Consecration | Russian River Brewing Company
Brewed by:
Russian River Brewing Company
California, United States
rrbeer.com
Style: American Wild Ale
Alcohol by volume (ABV): 10.00%
Availability: Rotating
Notes / Commercial Description:
Belgian-style dark ale aged in American oak Cabernet Sauvignon barrels with currants.
Added by Gueuzedude on 10-31-2008
HISTOGRAM
View: Beers | Place Reviews
Ratings: 5,401 | Reviews: 1,181
4.81/5 rDev +7.1%
look: 4.75 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75
Dark amber color, vigorous carbonation & head that relaxes into the whisper of a lacing. Aroma is fantastic - lush upfront with those cab sav smells (rich dark grape) with the currants adding a nice sweetness underneath with just a hint of tart yeast for contrast. Taste starts put the opposite, very heavy on the currant flavor until the that husky oak / cab sav comes in on the mid-palate with some grape tanin & vintages barrel flavors. The lacto tartness is there but is used so well to contrast & highlight the deeper flavors that you barely notice. Finishes like dry wine with a lingering sting of tartness. Fantastic.
624 characters
look: 4.75 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75
Dark amber color, vigorous carbonation & head that relaxes into the whisper of a lacing. Aroma is fantastic - lush upfront with those cab sav smells (rich dark grape) with the currants adding a nice sweetness underneath with just a hint of tart yeast for contrast. Taste starts put the opposite, very heavy on the currant flavor until the that husky oak / cab sav comes in on the mid-palate with some grape tanin & vintages barrel flavors. The lacto tartness is there but is used so well to contrast & highlight the deeper flavors that you barely notice. Finishes like dry wine with a lingering sting of tartness. Fantastic.
624 characters
4.4/5 rDev -2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Pours a hazy brown with hints of golden yellow... Nice white bubbles don't quite form a head, but a whispy ring around the edges. Very little lace-- but you see the legs on a good swirl.
I smell dark cherry and fig and some toasty woodiness... Smells a little funky sourness.
Tastes very nice with notes that follow nose... Very nice. Pleasant sourness on the finish.
Nice mouthfeel with plenty of carbonation-- this thing is little heftier than the supplication, not quite as drinkable, but
still scores highly.
516 characters
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Pours a hazy brown with hints of golden yellow... Nice white bubbles don't quite form a head, but a whispy ring around the edges. Very little lace-- but you see the legs on a good swirl.
I smell dark cherry and fig and some toasty woodiness... Smells a little funky sourness.
Tastes very nice with notes that follow nose... Very nice. Pleasant sourness on the finish.
Nice mouthfeel with plenty of carbonation-- this thing is little heftier than the supplication, not quite as drinkable, but
still scores highly.
516 characters
4.54/5 rDev +1.1%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
Batch 004x5. Poured a muddy ruby-mahogany into a tulip with a thin finger of off-white, quick-receding head. Vivid aroma of tart cherry, apple, funk, peppery spice, and a bit of oak.
Moderate carbonation and a dry, prickly, slick mouthfeel. Sour up front with cranberry and balsamic notes, apple, leather, and a hint of vanilla and tobacco on the finish before returning to a lingering, puckering cherry tartness. Alcohol is almost completely masked.
Temptation is probably my all-around favorite from Russian River, but this and Supplication are right up there as well. A wonderful treat to savor slowly!
607 characters
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
Batch 004x5. Poured a muddy ruby-mahogany into a tulip with a thin finger of off-white, quick-receding head. Vivid aroma of tart cherry, apple, funk, peppery spice, and a bit of oak.
Moderate carbonation and a dry, prickly, slick mouthfeel. Sour up front with cranberry and balsamic notes, apple, leather, and a hint of vanilla and tobacco on the finish before returning to a lingering, puckering cherry tartness. Alcohol is almost completely masked.
Temptation is probably my all-around favorite from Russian River, but this and Supplication are right up there as well. A wonderful treat to savor slowly!
607 characters
4.85/5 rDev +8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5
A - Dark brown with bright ruby red highlights when held up to light. Almost cola like in appearance. Big, bubbly light brown head and audible fizzing. Head does not last long but does leave pretty good lacing. Lots of bubbles quickly rising to the top.
