Russian River Toronado 20th Anniversary

Formerly brewed at Russian River Brewing
Style: Sour Red/Brown
Santa Rosa, California USA

Serve in Snifter, Tulip, Tumbler

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Bottle. Pours a cloudy amber orange color with a light white head. Grape, oak, fruit, a little orange rind, and some floral notes. Medium mouthfeel. Nice carbonation. Tart but not overly sour, orange fruit, oak with some bitterness. The Brett comes out nicely. All in all this ones together nicely! Really doesn’t taste exactly like consecration at all but a completely different beast. Nice depth.

Bottle. Pours hazy brown with a small off white head. Aroma is sour fruity appricots acidy. Flavor sour fruity appricots astringent funky good balance, maybe a bit flat. Nice pungent acidy and fruity finish.

In short: A monster farmhouse, vinous and tannic copper ale of great complexity.
How: Bottle 750ml. Consumed with some age on it (around 5 years I guess). Bottle sent to me by Bobby91w, thanks a lot Bobby
The look: Cloudy copper body topped by a large beige head medium retention.
In long: Nose is intensely farmhouse, horse blanket, old barrels, stinky feet and all... Body is full and with a very lively carbonation. Taste has sour fruits, plenty of oak, strong vinous character, a whole lot of tannins, lactic acid, milky notes, grape skin, cookies, caramel, some cheesy notes. Medium sourness level and very astringent. Strong barrel presence to say the least. Finish is very dry with a sawdust-woody sensation. This is the type of beer you need to drink with a pint of water on the side, very mouth drying. Alcohol is a no-show in this 10%+ brew, I drank a full 750ml way too easily. A bit of cardboard but overall not a lot of oxidation despite the age, but with a beer this age each bottle will be different depending on how it was stored. My trader assured me the bottle was kept in cellar condition so my bottle was probably as good as it gets for this particular beer. I could feel the beer is past its prime yet I thought it was excellent, this beer must have been mind blowing a few years ago. Any bottles left should be consumed asap, I don’t want to sound too alarming but beep beep beep beep beep beep beep beep beep beep beep beep beep beep beep beep beep beep beep beep.

Shared by ygtbsm94. One of my most highly coveted wants. I can’t thank you enough Brad! Served in my Cantillon gueuze tumbler - I can’t believe I don’t have a Russian River glass... The beer appears a light amber hue, appearing mostly clear. The head is approx. 1/2" and fades to a thin collar within a few moments, leaving a generous amount of lacing in its wake. The aroma is wonderfully complex, offering red wine, white wine, oak, tart fruits, acidity, dark fruits, vanilla...wow. The flavor is equally as complex. A heavy and biting acidity confronts the palate immediately. I find this to be more sour than tart. Very tannic, with prominent wine and barrel flavors. Dark fruits soaked in alcohol add warmth in the finish. Overall, I am so grateful to have tried this. An interesting and intriguing beer. It wasn’t among my favorites of the night, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. Serving type: bottle Reviewed on: 04-27-2012

Bottle shared by Ari, thanks! Pours a hazy deep amber with a tan head that dissipates to the edges. Aroma has a good amount of sour red fruit with musty funk and a hint of acid. Flavor is similar with musty funk and sour red fruit that grows in acidity.

750 ml bottle at home. It pours a bright reddish amber color with a huge, fluffy orangy head. The aroma is tart fruity with grapes, currants, plums, hints of wood and vinegar. I had this next to a 25th, and this is not as tart on the nose with more heavy red fruit. The flavor has lots of wood with a sweeter malt background and a rough, bitter acidity in the finish. Oxidation is evident here, not surprising. It starts nice enough with a good balance of sweeter and tart fruit, but the finish is a bit off and unpleasant. I imagine this was better a few years ago.

From 3L bottle at 25th anniversary dinner. Aroma of sour, dark fruit and oak. Flavor was much of the same with a bright take on the oak. The 25th was much smoother. They really had similar qualities though. The 20th may not have been as sour, but much brighter (possibly more acidic is the correct verbage). Anyway, great beer. ---Rated via Beer Buddy for iPhone

Bottle sampled at Muckfest III. Pours a semi-hazy copper color with a medium tan head. Sour wine and fruit nose with notes of malt, caramel and oak. Malty and caramelly flavor with lots of oak before a sour and peppery finish. While very nice, it seems a bit muted. I would have loved to have tried this one fresh!

Bottle at Muckfest III - Pours clear brown with a thin tan head. Nose is light citrus, muddled maltiness, and not much else. I let this warm up, but the nose wasn’t pungent at all. Not off-putting--I just couldn’t get much aroma out of it. Taste was light funky, bready malt, light tartness, and a bit of citrus rind. Finishes with more bitter citrus. Real carbonated and fluffy in the mouth. Disappointed in this one, but I guess it’s got some real age on it so I shouldn’t have been surprised. I bet this was real vibrant in it’s day, but now it just seems limp and uninspired.

Bottle on vacation shared with Linh and billy. Pours a deep amber with fine carbonated white lacig that lasts throughout. Aroma is sour cherry, Belgian yeast, oak and Brett. Mouthfeel is active and well carbonated with notes of cherries, sour fruit, oak, light funk, light cheese, Brett, Belgian yeast, light bitter hop. A great sour overall, but not worth the current price tag.