Quote:
Originally Posted by Coff
I quite enjoy Redemption whenever I have a chance to drink it, although it gets severely overpriced in Philly. All that being said, Im a pretty big RR fanboy and my opinion might be a little bit skewed. Your review is extremely fair however and I can see how youre not wowed with Redemption.
Are you a fan of Orval? Ive never done a side by side, but Vinnie has said many times in different speeches and interviews that Orval is his favorite beer in the world so its likely that Redemption is emulated after Orval.
What other RR beers have you had? And did you find them more exciting?
I've not had a chance to have Orval, it would be interesting to do a side by side.
I think my review was tempered a bit by the context of my obtaining the beer. We can't get Russian River here in Indiana through distribution, I had to ship it in from the west coast. So in my mind, for the money I paid for the bottle itself, plus the wait and anticipation of the package arriving (I shipped some Pliny, Blind Pig, and a saison from Dupont in Belgium), plus the stellar reputation of RR, I expected to be blown away by the beer, and possibly had an expectation that couldn't be met. So I did think it was a very good beer. If I could get that beer at my local liquor store on a semi-regular basis, I would buy it (although I agree that it's a bit overpriced). However, if I had to ship it in from the west coast again, I didn't think it was great enough to go to those lengths to get it. Next time I have a chance to go to the west coast, I would likely get it again. So hopefully I didn't let that affect my review too much, but I definitely weigh the value (not price) of what I paid/scarcity vs the actual experience while drinking it. Somewhat like comparing steakhouses--if I'm paying $50 for a steak, I want to walk away remembering that steak for a loooooong time, and I think of that steak much differently than a steak I might get at a chain like Texas Roadhouse or the like.
As far as other RR beers I've had, I've had Pliny the Elder and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I've said in this thread several times that I'm not a huge hop and IPA guy, but I think Pliny is one of the best, well balanced, and well made beers I've ever had. At the homebrewer's conference in San Diego where Vinny gave the keynote, we also had a brown ale that I can't find on his website so it might have been something they made specifically for the conference. That brown ale was also amazing.
My brewing buddy and his wife are HUGE RR fans and they talk a lot about the afternoon they spent at the brewery and bar, with 45 sample glasses in front of them. I have no doubt that if I have a chance to taste more RR beers I'll like them or maybe find a different appreciation for Redemption. I wish they would distribute closer to here. Even if they distributed in Chicago, I would be there often enough to pick up a 6 pack or two.