Pliny The Elder - Russian River Brewing Company

MrBoh

Maryland

4.88/5  rDev +4.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

A few hours after I finished it, so not the most in depth or accurate review. I plan to come back when I open by next bottle.

What I remember from our 510 ml bottle:

A- A beautifully light and hazy orange. Poured over three separate snifters, first one about a finger and a half head, and the last hardly any. I drank out of the next-to-no-head snifter (I'm a sharing guy)

S- The aroma was dank. Pungent. Intriguing. Citrusy for sure, but nice pine aromas were beyond present, and a nice earthiness also.

T- The taste. The taste by itself was not what I was expecting. I expected something to stand out as far as individual flavors. But no. I had wanted this beer for ages, but there was no one flavor that made me love it. It was the balance that made it a necessity for more. Russian River brews their beer with very few specialty grains. Maybe this was the reason behind this. Citrusy hops dominated the flavor. A little pine, pretty much like the aroma minus the amount of earthiness.

M- The mouthfeel. Although it did not seem/look/hear very carbonated (and I said I had the least heady of the three), it left a nice, perplexing "tingling" feel on the tongue. Constantly enticing you to come back for more.

O- One of my favorite beers. I had many different ones on this evening. Including vintage. But this was one of two that stood out. Perplexing and satisfying all in one. The mouthfeel and balance is what stood out. While the aroma and taste were definitely strong, I expected that.

Serving type: bottle

10-11-2012 05:13:00 | More by MrBoh

CosmoHopHead

Kansas

5/5  rDev +7.5%

05-21-2013 03:59:13 | More by CosmoHopHead

ackeeper

Illinois

4.25/5  rDev -8.6%

05-21-2013 01:43:02 | More by ackeeper

deniserat

California

4.75/5  rDev +2.2%

05-20-2013 22:27:30 | More by deniserat

zonker17

Illinois

5/5  rDev +7.5%

05-20-2013 21:52:11 | More by zonker17

aakerman

New York

4.5/5  rDev -3.2%

05-20-2013 17:35:36 | More by aakerman

cnbrown313

Illinois

4/5  rDev -14%

05-20-2013 16:09:52 | More by cnbrown313

Daniellobo

District of Columbia

4.25/5  rDev -8.6%

05-20-2013 15:23:30 | More by Daniellobo

AL89BR

New Jersey

5/5  rDev +7.5%

05-20-2013 14:51:17 | More by AL89BR

duobob

Illinois

4.5/5  rDev -3.2%

05-20-2013 05:09:08 | More by duobob

JReites

Florida

4.75/5  rDev +2.2%

05-20-2013 03:34:14 | More by JReites

UHCougar12

Texas

4.5/5  rDev -3.2%

05-20-2013 02:58:16 | More by UHCougar12

BtownIrish20

Indiana

5/5  rDev +7.5%

05-20-2013 02:18:53 | More by BtownIrish20

Ctrauty

Minnesota

4.75/5  rDev +2.2%

05-20-2013 01:25:31 | More by Ctrauty

jloomis

Florida

4.5/5  rDev -3.2%

05-20-2013 00:22:35 | More by jloomis

IPAFan521

Illinois

4.75/5  rDev +2.2%

05-19-2013 23:33:00 | More by IPAFan521

taveerin

California

5/5  rDev +7.5%

05-19-2013 23:25:49 | More by taveerin

MockY

California

4.25/5  rDev -8.6%

05-19-2013 22:04:12 | More by MockY

TreeBeard

Ohio

4/5  rDev -14%

05-19-2013 20:35:13 | More by TreeBeard

Heady978

Massachusetts

4.16/5  rDev -10.5%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.25

Finally got two bottles in mail bottled on 5/9/13 and consumed 5/16/13. Delicious and quintessential, but no way is it even close to Heady Topper, its East coast rival. I have no idea how anyone who has consumed Heady fresh can possibly prefer Pliny. It's essentially a DIPA for non- hopheads who can't handle real hop bombs. Great beer, but not worth the hype and effort to get your hands on it.

Serving type: bottle

05-19-2013 20:08:50 | More by Heady978

Dyelawn

Maine

4.5/5  rDev -3.2%

05-19-2013 19:10:32 | More by Dyelawn

zackb

Oregon

5/5  rDev +7.5%

05-19-2013 15:53:26 | More by zackb

MJSJr

Ohio

5/5  rDev +7.5%

05-19-2013 15:05:25 | More by MJSJr

ShawnMH

Indiana

4.25/5  rDev -8.6%

05-19-2013 14:52:49 | More by ShawnMH

jakeox

Illinois

4.25/5  rDev -8.6%

05-19-2013 00:13:52 | More by jakeox