Lost Abbey Red Poppy Ale

Brewed by Port Brewing/Lost Abbey
Style: Sour Ale
San Marcos, California USA

375 ml bottle, via tertons. Pours a very hazy dark reddish body with a small fizzy beige head that faded quickly to a thin ring. The nose is tart and sour with cherry skins and pits, lots of woody notes, and funky yeastiness. Light almonds and a bit of funky cheese notes. The flavor is more cherry fruit than sour, this really does showcase the fruit well. A little drying on the finish with lots of woody notes and cherry pit. Mouthfeel is medium bodied with just a slight acidity and great pinpoint carbonation. Overall, this was quite good, but I can’t help but measure it by the yardstick of Russian River sours, and this one doesn’t quite measure up. It’s just a little less clean and crisp than I’m looking for.

Bottle thanks to Hank1980. Pours with a small, light brown head and a murky deep brown body with particlees and good lacing. Sour smell fills the room with notes of barrel, funk, horseblanket, barnyard, black cherries, and some light, sweet spices. Taste is tart with wood and cherry skins. Lightly carbonateed with a somewhat dry and tart mouthfeel.

Pours a ruddy, opaque amber-brown. Nearly zero head, the little carbonation that does make its way to the surface forms a thin, delicate collar around the edge. Nose is sour cherry, dark fruit, vinegar, port wine, and earth. Mostly dark fruits on the palate, with the cherry and earth pretty far in the back. The sourness is quite mild as well. Light bodied, with light, fine carbonation; finish is on the sweet side. Highly drinkable. I’m used to the Lost Abbey special releases being these huge, over the top beers, so this one came as quite a surprise. A flanders red all the way, but lighter, more delicate, and more refined

Bottle (12.7oz) shared with HogTownHarry & garthicus -- courtesy of HogTownHarry. Many thanks to IrishBoy for sending this our way! Pours a murky dirty ruby-peach (or something like that) with chunky floaties and a small lasting off-white head. Lovely funky, sour aroma with tart cherries, some oak and malt -- sooo nice. Flavour of sour and tart cherries, a bit funky and with some oak and light spices -- complex and delicious. Fantastic!!

Pours a murky dark iced tea brown with hints of amber around the edges. There is a short-lived off-white head that lingers as a ring throughout with traces of lacing. The aroma is wonderful on this with sweet and sour cherries and a slight funky tartness on top. There is an underlying earthy oak smell that gets bigger as it warms. The taste leans more on the sour side with less of the sweetness and more of the funk. The vinegar is more prevalent in the taste than the aroma though there was a bit of brown sugar underneath. The mouthfeel is dry in the finish from the oak and fairly astringent with decent carbonation. This is one of the better Flanders ales I’ve had as it was complex and not overly sour. Very nice.

Had this brew at G.A.B.F. 08". Aroma is a sour fruity scent. Color is a brownish amber with a small loose head. Its a light bodied brew with a very sour taste that has hints of fruit and a tart after taste. Its a good little Sour Ale.

Bottle. Muddy brown color, no head. Aroma is sour, sweet malts, lots of caramel, cherries, oak. Taste has a sour kick up front with some background maltiness that fades fast into nothing. The texture seems almost grainy (that’s probably not the best word to describe it, but it’s less than smooth.) Something to do with the light body and the high carbonation I think. This is good but not one of my favorite sour ales.

375ml bottle thanks to MrBendo. Pours a muddy, extremely cloudy brown/orange with sediment floating around. A small, bubbly white head half-assedly forms then disappears for the most part. Aroma is highly acetic and fruity. Sour cherries definitely evident among red wine vinegar-type aromas. Nice, juicy cherry aroma. This reminds me a lot of a JP La Roja, though a little more cherry flavor. No funkiness or brett character displayed in the aroma (was this even brewed with Brett?). I’m digging this aroma though. Some vanilla and oak, though subtle, are noted as the beer warms. Taste is a little watery up front that fades to a cherry juice middle and a quick, dry finish that doesn’t stick around long. The flavor is a disappointment compared to the aroma which promised things the taste did not deliver. Sourness is pretty evident, the beer is even refreshing. The beer is just a little too watery at this point, I don’t know if it was better fresh or not. This was good overall, just a lot better in the aroma than the taste.