Russian River Deviation (Bottleworks IX)

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

Poured from a 750 ml bottle. Chunky rusty orange body. Vivacious tartness and citrusy fruitiness in the aroma; tangerines, cherry, banana, white grape, and honey, softly feathered with a reticent, gorgeous funkiness. Vinaigrette, minerals, oak, vine stems; lots of earthiness beneath all that ebullient funk and glowing tropical fruitiness. Flavor is just as thick with vibrancy and insane complexity. Balsamic vinaigrette and searing acetic acid follows an initial, crippling burst of sunny pineapple juice. Softer touches of apricot, mango, and grapefruit fill in the mid palate with this beautifully pure and real fruit essence.

First pour unswirled yielded alot of barren, dry mineral flavor that lent a slightly harsh bitterness to rub against the sourness. Second, yeast ridden pour was full of that perfect, just-ripened and still on the vine fruit character. Glorious and nearly perfect on that additional drop.

Medium to full palate with a healthy sparkle on a very pillowy yeast texture. Finishes with a blended spicy-tart vibe of barnyard and apricot skin; juicy and tangy, with a drying bite. Light and thick at once, funky and pure at once, confrontational and calm at once. Brilliant. Thanks Andre!

750ml bottle. Thank you ever so much for your incredible generosity Bruce!

Insanely layered in it’s complexity. From initial nose to finish, the textures are incredible. Cellar floor and wet cedar come to the nose initially. Highly acidic without relying too much on funk. Mild horse blanket and barnyard notes come to the fore as the beer opens. Faint phenolic notes emerge the longer the beer sits and warms. The pour is a muddy bright caramel with a thin ring of a white head. Near bracing in it’s acidity. Massive tartness with a gueuze-like band aid finish. Loads of wet wood and tart grape tannin all over the palate. Slightly antiseptic and medicinal. Funky and acidic as all get out. Very tart and dry. Acidic fruit rind. Wow. Dusty cellar. Lush and creamy with spritzy, lively and not too overbearing carbonation. The finish lasts forever with notes of basement, dust, rubber and boatloads of structured tannins. One hell of a beer. Thanks again Bruce! I owe you one!

awesome fruity nose with a great funk in the finish of the nose...I can surely taste the santification as the base beer and it has a finish like the beatification the blending in this beer is nothing short of masterful....wow the complexity on the taste is deserving of the 9 that I gave it......damn great beer

Served from a 750mL bottle that Roger picked up for me at BottleWorks. Appearance is a barrel hued golden brown with a good amount of bubbling effervescence. The aromas and flavors are rich oaked tartness, lemon, wood, Brett. The mouth is dry with a moderate puckerness and a light burn from the oak. An excellent sour for sure!

Bottle. Rich amber hue, slight haze, enthusiastic foam. Joyous bretty aroma, filled with succulent wildflowers, seafoam, moonlight, and stars...soft, gently caressing mouthfeel. Leather and lace. Cherry pits ground up and served with laughter. Smooth, the sweetness on the sides of the tongue could smooth the pavement on the street. Endless complexity reveals itself like a poem, slowly capturing the attention at first then etching itself deeply into the soul. Fruit peels, rinds, and piths. Like capturing ancestral wisdom in a glass. Brilliance.

On draft at Brouwers. Unlike any beer I’ve ever had. Tart fruit - apricot, for sure - taste is incredibly complex, with notes of cider and a tart citrus. It’s lacking in depth, though, and after being mesmerized for the first few sips, I got tired of the flavor. RERATE 12/04/08: On tap at Big Wood 08. After developing a taste for sours, this was far more impressive. Aroma of tart mandarin and other orange fruit, a great barnyard funk and lots of oak. Very tart, but not too acidic - it pushes bounds without crossing any. I thought for a while it lacked a bit of a sweet balance, but this now seems like a simply wonderful ale.

Rate #300! Big thanks to Beershine and Oakes for sharing a bottle of this. Pours light caramel in color with small white head. Nice sour, acidic aroma. Flavor is sour and citrusy with a good amount of funkiness. Light to medium body with lively carbonation. Excellent beer.

Bottle and Draft, Bottle about six months old. I liked it a little better out of the bottle. Starts out dry tasting then hits super sour, my palate is blown but this beer would make most people pucker up. Strong lingering sourness that almost numbs the tounge. Strong oak character of the beer makes this one hard to put down. Well blended, if you really focus you can pick up notes from each beer in the blend. Somewhat light and refreshing, I wish it was a higher ABV like 9 or 10%, but still a great beer and possible one of the best sours around.