Russian River Supplication

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

Sampled compliments of Pepsican. I’ve wanted to try this for so long, thanks Andy. This pours a real hazy orange color with some floaties and not much carbonation. I love the oaky, barnyard funky and vinous character of the aroma. The flavor is intensely sour, one of the sourest beers I have ever tasted. Along with that is a remarkable acidic character the combination with that sourness makes my tongue think lemon. But oh there is so much more than lemons here, the cherry character is wonderful very tart lend some sanity to the flavor. The funkiness is notched up pretty high here and although the beer has a good woodiness earthiness and vinous character I do not taste much character from the pinot noir, either way it is just absolutely wonderful. Complex, dry and absolutely enjoyable

Batch 002 bottle gracefully shared by Crosling. This beer was even better than I expected. Poured a nice golden-caramel color with a thin tan head that diminished. Rising bubbles and some suspended yeast. Tart, cherry-apple aroma with undertones of oak. Wonderfully complex flavor. Sweet, smooth entry leads into a tart, semi-funky cherry and sweet apple. Oak and yeast flavors become apparent on the finish that continues changing even minutes after you swallow. Drying and semi-puckering. Spectacular, thanks again Nick.

My favorite sour beer at the moment. Batch 003. Sour aroma, funky, but slightly sweet as well. Taste is not quite as sour as Beatification but slightly more so than Temptation. Pucker-up at the front, slightly sweet at the finish with the sour cherries. My favorite of the three.

Hazy orange-yellow pour with a white head. Sour aroma with lots of fruit - grape, cherry citrus as well as the usual sour funk. Sour funky flavor with a touch of sweetness. Lots of cherries and other fruit. Perfect amount of sourness. Slight creamy oakiness to finish. Very winelike and a nice full bodied flavor. Amazing!

Caged corked 375 ml. dark olive green bottle, description and serving suggestions on the back portion on the label, Batch 002, glassware recommendation on the cork, sampled in my Russian River tasting snifter. L: Poured carefully to keep the yeast sediment in the bottom of the bottle, hazy orangey amber with a compact beige head, fair amount of lace sticks to sides of the glass. A very impressive start. S: Caramel and brown bread, new leather, earth, wine soaked wood, a light herb spiciness, and, of course, tart, acidic sour cherries, I am really enjoying the nose on this. Everything comes through, the brown ale, the brett yeast, the barrel it was stored in, and incredibly fresh smelling sour cherries. F&T: Lightly creamy, pleasant rounded feeling in the mouth, smoothly tart and dry. Sorta of lambic like, but not really, the backbone of the brown ale is noticeable, tastes of brown bread and a pinch of caramelized sugar. Mildly tart sour cherries with a sharp, but balanced acidity. Just after the middle, tastes of carambola, oak nutty woodiness, earth and a soft spiciness emerges, giving some bite to the overall taste. Finishes with a nice tart arid dryness with lingering tastes of sour cherries and wood. Everything about this is a testament to how extremely well crafted it is, when I reach the end of the bottle, I long for more.

WOW! What an unbelievable brew. Tart, sour, cherries, vanilla....just an INCREDIBLE brew. Quite possibly one of the best I’ve had. The sours just make this one unbelievable. When I will get my hands on this again, who knows but I know that this has changed my thoughts on how beers can taste.

Bottle Batch 3: (Thanks golubj!) Pours a deep hazy copper with the slightest pink hue and a pillowy off white head that retains perfectly. Aroma is amazingly complex. Oak, dust, vinous qualities, touch of leather, currant, almond notes, acetic/vinegar, earthy old wood, and some tart kriek-like qualities. The mouthfeel is crisp and creamy with a sharp cleansing character. The flavor has a powerful, Lambic-like acidity, as well as vast funkiness of cork, dried oak, sharp rind-like sourness, and a subtle almond note comes through under all the complex dryness. There is also red wine tannins, currant, leather, acetic vinous notes, cherry skin tannins, more woody character, and just a myriad of enigmatic layers of complexity into the dry, delicious finish. An unbelievable Sour Ale!

Bottle at Falling Rock Taphouse, Denver. Cloduy reddish - white head. Dryness, high sourness, berries, cherry, wood, wheaty, brett, oak, wine notes. Fantastic.