Consecration - Russian River Brewing Company

As I relaxed over Christmas break, I had the opportunity to try the third beer in the series from Russian River Brewing Company, Consecration. The first beer I tried was Damnation, which was a golden strong ale, and the second was a brown ale barrel aged in Pinot Noir oak barrels with sour cherries named Supplication. Consecration is a dark strong ale that has been aged in cabernet sauvignon barrels with black currents.

Russian River Brewing Company was started in 1997 by Korbel Champagne Cellars, who then sold the business to the head brewer, Vinnie Cilurzo, in 2002. Vinnie has since expanded both the brewery and his distribution region, making a name for himself with extreme IPAs and sour Belgian-inspired beers like the Supplication I reviewed last term. Like Supplication, Consecration is a sour beer, which means it was inoculated with a souring agent. Russian River actually uses four different souring agents in their beer. First is the fruit, currents in Consecration and cherries in Supplication. After the beer has finished its fermentation with Saccharomyces it is dosed with Brettanomyces (another form of yeast) and Pediococcus and Lactobacillus (two forms of bacteria), all of which digest sugars that Saccharomyces cannot to produce lactic acid and other sour tasting compounds.

Consecration poured a clear, golden amber with a beautiful reddish hue. The clarity was excellent, although care must be taken when pouring any bottle conditioned beer so as not to disturb the yeast sediment on the bottom (unless it is a hefe, as these beers are meant to be consumed with a heavy yeast suspension); this sediment tastes nasty, and ruins the last glass of beer. The head was tan and fairly thin, but of a very fine texture and left beautiful lacing on the glass. The aroma was sweet, sour, and slightly fruity, but the most distinct scent was actually of vanilla, almost like a bourbon; overall the scent was very complex. The carbonation was smooth, with some sparkling highlights that tickled a bit. This was not nearly the sparkly carbonation I’ve experienced with many other beers, which can be pretty harsh, and paired very well with the thick, full body. The taste was quite sour and acidic, while maintaining some sweetness, but the overall balance was quite good, and the sourness was not nearly at the level of the Supplication.

This was actually one of the best beers I have ever had, right next to Supplication, and I can’t recommend it enough. Both beers are sour beers, however, and not particularly cheap; If you are interested in trying something new, go for it, but if you like your Natural Ice, buy a case of that instead and be happy.

Size: 375 mL

Price: $17.50

ABV: 10.0%

Look: 5/5

Smell: 5/5

Taste: 5/5

Mouthfeel: 5/5