Russian River Temptation

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

Bottle.

Pours a hazy straw-yellow with a nice and incredibly persistent white head. Beautiful. Nice sour lactic nose, some oak barrel. The flavor is really smooth and really nice. Lots of chardonnay-oak, slightly buttery, tart but not aggressively so, pleasingly dry, beautifully balanced, more wood than funk. This comes together like a gem and makes for a very easy-going but uncompromising dry sour.

Addendum: after enjoying a second bottle, I may be slightly under-rating this one a 4.1. Could well be 4.2.

Addendum: Just drank my last bottle. Sad.

Wow did this ever sell fast off the shelves of BevMo. Not even a week later and all of them are gone. The beer is a hazy blonde that has a lively carbonation topped by thin layer of film. Aroma is strong with alcohol that resembles a fine merlot or sangria wine. The beer is like no other beer i have before because of how similar to a wine it is. Slight notes of wood are found in the taste but an overwhelming serving of alcohol and sour fruit that gives my tastebuds a shock. Could of fooled me as being a Flemish sour ale.

Thanks to TampaBrew for sharing this one. Pours hazy yellow with a white head. Nose is vinegar, light malt, tart citrus, lemon, and brett. Flavor is similar with lots of citrus and vinegar; also a tart wine barrel presence. Medium body beer that lingers with brett and tart. These guys are the the masters of Sour Beers. Good job, Vinnie.

Pours a bright hazy orangish yellow with a big puffy white head that lingers for ages leaving massive clumps of lacing. This is a gorgeous looking beer. Smell is a good dose of sweet, sour and tart. There is the sweet citrus of lemon rinds and oranges along with some tart cherry and a bit of oak as well. This is all on top of the bready yeast smell in the background and some wine coming through in the nose as well. The taste is a slightly more tart version of the smell with big tart cherries and lemon rind up front with a trace of barnyard funk as well. There’s a little sweetness in there as well with a bready malt backbone but an oaky presence that lingers in the finish. Mouthfeel is creamy but also dry like wine in the finish. This is definitely a good starter wild ale for those of us still developing the palate for sours. I really enjoyed this and it’s quite a refreshing brew on a hot day.

Rating #400. I’ve been waiting to pop this bottle, batch 003 from Beerlando, for some time now. The description seems right up my alley, and will likely be my favorite of all RR Sours. 12.7 oz bottle poured into my Russian River Barrel Aged Beer glass from my trip to the brewpub. Pours a remarkable murky gold with hints of fiery orange haze and an eggshell white big bubbly head that begins to dissipate. Aromas are sheer heaven, noticable as soon as the bottle is popped: touches of barnyard funk and sourness mixed with white wine and grapes, tangerine and peaches, light sweet tarty fruitness with grapefruit and citrus, dry oak, and a touch of floral and tropical fruit thrown in. Complex, yet discernible. Initial is brings a light pucker to the lips, a nice sourness mixed with a dry oakiness, fruity body and funkiness from the brett. Delicate, but full of flavor. Funk and brett shine through on the backend moreso, with sour and fruit melange in the initial and body. Finishes clean, with a lingering sourness and dryness. This is simply heaven. White winey characteristics of the barrel help compliment the brew, leaving it extremely well balanced and sessionable. My favorite type of wild ale. Cheers and a big thanks to Beerlando!

A very interesting beer, unlike any other I have had to date. The pour was a nice murky golden color with a good off white head. The aroma was sour with hints of earthiness. Taste was very smooth and balanced. You definitely get a sour taste, but not over the top sour like a gueze. It was very smooth and easy to drink. Definitely pushing the envelope between wine and beer.

On tap at Brouwer’s for Sour Fest. Pours a golden pilsner like color with bubbles and moderate lacing on the head. The aroma was flat sourness and the taste matched.

(375 ml bottle (batch 002) via trade with <A HREF=http://www.ratebeer.com/ViewUser.asp?UserID=3 target=blank>IrishBoy, thanks Richard!, cellared for 1 yr. after trade) Soft and tart...Pours cloudy light goldish amber with one finger of white head that recedes to a thin lasting layer. Aroma of light citrus, Bretty yeastiness and sour. Mouthfeel quite soft and very smooth, lightly effervescent. Bits of scattered lacing. Flavor is lightly sour and tart, sourness is not overdone. Pleasant citrusy quality. A little yeasty as well. Light lingering tart citrus aftertaste. Nice.