Crossword Genius

Russian river fish -- by the smell, going out of date (11)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

obsolescent

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'going out of date' is the definition.
'obsolescent' can be an answer for 'date' (thesaurus). I am not certain of the 'going out of' bit.

'russian river fish by the smell' is the wordplay.
'russian river' becomes 'Ob' (river in Russia).
'fish by' becomes 'sole' (sole is a kind of fish. I am not sure about the 'by' bit.).
'the smell' becomes 'scent' ('scent' can be a synonym of 'smell').
'ob'+'sole'+'scent'='OBSOLESCENT'

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for obsolescent that I've seen before include "Going out of use" , "on the way out" , "Outdated" , "out of fashion" , "about to disappear?" .)

I've seen this clue in The Telegraph.
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