Russian River Supplication

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

This was pretty damn awesome. I was hoping it would be good for Mike’s going away, thanks to JohnC for helpin me out with it. Nice sour cherry flavor and aroma. The color was a nice hazy brown with minimal head. The aroma was some maple, some cherries, some yeasty flavors, some very nice mellow malts that helped balance the sourness of the cherries to near perfection. Damn glad I got to have this, and for such a good occassion. Solid.

so many thanks go out to lilkem for scoring this fine brew for my going away fiesta. the color was a hazelnut brown with a dash or sunset. the aroma was very smooth fruits and a bit of the good funk. the taste was damn good, lots of sour strawberries up front and then it mellowed into some other fruits. damn fine brew i must say.

A fabulous aroma that I just kept sniffing and sniffing... starts offer very sour, but there is great cherry and strawberry, hay, crisp malt, apple, cinnamon, vinegar, even a slight alcohol singe. It all finishes with just a touch of perfect sweetness. Pours is a slightly red brown with a nice, fizzy head and a nice bit of floaties from the sediment. Taste is not as strong, though there are nice sour, red wine, cinnamon, plum notes. A fabulous beer, though the $10 price for an 11 ounce bottle is a bit steep.

(on bottle batch 001)So, US flemish sour to dropkick, hahah. No really, this is my first try om the brewery(of witch I have heard nothing but praises) and north american efforts to make oud bruin-like-kind-of-beer, so let´s see. Has a fine nose, vanilla, gooseberries, raspberries, malts. the blend of malt and tatness is great. murky brown, with small, beige head. the taste starts great, zingy and with a good carbonation level. get´s more nutty and rounded. The finish bothers me. It´s like the wood gets too dry and earthy on me, I get a sandpaper feeling on the tounge. Also, the finish lacks the vineouros and fruityness of brown ales with sourness and the likes. RERATE AUG 08. Probaly batch 003. Amber, small, white head. Semi-tart cherry, wood, cherrykern nose. On-the-spot balance between tart, sour and sweetness here. Very well made this time, but a rather waterish mouth. The finish contains alot of what the aroma had, but more suttle, nutty ways too 4.2

Bottle, "Batch 001". Poured deep murky amber with a thin light-tan head and a few flecks of yeast floating around. Impressive aroma reminiscent more of red wine than beer: somewhat floral, obvious cherry and pinot influences, slightly nutty. Initially tasted in tiny sips to disappointing effect: cherries cherries cherries and confused other flavors. Happily, though, the flavor profile seems to open up much more with larger sips. Again, the pinot noir and cherry influences are readily apparent and highly enjoyable (if quite surprising in a beer). I do not detect any vinegar sourness unlike some other tasters. There is definitely some tartness, but I attribute it to the wine and cherries. Other flavors drift in and out as I move toward the bottom of the glass: spices, prune, nuts, pear, faint licorice and fainter wood. Initially the finish was farily dry (reminiscent of wine again) but has rather strangely become buttery(!) and a little sweet toward the bottom of the glass--another pleasant surprise. Smooth, vaguely creamy mouthfeel with less carbonation than expected. An intriguing and very different experience overall.

Brickskeller, Washington D.C.
Aroma is earthy, with some vinegar and surely the cherries. The Pinot Noir came out in the flavor, and really enhanced the raisin and prune aspects of the brown ale. The pour was a boring, flat orange, and the palate was a bit sharp, yet crisp and tingly. Where it counts (aroma and flavor) this is a winner.

Thanks to cmaruschak for sharing. Batch 001: Ruddy amber color with a thin light beige head that disappears almost immediately. Barely any light penetrates. Tiny rising bubbles and lacing that races down the sides of the glass. Aroma of grapes, brown sugar and sweet candy. Medium body with a smooth mouthfeel, and a bold vinous character. Flavors of dark cherry and light spice and oak. The flavoring does not linger too long though. The finish is extremely dry and feels like it is sucking the moisture from your tongue as you drink it. The finish is moderately sour and peppery. Overall a very well-made and enjoyable beer.

Dark orange body that produces a fleeting off-white head. The aroma is funky and fruity. Tart flavor with spicy cherries and oranges. Not really my style of beer and I’d love to try this again on a fesher palate.