Russian River Brewing Co. Temptation Batch #2
The first beer styles that I got interested in were Belgian beers. But the first style of beer that I really got excited about were wild ales. I quickly became entranced by the incredibly complex flavor profiles of lambics, geuzes, and Flemish ales. This was in 2006 and 2007, a time when American brewers were only just beginning to brew this style of beer. Russian River was one of the first, and as far as I can tell remains one of the, and perhaps the, best.
The text on the label of this beer says it all, “Is it beer or is it wine?”. In truth, wild ales have trouble fitting into one category or the other. The flavors they present to beer drinkers are often shocking if not entirely unwelcome. Tart, sour, barnyard, leather, and horse are common flavors that will coexist with more typical flavors of citrus, fruit, wine, and spices, making for a yin/yang sort of style. Wild ales are easily the most complex beers being brewed today, either in America or elsewhere.
While the style heralds from the lambic brewers of Belgium, American brewers have been making notable headway with this style. Whereas Belgian brewers rely on the brewhouse’s resident yeasts to perform the magic of turning the beer into lambic, American brewers began by using yeasts either imported from Belgium or cultured from Belgian brewers by companies such as Wyeast and White Labs. Some of them, Russian River included, inoculated their beers with these yeasts and then transferred them into oak barrels, with the result that the yeasts took up residence in the barrels, enabling the brewery to begin building their own unique wild yeast strain(s).
In 2006 when I first discovered that brewers such as Russian River were brewing wild beers, I was also fortunate enough to be traveling out to California on occasion. On one of those trips, Erin and I stumbled upon a cache of RR beers, 3 bottles each of Temptation (Batch #1) and Supplication (Batch #2). I didn’t hesitate to pick some up and bring them home with us. Since then I’ve drunk a couple of each of the bottles, and managed to patiently sit on the remaining ones. Russian River doesn’t ship out here, and so since that last trip the only chance I’ve had to try any of their other beers was at last fall’s Belgian Beer Fest where they were serving the most recent bottling of Beatification.
And so it is with a touch of sadness and lots of excitement that I popped the cork on this last bottle of Temptation Batch #2. This batch was brewed on July 1, 2005 and bottled on October 12, 2006. As far as Russian River’s wild brews goes, this one was a relatively tame beginning. Two strains of Belgian ale yeasts were used. After primary fermentation the beer was aged in Chardonnay barrels and used a wine yeast and brettanomyces for bottling and conditioning.
Here is the text from the label:
“Is it beer, or is it wine? “Aged in French oak wine barrels for sixteen months with distinct characteristics of fruit and subtle oak” sounds more like a description of wine than beer. But, of course, Temptation is indeed beer. Actually, Tempation is a blonde ale, after the primary fermentation it is aged in used French oak chardonnay barrels. Flavors of wine and oak absorb into the brew throughout the sixteen months of barrel aging. During this time, a secondary fermentation occurs using a yeast strain disliked by most brewers and winemakers called Brettanomyces. The addition of ‘Brett’ gives Temptation intriguing characteristics and a pleasant sourness.”
I don’t think there’s anything I can add to that. So on to the tasting.
The beer pours a clear, golden yellow. A thin white head forms and sticks around for the duration. Ample much carbonation is apparent from the number of bubbles rising to the surface. The nose has sour apples, lemons, wheat, earthiness, and wine. Very complex, and the more time I spend with it the more I notice. The palate is rich with carbonation and has a very light texture. The flavors are dominated by a warming sourness that forms a backdrop for other flavors: poached pears, malty sweetness, grassiness, apples, lemons. As the beer warms, lush, oaky sweetness begins to play a more prominent role. The long finish begins surprisingly sweet, with a strong note of chardonnay oakiness, after which the tart fruit flavors return.
A beer this complex is just remarkable. The number of flavors that you notice the more you taste and smell it is amazing. Since brewing this beer Russian River has consolidated their spot at the forefront of American breweries creating wild beers. While other brewers brew the occasional wild beer, the only other brewery regular brewing this style would be Lost Abbey. Meanwhile, Russian River has added Consecration (a stong dark ale aged for 6 months inside used cabernet sauvignon barrels with currants added) and Beatification (a 100% spontaneously fermented beer using the oldest barrels that no longer have any wine flavor or oak flavor left in them) to a lineup of wild beers already featuring Temptation and Supplication.
My one hope is to a) before too long make it out to Santa Rosa again to visit the brewery and try more of Russian River’s amazing lineup of beers (which goes well beyond wild beers…Pliny The Elder anyone?), and b) get my hands on just a few more bottles of these remarkable beers to stow away in the basement for future tasting. Without doubt, this beer has significantly gained in complexity since I first tasted it!
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