Prazdnichnoye
Irkutskpisheprom

Found in a Vladivostok supermarket, this one comes in a standard brown half-liter bottle with a colorful label featuring a pair of horse-drawn sleighs streaking through a 19th century suburban landscape. The name means roughly "celebration." No further explanation provided. Ingredients include rice. Best within nine months of 1/25/05, I opened it on 4/4/05.

Pours a clear deep gold under a half finger white head that fades at a measured pace but dies without a trace. The nose is sweet - almost grape-like. The mouth is very prickly and fairly light. The taste is dominated by bad watermelon malt, mainly sweet, slightly sour. There is a decent although metallic hops backing behind, but the spice can't overcome the sweet and sour. This one is reasonably drinkable, but you've got to like this kind of malt. (I don't.)