Review – Russian River Supplication

I feel lucky that I was able to find any Russian River in bottle not named Damnation. While Pliny the Elder and Younger are Double IPA legends in all of California, there are many more beers Russian River makes that are in limited release in bottle, or only in keg at certain places NOT IN MY AREA! While on my lunch break, I was shooting the shit with one of the beer specialists at Whole Foods in Los Angeles. I know if you ask the right questions, you can find out what is in the “stash” in the back at any given Whole Foods. Sure enough, they had a small quantity of Russian River Temptation and Supplication. All over the Internet, you see folks with Russian River avatars on message boards, and hear of how great the Belgian stye brews they make are. Luckily, I was able to get my hands one of each, and here is my review on Supplication.

Russian River Supplication Batch 003 – 12 oz Corked and Caged Bottle at 7% abv. poured into my Stone IRS glass. Described on the bottle as “Brown Ale Aged in Oak Barrels with Cherries Added.”

Appearance:
Dark reddish orange. No bubbles floating up, and a 1/4 white head with little bubbles at the top.

Aroma:
Fruity vinegar. Bare with me as I am new to sour beer. Also sour fruits such as sour cherries or raspberries. If I were to retract all of that description, it would be a tart red wine for sure.

Taste:
Tart cherries with no sugar and a bit of woodiness. You need to wait for it all to go down to get the oak properties of this beer.

Mouthfeel:
Tart and puckering. No alcohol burn, sips like a wine.

Overall:
I have begun my journey into sour beers. I have it on good authority that Russian River is a great beginning. While $10.99 and above a 12oz bottle will keep this habit in check, I know now what I can treat myself to when the time arises. A wonderful tasty beer!