Russian River Salvation

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

Shared w/ exec board. Pours a dark charred red/orange. A cream colored head. Nose of raisins, brown sugar, molasses, and nutty toffee. A kind of strange sweet and funky taste. Sourdough with caramel and sweet vanilla. A lot of malt goodness. Had a pretty good mouthfeel. It does make me sad that they don’t distribute out this way.

Batch 5. Thanks yet again to Naka for sharing. Sticky sweet caramel in the nose. Dark fruits - figs, cherries, dates. Super sweet aroma. Amazing burgundy with a rocky off-white head. Sweet in the mouth - cherries, prunes, plums, raisins, sugary, and slightly cloying. Freaking superb. Now for my rant. Last night was my first experience with the super hyped Russian River. I love me some good Belgian beer, so I’ve been quite eager to give Vinnie’s work a shot. I was not disappointed. Here’s what I like about all their beers I tried - they’re authentic. If I were to taste any of them blind, there would be no way you could convince me it was brewed in the states. So often we see these American "takes" on Belgian styles - some are delicious, many fall short. But very rarely do we see true, authentic Belgian style ales being brewed in America. It breaks my heart, to be perfectly honest. But to know that places like Russian River, Jolly Pumpkin, and Ommegang exist... well, It helps me sleep at night.

750 ml bottle, Batch 5, courtesy of Naka, shared with Exec Board. Pours brown with red hues, msmall off white head. Nose is caramel and dark fruits, some funk with a touch of roast. Taste is funky roast, caramel and raisin, some apple. Nice dry finish. This is delicious, beautiful and completely awesome.

Sampled from 750 courtesy of Naka. Sweet aroma, with caramel, alcohol vapor, and woody notes with yeasty goodness and, oddly, cherry. Subtle and fruity. Dark amber, like maple syrup, a bit hazy, with off-white head. Medium-heavy watery body with medium carbonation. Nice notes of caramel, oak and raisin, with mild warming and a bit of tang. Not overly complex, but a nicely balanced strong ale with an authentic Belgian flavor. Smooth, sweet after.

Ah timing is everything. Stopped by RR Brewing on my way home from San Francisco and there was Salvation. While I waited for them to fill my Growler with Pliny the Younger I pleasured my way through a glass of this sublime brew. In the glass it sat a beautiful ruby that was so dark is looked almost brown, and had a small but attractive head and good lacing. Nose was of ripe fruit and flowers, Rich mouthfeel. Flavors are ripe fruit with raisins and plums, and some spices hanging in there at the finish. Delectable brew.

Batch 5 - Pours a dark mahogany with a tan head. This stuff has a real floral aroma...with a pleasant yeast smell. The flavor is almost wine-like - the spices really work in this one.

Wow was this good .Bottle 005 and it had all the things in a beer i love.It was a dark smooth and malty strong ale with a nice odor and flavor pf bananas and a touch of spice,it was a little sweet but overall it was a great beer.CHEERS!

Bottle. Batch 005. Pours ruby with thick, dense beige head. Aroma freshly-baked dark bread, cherries, orange peel, with subtle herbal hop scent throughout. Intense flavor, thick caramel malts, slightly sweet, nuanced roasted bitter flavors punctuate this. Finish has lingering oily bitterness and the slightest bit of alcohol burn. It coheres like a genuine belgian, well-balanced, excellent palate.