Russian River Temptation

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

The first line of the commercial description says it all. I guess I should have read about it before trying it. Really threw me off guard. Murky yellow with a strong lemon aroma with a hint of malt and oak. Very astringent, vinegar taste. I really had a difficult time with this one. It’s not bad just not my idea of a belgian ale.

375ml. Thanks, Aspidites! Cloudy golden straw color. Big sour apple notes and chardonnary dry/tang on the nose. Medium horse blanket too. Fizzy but soft light carb for the main body. All kinds of tang, oak, vanilla, and chardonnay all over the mid-palate and the finish. Really a delightful glass of beer.

Batch 002, purchased at Once Upon a Vine, Richmond. A luminous body with a champagne-like effervescence (and mouthfeel!). Deep golden, a thin but intense carbonation. You can smell the chardonnay immediately in the nose, with the gentlest of oak (thankfully subtle). A slight hint of mellowed grape or even cherry in the first sip, but then it’s a lovely dry tartness, with a slight hint of bitter like you get from orange peels (funny given that RR is ensconced in the land of rich, buttery Chards too). A delightful beer, one of the finest American renditions of Belgian beer.

June 2007. Batch 002. Glowing, almost the color of sunrise on water. Letting shadows through and retaining a constant sipping crown of foam. Wet leather and farmhouse aromas, peat and cayenne pepper, pungent vinegar. Fades softly into a kind of pistachio-crème white cake sweetness. The sourness here is soft and balanced, while the Chardonnay barrel lends a rich almond-butter depth. Wild notes of sea mist and wet oak rafts. An acidic pulse of lemon seed blossoms with a confident, imposing strength upon swallowing. Ringing with crystal clarity, sour but bright, complicated but melodic. One to savor and treasure. Thanks Ernest! 9/5/9/4/18 4.5

July 2008. Batch 003, thanks to Steve. Sunshine blonde pour and a wispy cream of meringue. Almond cake batter, leathery brett and lemon juice, hay must and attic dried spice in the aroma. The sunshine of the orchard and the evocative calm of the farmhouse dusts. Acetic acids and a range of tangy spice effects a jagged edge, while the Chardonnay barrel maintains its cool and reservation, lending polish. Far out horseblanket salt, sweat and grimy earth.

The restraint of the sourness, the pristine shimmer of pale malts in the glow of chardonnay oak, and the bittering calm of floral earthiness sleep gracefully together in the flavor. The essence of morning in the meadows. The angular impartation of wild yeasts is somewhat submerged, and integrates itself with ease into oak and white grape tannins. This makes for a truly spectacular drinkability; while marked with the distinctive sour flair of bret and pedio, the lactic yeasts seem more prominent in lending a silky, soft tartness; wholly perfect to accentuate that Chardonnay presence that already works so well.

Yeast dropped lends a pit of stone fruit quality throughout alongside a sharpened and more detailed sourness. The gravelly character of the white wine is pronounced, again just exaggerating how perfect the blend of these yeasts with this barrel actually is.

Sparkly palate is medium in body and maintains a gorgeous balance of velvet texture and diamond-sharp acidity. Pineapple and a distant doughiness alongside the drying leather of animal yeasts in a long but understated finish. AGAIN, it’s the amazing balance of the elements here that’s truly breathtaking; it’s one of those moments when art grabs hold of you and simply demands to be revered. 10/5/10/5/20 5.0

Bottle courtesy of realale420, thanks again Brian! Cloudy bright yellow pour with a fizzy bone white head. Aroma of light bret, subtle barn yard elements...wood and light vinous notes as well and a bit of yeast and a light sour fruitiness. The flavor certainly has some strong wood and wine character...very dry vinous and light sour fruit elements with an earthy woodiness and light amounts of spice, funk, and yeast. Medium-light body with a sturdy yet not overt carbonation...dry, fruity, and sour throughout and finishes lightly sour and super-dry. Nice brew.

Slightly hazed shadowy gold body. Frothy white head. Bretty bright white grape and amber ale aroma. Flavor is hard to pick out. Nicely soured grapes with fresh fruit and wood. I don’t know... I like it but I chalk it up to another brett beer.

Pours a opaque yellow with a fizzy white head. Has hints of sour fruits, spices, and wood. Has a grape juice texture on the tongue. Finishes with a dry tart feeling.

Pours a golden color with a small quick dissipating head.Aroma is sour.this was full flavored with lots of sour cherries, almost wine like.The sourness kind of mellowed out at the end.