Deviation - Bottleworks 9th Anniversary - Russian River Brewing Company

kevanb

Illinois

4.26/5  rDev -8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25

Served on tap at a Russian River take over at Toronado SF on February 12, 6oz pour into a stemmed tulip. Review is from notes.

I was very excited to try this beer, first time for me, and to have it on tap is a great treat. It pours a murky burgundy color, touches of reds, browns with a soft fizzy off white head that dissipates immediately, no lacing. The aroma is nice, sour fruit, light funk, mild citrus and light oak character. The nose is nice, balanced, not too sour, not too funky, not too oaky, but not that pungent or dazzling. The flavors are right in line, light citrus, juicy sour fruit with lighter acidity, touch of vinegar, oaky funky, a bit of brett character, a little bit of vanilla is in there as well. The flavors again fail to really pop or resinate in a meaningful way, clearly age is starting tone things down in this beer. The body is really nice, light, lively, zesty, coats the mouth well but finishes so smoothly and with almost a creamy texture, very easy to drink.

Verdict: A very good beer, but one that has probably seen better days, I would have really liked to have tried this fresher, but better late than never. A fine beer, but not a world beater.

Serving type: on-tap

02-14-2013 03:38:44 | More by kevanb

NWer

Washington

4.88/5  rDev +5.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Like dirtylou, I too ticked this beauty off at the Seattle Beer Week Sour Fest at Brouwers Cafe in Fremont.
What a surprise! I had no idea what I was in for when I landed a glass of this gem.
Nice too that it was a full pour into a snifter and not the small 6 oz thing. Savored this all the way through lunch.
Sour, dry, smooth.
I'll leave the subtleties for others.
The thrill of a lifetime.

Serving type: on-tap

05-17-2012 22:46:12 | More by NWer

dirtylou

Washington

4.83/5  rDev +4.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Damnit - I'm a ticker :(

on-tap, sourfest 2012 (1st keg to kick)

appearance: served in a 12oz snifter, rich light amber-mahogany body, 1/2" residual tan cream

smell: smells like a whale...oak-forward, tart cherries, funky lemon rind, earthy and wild

taste: seattle beer week has long since exceeded all expectations - this was the first beer i ordered on a glorious thursday morning at brouwers. It was my favorite of the day, as well as the favorite of the relative-sour novice i beerfriended next to me. Really a terrific sour brown - oak, tart cherry, leather and wood, funky yeast, lemon rind. This has aged wonderfully - a great honor to bottleworks and russian river

mouthfeel: deeply acidic, funky

overall: a whale with a cause

Serving type: on-tap

05-17-2012 22:11:10 | More by dirtylou

DJButters

California

4.33/5  rDev -6.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Enjoyed on tap at Russian River 'TION Night at Toronado 2012. Finally able to try after many years of searching. The refusal to part with my -bals has paid off. A 6oz pour, for $5.

A: Seems very light in color compared to other RR brews. Somewhere in between Temp & Sup. A dirty light brown, copper. Head disappears quickly after pour.

S: Oak, Cherry and funk. It better have some level of funk, this beer has been waiting in a keg for 5 years waiting for me.

T: It is amazing that this beer is 5 years old. It gives me hope for my 3L collection and the age will not harm it. I have to say that I feel Temp and Beat age very well in comparison. A keg of 08 Temp seemed to provide more funk, while the Deviation was highly acidic. Still a very solid taste where the oak and cherry shines through. As the beer warmed it obviously got better and the flavor profile changed and become more pronounced.

M: Acidic and very well carbonated.

O: Very good beer. Notice how I said very good. I don't think it could match up to the hype and rarity that has been placed upon its narrow shoulders. The keg was blown in 40min. With so many good AWA offered by RR don't stress if you cant get one. Just stick with the standards and you will do just fine. Beat however is a different animal entirely. Thanks to Natalie for popping a few 3L b3 btls.

Serving type: on-tap

02-16-2012 01:32:42 | More by DJButters

jethrodium

California

4.75/5  rDev +2.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

On tap at Toronado. Pours a clear golden amber with a small white head that settles quite quickly and leaves little lacing on the glass. The aroma is musty oak, apricot, green apple, earthy funkiness, some light tangerine, and some grapefruit. Simply wonderful. The taste is quite tart with lots of musty oak, apricot, tangerine, grapefruit, an earthy funkiness, and green apple. The finish is dry with more oak, apricot, and green apple. Amazing. Medium body with a slick mouthfeel. Relatively low carbonation. This was a great beer. The flavors are really balanced with nothing dominating the other flavors. Certainly one of the best American sours.

