthfeel: 10 | Flavor: 10 | Overall: 9

Sampled on 9/11/2008. This sour ale pours a deep brown color from a corked 375ml bottle. Small to medium sized white/beige foamy head. The aroma is tart sour cherries, must and wood. A medium bodied sour ale. The malts are fruity and sweet. There is a whole lot of tartness, sourness, funk and wood going on here. It is nearly mouth puckering tart, but there is nice malty fruitiness to balance most of the tartness. This beer really has that Flanders/Rodenbach feel to it. More in the way the flavors mix and match than in any particular flavor. An awesome, absolutely world-class beer. Can’t wait to see how this one ages. Mouthfeel is full and round. Finish is clean and smooth. Aftertaste is tart with some wood.

Aroma: 9 | Appearance: 9 | Mouthfeel: 9 | Flavor: 9 | Overall: 9

A careful pour into my large Tripel Karmeliet tulip produces a two finger thick, frothy, tan colored head. The beer is a very dark, almost black color that has touches of amber and brown to it. When held up to the light the beer shows an opaque, deep haziness, but some reddish-amber hues to it. The beer smells a touch boozy and sort of like a mix between some cherry liquor and Bourbon. This also has a funky, musty sourness to it, a woody mushroom-like note, a damp earthiness and a slight, aged cheese note. A distinct cherry note cuts through the aroma at times and it is backed by a caramelized, almost raisin like flavor. Barrel notes play a big role in the aroma and at times are the dominant note; light vanillin, a touch of buttery oak, some spicy wood notes and an expressive mix of barrel notes and spicy alcohol that contribute a boozy Bourbon note that fills the nostrils.

Sweet impressions at first yield to a much more focused sourness, which still can't shake a rich raisin note. Towards the middle and into the finish a deeply astringent oak note causes me to pucker more than the not-insignificant sourness (at least at times). A touch of spicy alcohol and spicy wood provides a warm finish that is at times well tempered by flavors of tart cherries that can also linger in the finish. This is definitely a tannic brew as it coats the teeth and mouth just like a strong, black tea does after each sip. A bit of buttery oak mixes with some light funky notes that lean towards musty, cheesy and sweaty gym sox in the finish (though this is not a heavily funky beer). Rich tasting with out being heavy, the combination of the tartness with the medium fullness leaves the perception of a beer that is lighter than it actually is.

After the beer gets quite a bit warmer that nose gets much more boozy, but also starts to pick up some notes similar to cinnamon, licorice and perhaps a bit of jasmine honey. In the flavor some interesting, quite fruity, balsamic notes start to come out as this warms up (the cherry notes definitely accentuated this a bit).

This is quite quaffable, especially I would guess this is at least 10% abv; the nice tartness really helps to make it so, but it still has a richness that makes this a beer to be savored. This is a fantastic blend of beers, it can perhaps be a touch hot at times with Bourbon-like notes of spicy oak and hot alcohol, but even this seems to meld in quite will with the other components of the flavor. Before I know it my 375ml bottle of this is gone; definitely a good sign as beers of this strength don't leave me wanting any more after this sized bottle. A very good beer that, while it seems to not quite have that essential component to it that would push it into be fantastically incredible, is still a great example of blending as an art.