Beatification - Russian River Brewing Company

brystmar

Texas

4.5/5  rDev -0.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Bottle courtesy of nate8767; what a guy! Batch 5 (bottled 1/10/2012).

Hazy, golden yellow liquid sports a full finger of fluffy white head. Solid retention before receding to a thin white layer of foam guarding the surface. Subsequent swirls of my glass awaken the beast within. Good lace.

Nose brings the funk stronger than a James Brown album. Dirty yeast, wild funk, earth & grass, sour fruits; the whole nine yards. Just wonderful.

Sharply tart, funky, and quite sour from the start. Yeast brings in more craziness as the sour fruits make their way to the back of my throat. This incites a grainy, slightly tingly texture or sensation that I've never experienced with a beer before. Puckering sourness lingers as this brew finishes clean & dry. Can safely say that I prefer this over Cable Car '09, '10, and Izzy. Exceptional!

Slightly more creamy and viscous than a typical medium-bodied brew. Active body means plenty of carbonation, and it's done just right in Beatification. Sipping on this incredible brew makes me want to buy vacation property in Santa Rosa. That alone should suffice for my review :)

Beatification is a gueuze treading the same path as Cantillon & Drie Fonteinen, yet Vinnie and the Russian River crew demonstrate their own (masterful) Americanized interpretation of the style with this brew. A landmark American sour, showcasing what's possible in the style when you combine creativity with world-class brewing & blending talent. Ball's in your court, Belgium!

Serving type: bottle

04-12-2012 03:45:28 | More by brystmar

JasonFromLA

California

5/5  rDev +10.1%

06-19-2013 07:06:45 | More by JasonFromLA

stogirelli

Florida

4.5/5  rDev -0.9%

06-16-2013 01:09:37 | More by stogirelli

jaxon53

Connecticut

4.5/5  rDev -0.9%

06-15-2013 19:08:30 | More by jaxon53

Adamostella

Washington

5/5  rDev +10.1%

06-15-2013 15:55:36 | More by Adamostella

Rifugium

Pennsylvania

3.95/5  rDev -13%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

I don't really know why I never sought this one out until now, but oh well. I drank this alongside a Temptation and Supplication, as well as various ratio'd blends of the three with a pluot muddle to christen my vintage Temptation/Supplication/Beatification/Compunction glass.

Batch 5.

Slightly hazy golden-yellow pour, with a finger or so of white head that retained nicely and streaked the glass with thin lacing. Aroma was pretty intense: lactic, acetic, sour, green apple, citrus. More intense sourness/tartness in the taste...I was told this batch gets "sour in a bad way" with age. I didn't really think it was "in a bad way," but it wasn't exactly smooth. Flavors of green apple, crabapple, lemon, oak, brett, hay, vinegar, white grapes; lactic and tannic notes came out more as it warmed. Medium body, moderate carbonation, heartburn-inducing. Overall good, but probably one of the lower beers on the "-ation" totem poll for me.

Cutting this with Temptation and Supplication really took the edge off. And that's kind of scary.

Serving type: bottle

06-15-2013 01:19:59 | More by Rifugium

beerinNV

Nevada

4.75/5  rDev +4.6%

06-12-2013 14:19:34 | More by beerinNV

brewdog444

Illinois

4.5/5  rDev -0.9%

06-12-2013 02:27:29 | More by brewdog444

heavenlyStash

California

4.75/5  rDev +4.6%

06-11-2013 01:27:44 | More by heavenlyStash

biggied

California

4.75/5  rDev +4.6%

06-10-2013 22:43:42 | More by biggied

atoulouk

Indiana

4.25/5  rDev -6.4%

06-10-2013 14:35:34 | More by atoulouk

tinypyramids

Illinois

5/5  rDev +10.1%

06-10-2013 02:27:34 | More by tinypyramids

Boilerfood

Indiana

5/5  rDev +10.1%

06-09-2013 19:37:31 | More by Boilerfood

soldat329x

Illinois

5/5  rDev +10.1%

06-09-2013 18:13:14 | More by soldat329x

chase2634

Pennsylvania

4.25/5  rDev -6.4%

06-09-2013 14:08:50 | More by chase2634

HoppyLuckyGoGo

California

4.75/5  rDev +4.6%

06-06-2013 18:19:42 | More by HoppyLuckyGoGo

BMart

Pennsylvania

5/5  rDev +10.1%

06-05-2013 20:44:06 | More by BMart

WillCarrera

Illinois

4.64/5  rDev +2.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.75

375 ml bottle, bottled 01/10/12 from batch 5, poured into a snifter. Major thanks to Eli for opening this.

A- Pours a clear golden color, topped with a thin white head, nice retention and some spotty lacing.

S- Some fruitiness, mostly lemon and maybe some apple and white grape, huge, huge lactic and acetic tartness, some funkiness and a lot of oak.

T- Massive, massive acidity. Really insanely, over-the-top sourness. This has gotta be one of the sourest beers I've ever had, but its acidity is nicely balanced, so it totally avoids that pure vinegar flavor that a lot of very sour beers fall into. There are also some nice fruity flavors of lemon, white grape and apple, along with some oak and funk.

M- Medium-bodied, nice carbonation, has a very dry, puckering feel.

O- One of my new favorite sours, the tartness dominates everything but is soooo good. Absolutely great beer and amongst the best I've had from Russian River.

Serving type: bottle

06-04-2013 01:03:28 | More by WillCarrera

Bildo

Minnesota

5/5  rDev +10.1%

06-03-2013 12:37:00 | More by Bildo

Dirtinabottle

New York

4.75/5  rDev +4.6%

06-03-2013 07:26:01 | More by Dirtinabottle

bird22

California

5/5  rDev +10.1%

06-03-2013 05:07:26 | More by bird22

Reggae4203

California

4.5/5  rDev -0.9%

06-02-2013 21:20:09 | More by Reggae4203

tgeorgf

Maryland

5/5  rDev +10.1%

06-02-2013 15:51:41 | More by tgeorgf

jeonseh

Indiana

4.06/5  rDev -10.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Bottle of batch 5

A - Slightly hazy golden yellow with a slight glow to it. Slight carbonation trailing upwards 4

S - Lemon, lactic acid, and white vinegar

T - Lemon and slight vinegar that reminds me of a warhead slightly. Light, slightly bitter lemon zest as well. Rather clean actually as only slight lemon remains in the finish

M - Lots of carbonation and a definite tartness to it that makes you almost pucker your lips. Dry finish

O - A really tart sour that closely resembles a Belgian gueuze. This one definitely goes to the sour side as it has minimal funk to it

Serving type: bottle

06-02-2013 04:44:40 | More by jeonseh

DanimalFL

Florida

4.75/5  rDev +4.6%

05-29-2013 16:53:56 | More by DanimalFL