Sierra Nevada-Russian River Brux

My buddy Matt brought over a bottle of the Sierra Nevada-Russian River collaboration Brux. The beer pours a golden color with a thin filmy white colored head. The aroma consists of banana, clove, grass, pepper, and brett. The taste is light bodied and grassy with a strong pepper presence. There is a light brett funk with some hay and barnyard flavor. The base is built upon a caramel flavor that is light and not overpowering. The alcohol content is 8.3% ABV. If you are expecting a big time sour beer, this will not deliver. It has a nice funky flavor with a solid base and was quite delicious.

Russian River Sanctification

While at Monk’s cafe for the Pliny the Younger event, I ordered a glass of Russian River Sanctification. The beer pours a yellow-gold color with a thin filmy white head. The aroma consists of sour apple with orange and a faint hint of Belgian yeast. The taste is puckering but amazing, consisting of sour apple, grape, Belgian yeast, earthy hops, banana, and a biscuit-like mouth feel. On the finish, some brett kicks in and is funky, yet quite enjoyable. The alcohol content is 6.47% ABV. The Sanctification is a well-done sour that isn’t overly off-putting with sourness and comes complete with a good fruit and yeast balance.

Russian River Blind Pig

I ordered a glass of Russian River Blind Pig from Teresa’s Next Door Bar in Wayne, PA. I previous has a sample of this beer at Great American Beer Fest, but never have given it a review. The beer pours an amber color with a frothy white head. The aroma consists of grapefruit and tangerine with light pine accents. The taste is smooth and citrusy with plenty of grapefruit and pine flavors. There is a dry finish that is accompanied with pine and spruce. The alcohol content is 6.1% ABV. The Blind Pig was a great drinking beer and contained the perfect balance of hops and citrus flavors. Sometimes IPAs can be too intense or to weak, but this beer is spot on and provides a wonderful hop kick.

Russian River Damnation

I picked up a bottle of Russian River Damnation from Brass Rail in Campbelltown. The beer pours a vibrant golden color with a lofty foamy white head. The aroma consists of a good helping of banana with some pepper, pear, and apricot in the background. The taste is sweet at first with banana and apricot and then transforms into a bubbly alcohol punch. The carbonation bubbles shout out and the alcohol kicks a bit. A bit of pepper kicks in to balance out the sweetness before some white grapes come back again to make you forget about the pepper. The finish on the beer is a bit dry from the alcohol and carbonation. The alcohol content is 7.75% ABV. I enjoyed the Damnation a lot and thought the sweetness, carbonation, alcohol, and pepper balanced well and none of them overpowered the other.

Avery-Russian River Collaboration Not Litigation Ale

I picked up a bottle of the Avery-Russian River collaboration brew called Collaboration Not Litigation Ale. The beer pours a dark golden color with a foamy white head. The aroma consists of yeast, honey, plums, and some toasted malts. The taste is sweet and full of yeast and honey. The taste has a healthy dose of candisugar as well, with an added bit of plums. There is a bready finish as well with a light hop bite of the back of the tongue. The alcohol content is 8.21% ABV. This was a very interesting brew/ I definitely did not hate it, but I couldn't come around to love it either. There were plenty of flavors to excite the tongue, but I almost feel that they didn't blend well with each other. Regardless, I wouldn't turn this beer down if I was offered it, I'm just not so sure I would go out and buy it again.

Russian River Supplication

Another beer I had at TJ's in Paoli while waiting for Pliny the Younger to be tapped was Russian River Supplication. The beer has an amber color with a thin filmy head that sticks to the glass. It smells of fruit and sourness. The taste is bubbly on the tongue with a heavy dose of sour fruits, mostly strawberry, apple, and grape. The alcohol content is 7.0% ABV. I was really surprised by this wild ale, as it was delicious with a great dry finish. Most sour beers that I have tried have made me pucker too much or were too sweet to really enjoy, but this one hit all the right notes.

Russian River Pliny the Younger

Seeing as it is one of the most anticipated beers in this country, I had to get to TJ's in Paoli to give Russian River Pliny the Younger. The beer is golden colored with a foamy white head. The aroma consists of lemon and grapefruit with some pine accents. The taste is full of citrus flavors, mostly grapefruit and lemon, with a nice is pepper and pine hop finish. The alcohol content is 11.0% ABV. I was surprised as to how drinkable this could be to the non-beer geek. While it may go somewhat unappreciated, a beer this complex could actually help convert people to the craft world. The entire time I was drinking the beer, I was asking myself if Pliny the Younger was worthy of the #1 ranking, and I could not find an argument against it.

Russian River Pliny the Elder

I went to TJ's in Paoli, PA for the Russian River Pliny the Younger event. However, while waiting for the beer to be tapped, I decided to give the Russian River Pliny the Elder a try. The beer has a golden color with a thin filmy head. The beer smells of orange, lemon, and grapefruit. The taste is powerful and citrusy with a good pepper and pine finish. The taste is mostly comprised of bitter grapefruit, which was thoroughly enjoyable. The alcohol content is 8.0% ABV. This beer was excellent and was one of the better beers that I have ever had. The citrus balances nicely with the hops and finishes really smooth.