Serving type: on-tap

02-15-2012 23:52:04 | More by jethrodium

drgarage

California

4.83/5  rDev +4.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Enjoyed on tap at Russian River 'Tion Night at Toronado. What a treat!

A: Gorgeous, glowing brown. Pours with abundant head receding to light sparkling. Color keeps shifting brown to red to gold and back. Just stunning.

S: Intense sourness, bright cherries, oak.

T: WOW. Simply stunning sour brown with red fruit. Intense complexity, puckering sourness, a little funk, and a crisp finish. I cannot believe this beer is five years old. Tastes nearly as intense and fresh as Toronado 20 did when it was new.

M: Perfect body for the style. Light and carbonated and effervescent.

O: Absolutely phenomenal. I'm honored to have had the opportunity to try it. Thank you, Russian River and Toronado for breaking out an unbelievably rare keg! This just made beer week for me.

Serving type: on-tap

02-15-2012 03:22:08 | More by drgarage

dragonWhale

New York

4.75/5  rDev +2.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

On tap at the Big wood..

Unlike my foolish dash to wait in line for the barleywine festival this year, I went at a reasonable time to Big Wood, which fell very fortunately on a Thursday. This was to be the prize and it was still there upon arrival!
She poured golden with almost no carbonation. The sourness reached up for my nose hairs. Strange fruits..throughout the hour I spent drinking this glass, apricots and peaches, cherries and apples and pears all came through in the aroma and background flavor. It was amazing. Slight barnyard going on but very subtle, as was the fruit. Every sip was accompanied by a giggle. It was simply too much fun.
Another outstanding sour from those sneaky Cossacks.

Serving type: on-tap

12-06-2010 07:24:17 | More by dragonWhale

psiweaver

Washington

4.9/5  rDev +5.8%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Had this on tap at Brouwer's Big Wood. Started off the day with two 12oz pours of this

Pours a hazy golden orange with a nice white small fluffy head.

Smells like Cherries and funk and tartness, really complex multi layered and delicious smelling.

The taste is tart cherries with some nice funk to it, but has a nice richness to all of it. really really complex with a ton of flavor without seeming unfocused or balanced. A truly exceptional sour.

the mouth feel was great very smooth and yet just a bit of bite to it to remind you that your drinking a sour. this beer is incredibly drinkable such that I wish I could have it more often.

All in all a world class beer worth searching out.

Serving type: on-tap

12-03-2010 16:37:41 | More by psiweaver

bulletrain76

California

4.88/5  rDev +5.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Draught at Toronado for -tion night. Orange with a medium white head. Super funky aroma with lots of lemon and oak. The flavor is super sour but has a relatively robust malt base to support it. You can tell there is sonambic in the blend because that crazy funk comes through beautifully, with all its bretty glory. Lots of lemony sourness and a touch of grainy malt sweetness. Medium bodied with tight, spritzy carbonation that complements the acidity perfectly. This takes qualities from other RR sours and marries them beautifully into one balanced package. After lucking into a full pint of this (I love you Toronado) I still had to go back for another. Probably my favorite sour ale from RR at this point, and I hope they make another blend like this in the future.

Serving type: on-tap

02-12-2010 04:27:23 | More by bulletrain76

ccrida

Oregon

3.05/5  rDev -34.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 2.5

Served on draught at Brower's for Bottleworks' 10th anniversary party in a 12 oz snifter, Deviation is a glowing bronze with a small, creamy white head that has long last and leaves heavy lace. Very nice looking indeed.

Smell is a nice fruity lactic tartness, sour cherries mostly, a touch of citrus perhaps.

Taste is disappointing to me. Maybe it's because I just left Bottleworks, where they were hawking this for a vulgar $60 a bottle! Couple the $9 cost of this 12 oz pour, and the fact that I hold such high regard for *most* of the Russian River sours, I expected to be getting a fantastic deal on a fantastic beer. Price and rarity aside, I just didn't much care for the taste of this, and consider myself to be a well educated taster of 'wild' brews. Basically, I felt this was way too dry and salty, with a hint of baking soda as well, and lacked depth of flavor entirely. The sourness seemed to be all lacto, which I like, but I didn't get any of the fruit flavors I got in the nose, and the saltiness reminded me of an over Burtonized homebrew.

Mouthfeel is very acidic and dry, but some oiliness, and pretty creamy when swished around.

