Russian River Depuration

Formerly brewed at Russian River Brewing
Style: Sour Ale
Santa Rosa, California USA

Bottle shared by OhioDad at C-Bus 6, thanks! Hazy yellow pour with a white head. Aroma of sour, spice a bit of yeast and pale malt. Flavor held some sourness, some vinous notes as well as some pale malt. Solid body...super sour with a dry finish.

This dark blonde ale poured with a modest off-white head, eliciting a sharp citrus aroma. There is a very delicate wine-like flavor that is gone almost before you taste it, followed by a slightly bitter acidic finish. This is an Americanized version of lambic, with a balance and flavor that holds up well to its Belgian counterpart - more refreshing and less sour, but with much less intensity.

Bottle, batch 001. Head is initially small, fizzy, off-white, fully diminishing. Body is hazy dark yellow, bottle conditioned. Aroma is lightly malty (toasted grain), lightly yeasty (cobwebs, barnyard), with notes of oak, white wine (minerals, citrus zest), apple skin, mandarin orange, cinnamon. Flavor is moderately sweet, moderately acidic. Finish is lightly sweet, moderately acidic, lightly to moderately bitter. Medium body, watery texture, lively/fizzy carbonation. Great aroma and balance, but the appearance and mouthfeel aren’t particularly good...flimsy, fizzy head and a watery, fizzy texture.

Batch 001

3/10/2007: Russian River Depuration is cloudy and is pale golden yellow/light orange in color. It has a frothy white head. The aroma reveals oak, white wine, and slightly sour white grape juice. This beer tastes a lot like white wine and is slightly sweet, yet sour and tart (acidic) all at the same time. Delicate and well-balanced. This beer is dry on the palate and has a gererous amount of carbonation. Overall, Russian River Depuration is quite unique and complex. It is a very good beer from a top-notch brewery!

375 mL (7.00% Alc. by Vol.) shared by ross. Thank you Ross!

375mL Bottle. Tangy lactic Brett and wheat sugar aroma. Some yuzu, champagne and white balsamic breeze through. Vinous grape sugars possibly hint in the background. Pours a stunning bright orange-gold vibrant and alive. Rimmed in a silky white veil and percolation with swirls. In the mouth a curbing acidity, definitely with some grape juice and piquant vinegar sensations. Not particularly complex or expressive. Flavor is nice and gentle, with subtle sweet vinous character of the pale form, with a bit of golden raisins, curry powder, and salted cantelope. Beer seems to vaporize on the palate, leaving some residual date sugar and a kiss of vaguely grassy hops for a full rounded package. Clean, balanced, unique and well built, however lacking that extra panache to make it a top animal. I would drink this any day of the week as it’s beautifully light and airy, refreshing and pairable. Damn Russian River rules. Thanks very much Andy!

375ml batch 1. Big thanks to drewbeerme for this sample. Hazy orange color with a beige head. Sour aroma, green grapes, brett, and oak. Sour flavors cherries, grapes, tart, oak, white wine, and alcohol. Oaky sour finish. After an afternoon (and night) of drinking what a tasty end, thanks andrew!

Pours a straw blonde. Clear with a diminishing white head. Kinda fizzy.Aroma is grapes, horsey, lite cookie malts, and a light acidity. Body is heavier than I expected but doesn’t take away much from the drinkability. The flavors are heavily of chardonay, Lots of melon, mango, and sweet citrus. The beer characters come out with a light cookiness and earthy hop character along with the underlying acidity which is nice indeed. Could have taken more tartness though.

Batch 01. Hazy straw color with some brown tinges, thin white head that backs off to the edges of the glass. Aroma is mildly tart/acidic floral funk. A softer aroma lurks in the glass reminiscent of grapeskins. First taste registers a sharp tart blast, but as I drank on the tartness seemed to mellow as my palate adjusted, and the beer tasted more subdued in character. Most interesting was how the grape tones counterbalanced and complimented the sourness, but didn’t mask it. The finish was dry, woody, and slightly tart. Quality.