Russian River Temptation

Bottle. Pours copper to orange, slightly hazy. I hated the La Folie but this one is much more accessible. Flavors are more complex., there is definitely some oak in there, also the palate and crabonation are champagne like. There is a sourness for sure but is is well balanced wth other flavors.I .liked it better with every sip.

375ml bottle, Batch 002 mail ordered from the brewery. I opened this one very, very cold per RR’s recommendation (they said so due to such high carbonation. Pours a cloudy pale golden with a staying creamy one finger head. While still very cold, the aroma has quite a bit of sour funk. I also smell some apples and leather. I’ll wait until this warms up to continue. The oak does become more apparent with a fair amount of yeast. Flavor is much the same with some very nice fruity sweetness and a pleasant vinous quality as well. It is fairly acidic, but the sweetness don’t make this overbearing at all. I feel this would be a transition beer to bret and oak (though not bourbon) aged beers. The finish is dry which is somewhat winelike and earthy. Light to medium body, moderate soft creamy carbonation. Quite the tasty brew.

Thanks to egajdzis for splitting a bottle of Batch 002 with me... Appears a hazy, pale gold with a fluffy white cap that slowly fades out. Scattered spots of lacing are left around the glass. Smell is of citrusy, funk, oak, vanilla, brett, and mild sugar. Taste is of the same aromas in a wonderfully done brew. The flavors jump along the palate with glee. Highlights include the light funk mixed with wine, vanilla, and some sugary caramel. This is hardcore and it outdoes some of the counterparts overseas. Mouthfeel is of a spritzy, nicely carbonated yet restrained brew that is smooth but bouncey with the CO2 giving rise to the vanilla esters riding along the sugary, chardonnay grapes. Vinnie is an excellent brewer. He is at the top of the charts for American brewers IMHO. With the wine background, he has the experience to make this stuff work. This is no exception to the rule. Well done.

Many thanks to Alan at Knightly Spirits. Aroma is full on citrus and bret. Touch of yeast, sour dough bread comes to mind, as well. Flavors are full and powerful. The balanced sourness begins, followed by wine like flavors and a touch of hop bitterness. Maybe some vanilla on the end? In any event a great beer, could be even better in 1-2 years.

375ml Bottle. Batch 002. Pours out a yellowish orange color with a little bit of a white head. Smell is sour, with some notes of wine, fruits, and a touch of hops. Taste is sour and slightly bitter with a nice bready oak flavored taste. A truly unique beer in all sense of the word. Very interesting, should be fantastic in another year. Great beer from a great brewery!

Bottle. Pours a hazy yellow body with a white frothy head. Smells awesome! Green piney hops, brett-ridden, soft wheat, bread, and sweaty notes. Nice mixture of sugar and bread flavours along with dry yeastiness. Flavourful and wild!

Re-rate big old magnum @ RBSG I provided. This was sick sick sick. 375ml bottle, batch 001. Purchased at the Holiday Wine Cellar in Escondido, CA. Pours lightly golden straw with a large puffy white head. The aroma is citrus, oaky, and slighly like a lambic. The taste is sweet mild complex and robust. It has wine like qualities that remind me of a gueze. Its very good and unique certainly a wine like beer hybrid.

Bottle shared with HogTownHarry, biegaman, mds, Radek Kliber, tupalev & the rest of the gang. Pours a very cloudy yellow with a small diminishing creamy white head. Nice and subtle sour aroma with sweet malt, fruit, yeast and some faint oak. Flavour follows the aroma and is quite pleasant -- it’s complex, well balanced and really easy to drink. Medium bodied, dry mouthfeel. Like the other Russian River beers I’ve had, this is really good stuff.