Drinkability isn't to high to me, to one dimensional, and if I'd paid $60 for this I'd be hugely pissed at myself for being suckered in. I hate to skew the ratings on this, but not nearly as much as when people rate something highly just because it's rare, expensive, or they don't get why they disagree with everyone's scores and rate it high anyways! And all things considered, I'm only human, and had I known nothing about this before I had it, those 2.5's would be lower...because honestly, I was not impressed, and this beer was less then average for the style.

Serving type: on-tap

03-03-2009 22:52:43 | More by ccrida

SirChugsAlot

Washington

4.45/5  rDev -3.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Lucky enough to have this one on tap at Brouwers the day of the Bottleworks X release
Since this was my first ever wild ale i guess it was a good place to start

A slightly hazy golden orange color with about a pretty big white head that left a little bit of lacing as it slowly receeded

the smell is sour. loads of citrus, (lemons and oranges) with a bit of funk hiding in the background

Taste is pretty good a little acidy with sweet citrus and a nice sour bite at the same time. the funk comes back on the tongue and finished off a little dry

Mouth is medium and carbonation is medium and pretty well balanced. I'm not a fan of the dryness but overall it feels good on the tongue

I'm really glad that i jumpped into this style with one of the top beers available. this was pretty easy to drink and i look forward to having this again one day.

Serving type: on-tap

02-27-2009 05:42:45 | More by SirChugsAlot

jwolfie70

California

4.18/5  rDev -9.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 3

Another great sour beer from Russian River. Had on tap at their fourth anniversary party this weekend. This beer made the two hour drive worth it.

Poured a deep copper brown. Smelled of funky, sour cherries, with some sourdough bread mixed in. Tasted tart, sour, funky, with some dark fruit sweetness coming through at the end. A very enjoyable beer, but like all wild ales, can only have so many. Still I wish I could have got a growler of this to take home.

Serving type: on-tap

06-02-2008 16:31:06 | More by jwolfie70

illidurit

California

4.88/5  rDev +5.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Review #300! On tap at the brewpub for Russian River's 4th anniversary. The blackboard describes it as a sour brown ale, but this is much different than an oud bruin.

Pours amber in color with a bit of haze. Nice off-white head that leaves some wet wisps of lacing.

Aroma is sour and appley, much like a good cider. Vinous tartness and gueuze-like barnyard funk.

Flavor starts off with a rush of white wine fruitiness and sharp apple cider, then acutely takes a turn for the sour. Lemon and sour berry melt into a semi-dry woody finish. Great complexity.

Mouthfeel is lively and the carbonation really sticks the sourness to your palate. Wonderful beer, yet another sour masterpiece from RR.

Serving type: on-tap

06-02-2008 05:01:33 | More by illidurit

largadeer

California

4.5/5  rDev -2.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Appearance: Brownish-amber, quite ruddy and hazy with a quarter-inch of head that left a minimal amount of lace.

Smell: Green apple and lemon, hints of musty oak, very sour but mild on the funk and quite clean overall.

Taste/mouthfeel: Similar to the nose but richer and fuller; hints of caramel and vanilla reside beneath the puckering sourness. The body is on the full side of light; it coats the palate with a ton of flavor but goes down easy. The finish is drying, sour and slightly tannic.

Drinkability: A definite sipper, but I had no troubles sipping two glasses of this over the course of a couple of hours. Highly drinkable stuff that seems to grow in complexity the more you sip on it.

Serving type: on-tap

06-01-2008 01:44:54 | More by largadeer

mnapier

Washington

4.47/5  rDev -3.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Service Temperature, 35 degrees. Service Glassware 10oz Brandy Snifter.

Service Location Brouwers's Cafe

Pours with a light copper with a strong density. The head profile is strong with a web of tattered lace throughout.
Slight wild floral, almost farmlike, with some raisins, and figs.
A bitterness throughout, alongside some roasted, oakiness.
Mouthfeel is strong but thins out as it coarses down my throat.
This beer kicks major ass and would go awsome with some pork.

Serving type: on-tap

04-02-2008 01:47:30 | More by mnapier

AlexFields

Tennessee

4.28/5  rDev -7.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Opened at TN whales tasting 3/16/2013. Thanks to waltonc for trading this to me.

Pours a really hazy bright orange, not the appearance I would expect from a blend of so many different beers.

Lots going on in the nose, sweet malt, some ketchup, some acidity, smells a bit confused but pretty nice.

Taste is more focused than the nose and a lot more sour. Very sour, very dry, pretty funky, hints of wine and dark fruit. Still a little muddled but damn tasty.

Mouthfeel is soft and well carbonated, very good for a five year old blended sour.

