Russian River Deification

Brewed by Russian River Brewing
Style: Belgian Ale
Santa Rosa, California USA

On draft at the brew-pub Poured slightly cloudy, with a thin white head. Aroma: Dominant Sour and slight spicy notes, with some brett character Flavor: Very dry, crisp, sour and a little too prickly Palate: Very light on the tongue, a little to prickly with the carbonation. Overall: The brett character was too restrained in comparison to the sour and prickly notes nonetheless another high quality beer from Vinnie. A definite must true. No one inthe Bay Area can match Vinnie for the number, quality or variety of Belgian style brews

2005 hand bottle shared with Clarkvv on 2/9/06. Pours a light bright orange hazy color with a full, fluffy white head. Nose is light honey, some cracker crumbs, the fresh brett and a bit of citrus. FLavors of light barnyard, fresh outdoors and light citrus hops blend together to create a well balanced and well combined flavor. Palate is lightly fizzy and a finish of light sourness. Extremely drinkable and well done.

Draught at the brewpub. Clear pale amber. Light acidic barnyrad aroma. Dryish with fairly clean mouthfeel. Citric and lively with some grassy hops. Has some similarities to good, dry cider. Not as complex as for instance Supplication, but still very good.

2005 hand bottled sample shared with SuIIy on 2/9/06.
The beer has lost nothing to hand-bottling and shipping, seemingly, pouring with a large amount of fairly dense, white head that leaves a mess of lace all about and is retained quite well. The body is a soft, vanilla wafer orange with a bit of ripe lemon skin. Small bubbles stick to the glass and rise reluctantly to bolster the head.
The nose has a crusty/crackery graininess that is supplanted with sweet honey and pale malts which, in turn, give way to the brett. Oh glorious brett! Quite pronounced, tart and playful, mingling easily with the grainy and sweet malts. Dosent provide the clarity and utter jaw-dropping brett aroma of Orval (or even Matilda) but then, I don’t think it aims to. Some light hoppiness, farmy and lightly floral comes in to play, though surprisingly, the aroma doesnt come off overly dry.
Taking a sip, I figure out why that is. The beer is very well-malted, sweet and fruity, though importantly, not doughy. A fair helping of brett gets things rolling and then one is treated to overripe fruits; tart-like notes of nectarines, peaches and pears. In the middle, I seem to find a smidgeon of diacetyl, just a hint of light buttercream or white pepper like dryness, but perhaps that is just my imagination. It certainly is nothing worth dwelling upon. The brett resumes and clears the palate, wiping the fruitiness away and nearly balancing the sweetness, while hops vibrancy (hay, cut grass, sweat) melts in to a sea of finely carbonated bubbles, quite tight and engaging. While the beer is quite sweet (relatively speaking), and less attenuated than Orval and Orval knock-offs, it is not doughy or overyeasted (with saccharomyces) by any means. Alcohol is no where to be found.
In other news, I seriously need to stop comparing every Belgian pale ale that has brett in it to Orval!

Draught, at the brewpub
Hazy light amber colour. Soapy, perfumey hop character with strawlike pale malts adding to the mix. Fresh, fruity character with light dusty yeast notes, hints of pear and a good amount of brett. Great beer - takes the effort of a master and utilizes it in a beer for the proletariat without either dumbing it down nor pricing it up. Kick ass.

Aroma of bright grainy floral hops, mingled with oatiness. Grassy flavor with tons of orange peel and pepper, along with chewy bret-laden cracker...all pushed against a fresh oak backdrop. Weaker finish than expected but still top-notch, flavorful and lasting. Thanks cquiroga!

Nose of Mild noble hop notes, tart citric acid and white pepper with a touch of soft wonderful bret. The grassy ho pcharacter melds flawlessly with the refreshing, appetizing bret signature. Clean and yes soft, subtle mouthfeel that glides like velvet over the palate leads into a wonderful tart and mildly bitter finish that cleans up as if it were never there.

Hazy orange gold with foamy lasting head. This beer is a pleasure. Perfectly balanced, spicy but with a creamy mouth-feel. Undercurrants of fruit play with the malt and a refreshing, not overwhelming sourness throughout.