Russian River Damnation

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

Beautiful clear golden with a fluffy, white head. Aroma of banana and a hint of apple. Flavor has prominent notes of banana, lemon/citrus up from then gives way to yeast, clove, spices, honey and some hop bitterness. Slight touch of alcohol in the finish. Medium body with very lively, spritzy carbonation. Nice lacing , great head retention. I really enjoyed this beer, very drinkable.

From a 750 ml corked and caged bottle purchased from the Brewpub in Santa Rosa and consumed just two days later. So much for aging. Bottle conditioned so you have to decant it fairly carefully it poured a slightly hazy golden to orange color with a big foamy head that settled fairly fast and left moderate lacing. Nose is first banana, and then a swirl of the glass brings forth citrus, spices, and flowers. Mouthfeel is very smooth and the flavors mirror the nose, only a little more muted than you might expect. Finish shows a hint of the hops and brings a nice bitterness, and again the fruits come into play. A very good Belgian Ale and remarkably easy to drink.

Top notch appearing ale, with all of the requisites of a true Belgian, cloudy bright golden with the big, totallaly retained egg white colored head. The aroma hits the marks as well with lots of fruity esters and a heaping helping of authentic yeast and a good bit of spiciness as well. The flavor is quite refined and sophisticated for an American, Belgian style, the initial flavor is sweet fruit, a mild amount of hops, and a dry finish. The palate is almost too smooth to the point of being slick, but this is a minor quibble. I am thankful to Mike McCullah for the opportunity to sample this excellent beer here in The Lone Star State. Vive Lance!!!

Draught, Russian River (May ’07, so batch 21 or 22). Head is mostly lasting. Body is hazy glowing medium to dark yellow. Aroma is lightly to moderately malty (toasted grain), lightly to moderately hoppy (flowers, herbs), lightly yeasty (cobwebs), with notes of pineapple, clove, lemon zest, pepper, and Juicy Fruit gum. Flavor is moderately to heavily sweet, lightly acidic, lightly bitter. Finish is lightly to moderately sweet, lightly acidic, moderately bitter. Medium body, velvety texture, lively carbonation, lightly to moderately alcoholic. A vast improvement over the older batches I’d had (previously have only had batches around #7). Beautiful stuff.

Pale gold brew raising a thick white mousse like head. Yeasty, spicy nose. Tropical fruit flavor with a definite spiciness that makes this one truly enjoyable.

On draft Pizza Port Solana, 6 Dec 2004 this is a complete re-rate. Looked more like a trippel to me: clear yellow, complex aroma, beautiful spicey flavor with the alcohol well-hidden. very tasty

750-DLD06. thanks to who brought this beer to the gathering. Golden orange with a nice fluffy white head that lasted the entire length of the sample. Some sparse whispy lacing once in a while as well. citric, sour, light funk-estery and lightly yeasty. nice balanced body with light carbonation but lots of mouthfeal. Flavors are estery, yeasty, lightly funk (banyard) with some notes of peaches, white grapes and apple skins. Very nice and complex belgian from a brewery that I must get more of!

Bottle. 22oz. Pours a clear golden with large diminishing white head. This is a true golden though and looks better than most. Aroma is yeasty with light malt and a hint of banana and spice...not a lot there really and none of the fruits described on the label....it definitely doesn’t let you know about the flavors that will hit the tongue soon. Lightly carbonated and has some of the lively character it needs to sport the style, giving it a soft body. Flavors come in lightly sweet and with a spiciness not evident in the aroma with notes of clove and pepper. Then some light fruit and orange rind tartness then honey, and that same spicy peppery finish that came through in the front. Holy crap, every sip gets better. This is a fantastic brew.