Russian River Supplication

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

Batch 003. Pours lighter than I expected, for a supposed brown ale. A cloudy orangish color with a small but very well retained white head. The head never goes down. Looks fairly carbonated with a continuous stream of bubbles ascending. Impressive sheets of lace coat the entire glass. Aroma is mild peppery funk, soft and subtle, reminiscent of a lambic. Slight cherry aromas akin to a Kriek are also apparent, though they don’t pop out. Warmer temperatures do this beer good, bringing out some acetic qualities that add a pleasant dimension and increase overall complexity. This is the same quality I enjoyed in Compunction, the only other Russian River sour beer I’ve had to this point. Some light vinegar notes are buried deep down that remind me of a more traditional Flemish Sour though they are quite subtle. Warmer temperatures also increase the cherry aroma, thankfully. Can’t detect any wine characteristics in the aroma. Taste is immediately tart, wow, yeah, with some sourness mid-palate coupled with intense ripe fruit notes then finished with an even more acidic sourness. While the aroma is quite subtle and soft the taste is really full blown on this one. The huge cherry taste is really remarkable. It makes the tartness much more tasty and multi-dimensional than just straight-forward sourness, though this is plenty sour. Very dry finish, the beer seems to evaporate from your mouth though the lingering tartness and fruit notes can still be detected on the tongue. I’m certainly a fan.

Bottle, batch 003. Aroma is very cherry, sweet, funky, slightly sour... I like to say sometimes that things smell creamy but it’s hard to describe what exactly creamy means in terms of aroma. It all just comes together really well perhaps is another way of saying it. Taste - wow - mouth-puckeringly sour, first hits the tip of your tongue and then moves on back and you feel the muscles of your face squinching together way back around the jaw’s hinge. The aroma reminded me of Jolly Pumpkin so I guess I was not expecting the sour shock, unlike anything else I’ve ever had. I love sour beers and this is definitely a favorite.

Bottle, shared with CaryTheDude and JakeBra, who hooked me up big time with this one. Pours a dark orange with a fizzy head. Aroma is dusty, funky, with wood, cherries, citrus. Flavor is a rush of sour cherries, deep sourness, citrus. Incredible flavor. JakeBra says its like "a really good warhead" and I agree. Mouthfeel is wonderful, bringing a rush of saliva. Incredible experience. Thanks, Dude and JakeBra!.

Crushed with Jakebra and Honkeybra. Excellent sour. Sourness, awesomeness, and cherries. Flavor is subtly beautiful. Saliva glands gushed about ten seconds after the initial swallow and kept on going. Could drink this one all day every day. So good.

Pours orangish-amber color, supple yellowish-white head with ample lacing. Loads of peach/cherry in the nose, some citrus, really slight must, some lactic notes, faintly sweet, vinous notes with warmth. What!? 10/10. Flavor is a step down but is still great: more orange citrus to couple with the peach, lactic notes and wine lingering on the tongue, slight wood hiding out again. Palate is top notch, so smooth and simultaneously so vibrant. It’s really enjoyable to see another bretty beer where the extra pieces all snap together in the end.

Fantastic beer. I had to trade to get this one, and it absolutely lived up to expectations. Cherries, apples, and love are the secret to this one’s success.

Preview bottle courtesy Vinnie Cilurzo. Vibrant reddish-amber colour, with clouds. Orange-peach esters share the aroma with brettanomyces, leather and big Pinot Noir character. The flavour is less voluptuous, but still pretty good with vinous notes and a hit of sweet cherry a la NGBR. Fruity, balanced and unique. Aging in wine barrels is definitely something I approve of - the flavours meld so naturally with estery beer styles. re-rate: I’d orignially given this beer a 4.0 but every time I’ve had it since I would have scored it higher. Drinking it this morning is yet another heavenly Supplication experience...time to elevate the score on this one.

GABF 2005. Hazy gold with a big, fluffy head. Very nice sour brett aroma, mixed with horseblanket, soft cheese. Lightly sour flavor, rather floral, with the finish being a tad more sour. Nice light carbonation. I love these sour, funky beers.