Lost Judgment
In my last post, I referenced the process The Lost Abbey went through to create our brand identity and how we worked with our artist to bring the religious elements to the world in our branding and story telling. From the get go, Avant Garde was going to be the first beer produced and released but we also knew there would be three other beers for the opening core. These were to be Red Barn (spiced saison), Lost and Found Abbey Ale and Judgment Day. We’ll save Red Barn for the next installment. So let’s do a deep dive on the other two for now.
When approaching The Lost Abbey (as a new operation in the development phase), I knew that we would make beers in the Farmhouse, Monastic and Wild Ale traditions of Belgium. Lost and Found as well as Judgment Day both sit solidly in the tradition of Monsatic Beers (although as a “Lost Abbey” we would not have actual monks producing the beers). Monastic Beers were produced (and still are) by monks and religious orders as a way of creating something of value that can be sold and thus used to contribute to the long term financial security of the monastery. It is not a singular “Belgian” construct but Monastic brewing traditions did take hold in Belgium.
Typically a brewery would produce a set of beers in degrees alcohol. Many of them land between 6-12 degrees of alcohol. They range in color from straw blond to deep burgundy and in between. Labeled by color (Blond/Brune) or by strength (Dubbel, Tripel or even Quad) the naming conventions do a great job of framing the expectation of the liquid contained in the bottle. Historically Dubbels have been Amber to Dark Brown and ranging from 7-9% ABV. Tripels are light in color 7-11% ABV and Quads landing in Brown to Deep Mahogony coloring with the highest ABV levels of the group.
Original Lost and Found art by Sean Dominguez
Both Lost and Found and Judgment Day have their roots in beers that I produced while cutting my teeth at Pizza Port in Solana Beach. They also share a few unique attributes. First they both use raisins to boost the alcohol in the beer and offer distinctive character in the finished beer. It’s always been a dirty little secret as you won’t ever catch me eating raisins but low and behold they are in these two beers. Second and equally as important, both beers share the same yeast strain (along with Devotion) which makes it easier to brew the beers and maintain great yeast health.
When thinking about the art direction for Lost and Found, I knew that I wanted the story to be that of a monk working later into the night than many of his brothers. Think of burning the midnight oil if you will only by candle light instead. This monk is spending his wee hours of the night on the translation of a text. In the process of the translation he has an “AHA” moment and finds something that has been missing for years (decades or centuries even). Ultimately his discovery of something that was once lost and now found leads to a validation. The hardest things in life don’t come easy.
I asked Sean to create very simply this image of a Monk working in the near dark by candle light. It’s always been a straight forward piece and not a piece of art requiring great exposé on its composition. However with that being said, since the original piece was completed, we have always felt Sean took a bit of artistic license and inserted himself in the painting as the monk bears some semblance of likeness to him… No harm no foul.
Bottle shot of Lost and Found
The recipe for Lost and Found remains the same as when we first brewed it some 20 years ago. It has spawned several barrel aged versions most notably Amazing Grace (I once was lost, but now I’m found…) and our hugely popular Framboise de Amorosa. It’s never been the front runner in our core lineup but it’s still something that I know resonates with our customers.
Judgment Day has always been a beast of a beer. We list the style as an Abbey Quad and there is nothing shy about the beer. Coming in at 10.5-11.0% ABV it most certainly is not for the faint of heart. The beer features a foundation of more. It has double the raisins of Lost and Found. It has more alcohol and darker malts. As it’s produced, Judgment Day pours with a deep Mahogany coloring and is one of the most stunning darker beers we make.
When imagining what kind of beer would be worth opening if The Rapture were suddenly upon us, it was obvious that we’d need a contemplative beer. You know the type of beer that could get the mind going and reveal if we actually have been living a life worth living. The book of Revelation tells us that the Four Horsemen (Conquest, Famine, War and Death) will arrive as a harbinger of the end. It is a well known story and is the first real “lean” into biblical imagery that we used for The Lost Abbey.
I’ve always loved the image that Sean created here and it resonates through other labels. The Sky Opening Motif shares some elements with other labels (Deliverance). Curiously, we had an incredible sunset two weeks ago. I was able to capture this image. It shares some of the same tones as Judgment Day.
Sunset over San Marcos, January 5th, 2026
This label also marks the first set of Angels to grace our labels although clearly not the only ones. We also have a few connect the dot integrations with other beers. In 2012 there was a threat of an ancient Mayan Apocalypse and version of the sky opening with Mayan imagery depicted the spiced version of this beer. A few years later we released a sour beer called Pale Horse which that horsemen of the apocalypse in a singular fashion. Judgment Day the beer and art work set a standard for rich tapestry and weaved layers of biblical story telling with decidedly Lost Abbey curated artwork. It remains a seminal part of our foundational history and imagery.
Here are some fun links to explore these two beers: And of course two WAY BACK videos that we shot and another random You Tube video for giggles.
Craft Beer and Brewing Panel Review of Lost and Found