This is maybe slightly past it's prime--not oxidized or "over the hill" really, still damn tasty, but seems like it probably hasn't really benefited from the last few years in the bottle. I never had this fresh but I imagine it was a world class beer--at present it's still great but a little shy of being really top tier.

9.0/10

Serving type: bottle

03-17-2013 14:42:30 | More by AlexFields

stakem

Pennsylvania

4.41/5  rDev -4.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.5

Huge thanks go to BA mymrnngjckt for busting out this long time want of mine during a recent tasting. Poured into a snifter, the brew appears a hazed copper color with a creamy yellowish finger of froth. Some spotty lace sticks to the glass. A light swirl revives the cap which holds with impressive retaining power.

The aroma is surprisingly oaky upfront that blends into some funky notes of cheese. There is a rindy fruit character that changes to something more bright and tropical and more whiffs are taken. This is for the most part a pretty straight forward smelling wild ale that is very atomatic and enjoyable with no one character outshining the rest.

The taste is tart with plenty of barrel presence being noted with oaky flavoring that integrates well with the rest of the profile. Some rindy fruit flavored elements blend into earth and funk. Almost a cheesey or yogurt sort of lacto feel to this before going back to the rindy sour flavors somewhat reminescent of oranges.

This is a medium bodied brew with a modest amount of carbonation. There is seemingly no alcohol inclusion. This is one very easy drinking brew. Perhaps its most noteworthy atribute is how all the character blends together so perfectly balanced. It was awesome to get a chance to try this. And even more awesome that a hyped up beer lived up to expectations. Thanks again Kevin.

Serving type: bottle

02-27-2013 15:14:27 | More by stakem

yamar68

Minnesota

4.53/5  rDev -2.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

Big thanks to Ryan for opening this bottle up with me on a whim! This is a long time want that I would have never thought I'd have the chance to try.

Pours a cloudy burnt amber gold with a thin, noisy cap that retains far better than I would have guessed. Leaves a bit of sticky lace... lovely.

A massive wallop of acidity is noticeable before I even think to sniff at the glass. Warhead status sour punch cleans the nostrils, transitioning into a smooth sense of bright fruit and old oak. A bit of vanilla if you really hunt for it... something sweet on the tail end.

It's no more forgiving to the palate... big funky overripe fruits, white wine vinegar, some sour citric flesh, that oak really shines in this regard... finishes beautifully dry, keeps you thirsty. For how sour this one is, I could easily drink the entire bottle to my dome slice. Delicious indeed.

I am forever indebted to you, good sir. Wow!

Serving type: bottle

01-10-2013 00:23:26 | More by yamar68

stx00lax

Washington

4.5/5  rDev -2.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Bottle graciously opened by me and shared with Mego and Ross. Thanks me!

A- Clear light amber with thin white lacing. (bottle has been upright and undisturbed for over a year)

S- Oaky/bretty funk. A little bit of white grapey effervescence and lemon. Pretty mild but interesting

T- Similar to smell. great balance between lactic sourness and bretty funk which is impressive. Not as complex as a great geuze, but cant find any flaws with the taste. Its just really balanced and refreshing. The more i drank, the more i wanted. As good as american wilds get

M- Spritzy carb combined with a balance of sweet fruits and drying wood keep you wanting to drink more.

Overall- Awesome. I wasnt immediately blown away, but the more I drank , the more I was able to appreciate the amazing subtleties of this beer. Its ranked highly for a reason

Serving type: bottle

11-06-2012 06:10:07 | More by stx00lax

cosmicevan

New York

4.38/5  rDev -5.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Notes taken from 9/29 from the craziest bottle share that i have ever been a part of. Thanks so much to the NYC and Hoboken crew for letting me participate in this incredible day of drinking long time wants and insanity.

Thanks kindly to Dan for sharing.

a - pours a murky orange brown. thin fizzy head with slippery lacing. swirling rebuilds the fizziness.
s - nice balanced sour cherries. brett. pungent.
t - really nice. some cherries. nice sourness. brett. nothing outrageous, but really balanced. some notes of peach and lactic. oaky.
m - puckering but not overly so, fairly easy drinker.
o - overall nice sour, extremely nice and enjoyable. finish is a bit dry but delicious and enjoyable.

pretty sure i had this one time prior, but looks like i haven't gotten to that part of my notes backlog...stay tuned.

Serving type: bottle

10-25-2012 20:57:24 | More by cosmicevan

Dennoman

Belgium

4.38/5  rDev -5.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Shared by forgetfu (Bill) and Matt at our crazy Antwerp tasting. They touted it as the best beer ever to come out of America, and me generally not leaning towards sours, it had some big shoes to fill.

