Spring Break
Brew's Clues: Drexel's #1 Beer Review
This Week's Ale: Collaboration not Litigation Ale
By: Dennis Mongello
Issue date: 7/27/07 Section: Arts & Entertainment
Originally published: 7/28/07 at 12:35 AM EST
Last update: 7/28/07 at 12:34 AM EST
Originally published: 7/28/07 at 12:35 AM EST
Last update: 7/28/07 at 12:34 AM EST
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Come on baby won't you show me what you got here? I want your salvation, whooo-oh-oooo. Thus Tim Armstrong of Rancid sings Salvation. What's this have to do with beer? It has to do with the fact that this week's beer, Collaboration Not Litigation Ale is a blend of two beers both named Salvation. The two breweries, Russian River and Avery decided to blend their beers together instead of suing each other over the rights for the name. Quite frankly, I also think the beer was just a little rancid.
The beer itself looks pretty good. It has a medium-dark brown color, like a rich burnt caramel. While pouring, the bubbles pop in the body of the beer cutting the caramel color with a wave of white. These bubble then rise to form tall bubbly head that disappears rather slowly, leaving very little lacing behind. The beer has a sweet smell with burnt sugar notes with a bit of sour alcohol odor hiding behind it. Honestly, the smell here is not that great. It's like the brewers realized the smell wasn't so pleasant, so they tried to add things to the mix to mask the smell a bit.
The first thing I notice with this dark brown brew is the sour bread taste on both sides of the tongue. It is also a bit bitter, which is fine. Beer is supposed to be bitter, but beer is generally not supposed to be sour, outside of some lambics, and this is no lambic. It just doesn't leave a pleasant taste in your mouth. It is not all bad though. There is a nice toasty raison-based sweetness toward the outer roof of the mouth.
The same carbonation that gives this beer its ugly collar also gives it a sturdy mouthfeel. It finishes with a short bitter and sour aftertaste. It is also very dry. This dryness is probably the best aspect of the beer. There is a slight alcohol burn in the back of the throat as you drink the beer down. It benefits from taking sips rather than chugging mouthfuls. However, this doesn't really affect the taste too much either way. It's going to be sub par no matter how you drink it, so you might as well get it over with quickly. However, it is good to note that the warmer it gets, the better it gets.
Overall the downsides of this beer greatly outweigh the upsides. I think that the beers should have remained separate and never combined into this hideous Frankenstein of a drink. Avery Brewing and Russian River Brewing should have just left well enough alone and kept their salvations to themselves. What can I say? This is what I get for drinking a gimmicky beer.
The beer itself looks pretty good. It has a medium-dark brown color, like a rich burnt caramel. While pouring, the bubbles pop in the body of the beer cutting the caramel color with a wave of white. These bubble then rise to form tall bubbly head that disappears rather slowly, leaving very little lacing behind. The beer has a sweet smell with burnt sugar notes with a bit of sour alcohol odor hiding behind it. Honestly, the smell here is not that great. It's like the brewers realized the smell wasn't so pleasant, so they tried to add things to the mix to mask the smell a bit.
The first thing I notice with this dark brown brew is the sour bread taste on both sides of the tongue. It is also a bit bitter, which is fine. Beer is supposed to be bitter, but beer is generally not supposed to be sour, outside of some lambics, and this is no lambic. It just doesn't leave a pleasant taste in your mouth. It is not all bad though. There is a nice toasty raison-based sweetness toward the outer roof of the mouth.
The same carbonation that gives this beer its ugly collar also gives it a sturdy mouthfeel. It finishes with a short bitter and sour aftertaste. It is also very dry. This dryness is probably the best aspect of the beer. There is a slight alcohol burn in the back of the throat as you drink the beer down. It benefits from taking sips rather than chugging mouthfuls. However, this doesn't really affect the taste too much either way. It's going to be sub par no matter how you drink it, so you might as well get it over with quickly. However, it is good to note that the warmer it gets, the better it gets.
Overall the downsides of this beer greatly outweigh the upsides. I think that the beers should have remained separate and never combined into this hideous Frankenstein of a drink. Avery Brewing and Russian River Brewing should have just left well enough alone and kept their salvations to themselves. What can I say? This is what I get for drinking a gimmicky beer.
