Abita Abbey Ale

Abita Brewery recently released a big bottle series. The series consisted of bottling their previously draft-only beer, Andy Gator, and a new Abbey Ale in 22 oz. bottles. 22 oz. bottles are a great leap for a brewery that produces an IPA which is nothing more than a weak pale ale. But with their Abbey Ale, Abita managed to brew a good interpretation that is complex and interesting.  

Abita's Abbey Ale has an aroma of banana bread and soft fruit with hints of yeast and toast. The flavor has a slight hint of sour tempered by a stronger passion fruit flavor. There are also hints of banana, spices, bread, vanilla and possibly eggnog in the flavor. Now, all Abita needs to brew is an IPA with some hops.