A: Hot damn this is a beer you want to dive into. Muddled and cloudy as can be, with a beautiful yellow vibrancy. Head holds strong and true. You just can't help but notice this is an expertly brewed beer.

S: Big wild yeast carried by the most amazing honey aroma. Some peach and ripe peach, but the honey is the absolute star here. It's like those bars of honeycomb you had as a kid, without the inconvenience of having to pick wax from your teeth.

T: Lactic acid is the first thing to coat the palate, followed by ripe peaches and that beautifully sweet honey.

M: Medium carbonation makes for a beautiful lively beer that fizzles and pops in your mouth. A joy to have in there, shame you have to swallow it at some point really.

O: Hot diggity, even for a non-sour fan this is great. I have to see it didn't quite reach the level of some lambics I tasted that night, but it got mighty close. I wouldn't call it the best thing to ever come out of the States, but they have their own strengths as we Belgians just can't seem to whip up a decent stout!

Serving type: bottle

08-26-2012 12:43:56 | More by Dennoman

HuskyinPDX

Washington

4.63/5  rDev 0%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

750ml bottle split three ways between myself, Jake and Greg. Thanks Greg for sharing this!

A - Pours a murky light brown with a thin white head that sticks to the edges.

S - A very soothing funk, slight sweetness. A touch of booze and slight wood. Very nice!

T - Funk that is creamy smooth, some nice oak, sublte flavors that just roll around in your mouth.

D - Slight tartness with a nice smooth silky finish.

O - So smooth and just plain solid. I don't know if I have ever had anything that compares to this.

Serving type: bottle

07-27-2012 04:15:48 | More by HuskyinPDX

brentk56

North Carolina

4.48/5  rDev -3.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Appearance: Pours a cloudy amber color with an inch or so of foam that leaves quite a few strands and clumps behind

Smell: A blend of caramel, sour lemon, yoghurt, and barnyard funk

Taste: Tart lemony fruit, up front, with a developing lactic sourness that brings along some additional citrus; after the swallow, the acetic sourness, barnyard funk and vague caramel undertones arrive; the finish is puckering and acetic

Mouthfeel: Light to medium body with crisp carbonation; mouth puckering

Overall: Loads of tartness with underlying complexity; a great beer that has developed nicely since it was bottled four years ago

Serving type: bottle

04-04-2012 22:03:06 | More by brentk56

scottfrie

California

4.72/5  rDev +1.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Jeff for the win.

A: Pours a hazy iced-tea colored burnt amber with a finger of bright white head that faded into a faint collar.
S: Tart notes of funky funk funk with a noticeable resemblance to the beatification this beer is brewed with.
T: The tartness is clean and not vinegary, acidic, or full of an acetone-like harshness. This beer is just clean and smooth earthy funky tartness with a hint of citrus, raspberries and 'fruit'.
M: Ultra dry but ultra drinkable and clean. The carbonation is bubbly and the body is medium.
O: An amazingly smooth and easy to drink sour. No one flavor aspect stands out. Lightly fruity and funky. Thanks again, Jeff.

Serving type: bottle

01-28-2012 18:40:06 | More by scottfrie

Phelps

Arizona

4.53/5  rDev -2.2%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

750ml shared by tlay10, poured into a tulip. This bottle’s four years old at this point. For the curious, it’s a blend of ph1 Beatification, orphan ale, Sonambic and Sanctification that’s bottle conditioned with additional brett.

Burnt orange. Just a bit of cloudiness shades the fingers behind the glass. A half-finger of foamy, sticky head somewhere around off-white leaves spots of lace.

Nice, rounded aroma. Leads with big burnt sugar, followed by a sweet caramel and honey blend with touches of red and green apple as well as pear. Fairly floral. Just a touch of hay, very light hints of vinegar. It just doesn’t get better than this.

In the flavor, subtle caramel quickly gives way to lemon juice and white vinegar. Honey, green apple and the floral hits are next. Just enough burnt sugar sweetness to back up the impressive tart character. Hay and funk come back after the swallow and linger long into the finish. Touch of toffee at the swallow.

The tartness is causing me a bit of heartburn. Soft, massaging carbonation with a very gentle bit of fizz. Watery medium-light body with major, aggressive tartness.

Deviation tastes a lot like ph1 with some malt backbone. It’s the kind of beer you set down after each sip and say, “That’s really, really, really good.”

Serving type: bottle

12-21-2011 06:46:01 | More by Phelps