Russian River Pliny the Younger

Brewed by Russian River Brewing
Style: Imperial/Double IPA
Santa Rosa, California USA

Draft @ UJ’s: Poured an amber color with a white head. The aroma was sour citrus and hops. The flavor was grapefruit, hops, bitter and hoppy. The finish was not as smooth as the Elder, but pretty close. Overall, a darn good beer.

On tap at the Monks Kettle in San Fran. Glad I scored a glass of this there since it was the beer I flew south for and the taps had run dry at the brewery by the time I got there. Pours a light golden color with a one finger white head. Beautiful balanced aroma, first floral, then some grapefruit citrus and finally pine at the back. Flavor much the same, more piney than anything else though, and a nice crisp, dry finish. One of the best beers I’ve ever had and hopefully it will be more available in years to come.

(On tap at trinity brewing in colorado springs). Pours a light amber color. Medium size white head, with moderate lacing. Has a grapefruit aroma. Taste of grapefruit and hops. Smooth finish, and very soft carbonation.

20090329 Tap at Capones. Cloudy dark golden with lofty white head. Aroma is a punch in the face of huge pine and tropical hops. Full bodied, creamy eff, long long long lasting bitterness at the end. The flavor is obviously massively hopped with big bitterness, but there is enough of a sturdy biscuit malt backbone to keep it big and chewy. Floral and perfumed as it warms. Fun beer, but not something I could drink every day. Well, I suppose if I had a keg of the stuff I could try.

Draft at Capones. Man I’m glad I got to this event early enough to get a sample because who would’ve thought almost a hundred ber geeks would come out at 10:00 AM on a Sunday for a couple of west coast brews?? Aroma on this one is so much over the top hops that it actually takes on a spicey peppery aroma. The orange bodied elixir with the small white head looked incredibly appealing in the small snifter. I do however wish that the snifter was several ounces bigger just so I could have swirled it around to really release that hoppy aroma. Flavor is smack you in the mouth bitter hops that actually is on the harsh side. The hops are so hoppy that the palate is dried out. Although Im glad I got to try this beer I can think of a few other IIPAs I prefer over this one.

Alright, time to review this beer finally. Current batch is drier than the last batch with less sweetness apparent from the malt. Citrusy and resiny hops just dance on your tongue with a beautifully filling yet light malt profile. This does live up to the hype. Better than last year as well. I’m loving this. So go, get yourself a pint of this beautiful beer.

While this beer is quite hard to find, and quite pricey (usually you get about 8 ounces for $7-$9), it’s WELL WORTH IT! Man, this stuff just takes a huge hoppy mallet and whacks you over your head. I can only assume that this is what Angel tears taste like!

On tap @ Capones. Poured golden clear with nice fluffy white head. Aroma are awesome, grapefruit, citrus, and floral hops. Taste is similar with huge loads of hops and little malt but not in a bad way. Had a nice bitter finish and wouldnt mind to have it again.