The Lost Abbey Judgement Day
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Tasting Notes
The aroma opens with dark dried fruit — figs, raisins, prunes — layered over Belgian candi sugar, warming alcohol, and a whisper of clove from the yeast. On the palate, rich toffee and molasses anchor the mid-palate, with chocolate and stone fruit complexity weaving through. The body is full and chewy without being syrupy, and the carbonation is restrained enough to let the malt do its work. The finish is long, gently warming, with just enough bitterness to prevent sweetness from overwhelming.
About the Brewery
The Lost Abbey operates out of San Marcos, California, and has been producing Belgian-inspired ales since the mid-2000s under the creative direction of Tomme Arthur, one of the more respected figures in American craft brewing. The brewery built its reputation on bottle-conditioned, cellar-worthy beers that draw heavily from Trappist and Abbey traditions, as well as an ambitious barrel-aging program under its Port Brewing sister label.
Food Pairings
A wedge of aged Gouda pairs naturally because the beer's caramel malt mirrors the cheese's crystalline sweetness. Braised short ribs work well since the dark fruit notes in the beer echo the richness of slow-cooked beef. Dark chocolate with 70% cacao or higher creates a complementary bitterness that keeps neither element from feeling heavy. A strong blue cheese like Roquefort contrasts the beer's sweetness with sharp salt and funk. Pecan pie is an indulgent but logical match, the nut's toasty fat rounding out the beer's molasses character.
Style Guide
The Quadrupel is the strongest and darkest of the Belgian Abbey ale family, typically ranging from around 9% to 13% ABV, built around layers of dark candi sugar, dried fruit, and warming alcohol with relatively low bitterness. The style was largely codified by Dutch brewery La Trappe in the early 1990s, though Belgian Trappist breweries had long produced strong dark ales in the same spirit. What separates a Quad from a Dubbel is sheer scale — more malt, more alcohol, more complexity — and from a Belgian Dark Strong Ale, largely just the formality of nomenclature and tradition.