S - Strong aroma of brandy soaked cherries and raisins. A nice light vinegar aroma lingers underneath as well. Hints of vanilla and oak as well.
T - An excellent array of tastes come at you and the balance is just amazing. Starts off with a nice sour fruitiness with cherries and raisins, much like the aroma. The sour tastes fade to a more vinegar based tartness later in the drink. Throughout there is a nice underlying oakiness with hints of vanilla that provide an excellent balance to the sour/tart tastes throughout. Just an excellent array of flavors that play off each other wonderfully. I'm still new to the world of American Wild's, but this has to be darn near perfection.
M/D - Full bodied with an incredibly lively carbonation. The beer tickles your mouth and throat the whole way down. Ridiculously easy drinking as well.
1,092 characters
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5
A - Dark brown with bright ruby red highlights when held up to light. Almost cola like in appearance. Big, bubbly light brown head and audible fizzing. Head does not last long but does leave pretty good lacing. Lots of bubbles quickly rising to the top.
S - Strong aroma of brandy soaked cherries and raisins. A nice light vinegar aroma lingers underneath as well. Hints of vanilla and oak as well.
T - An excellent array of tastes come at you and the balance is just amazing. Starts off with a nice sour fruitiness with cherries and raisins, much like the aroma. The sour tastes fade to a more vinegar based tartness later in the drink. Throughout there is a nice underlying oakiness with hints of vanilla that provide an excellent balance to the sour/tart tastes throughout. Just an excellent array of flavors that play off each other wonderfully. I'm still new to the world of American Wild's, but this has to be darn near perfection.
M/D - Full bodied with an incredibly lively carbonation. The beer tickles your mouth and throat the whole way down. Ridiculously easy drinking as well.
1,092 characters
4.17/5 rDev -7.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
Too much Cabernet. Barrel character DEF comes out strong. Maybe time will do justice. But, no heat:l Very cab forward sour worthy of the claim. not my kind of sour though. Regardless, def worth the try. Cheers!
217 characters
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
Too much Cabernet. Barrel character DEF comes out strong. Maybe time will do justice. But, no heat:l Very cab forward sour worthy of the claim. not my kind of sour though. Regardless, def worth the try. Cheers!
217 characters
4.2/5 rDev -6.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
thanks to youradhere for this bottle!
375ml. cork and caged bottle at about fridge temp. shared at a small tasting. batch 006
pours out a darkish red/ brown color with just some thin light tan colored head eventually fading to a ring. minimal lacing.
fruity and funky. the ideal american wild aroma, yet pretty standard for the style. barnyard bretty funk, smells tart, a bit of dark fruits.
a very nice asseritive lemon citrus tartness gets you off the bat. lots of barnyard funk which mostly rules the taste. a bit of dark fruits, and a slight berry flavor, almost a bit winey.
dry and tart, the sourness is really felt all over the palate and sticks around for a bit. hides the ABV very well.
gotta love that classic, in your face russian river sourness! a very solid wild that i would never turn down, but perhaps not the best amongst all the RR sours.
864 characters
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
thanks to youradhere for this bottle!
375ml. cork and caged bottle at about fridge temp. shared at a small tasting. batch 006
pours out a darkish red/ brown color with just some thin light tan colored head eventually fading to a ring. minimal lacing.
fruity and funky. the ideal american wild aroma, yet pretty standard for the style. barnyard bretty funk, smells tart, a bit of dark fruits.
a very nice asseritive lemon citrus tartness gets you off the bat. lots of barnyard funk which mostly rules the taste. a bit of dark fruits, and a slight berry flavor, almost a bit winey.
dry and tart, the sourness is really felt all over the palate and sticks around for a bit. hides the ABV very well.
gotta love that classic, in your face russian river sourness! a very solid wild that i would never turn down, but perhaps not the best amongst all the RR sours.
864 characters
4.03/5 rDev -10.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Batch 001x4
Deep ruby in color, with a brownish tint. Slightly hazy. The carbonation looks pretty lively, keeping the frothy tan foam at more than just a ring. Tart vinegar aroma, with cherry fruit, much like like an Oud Bruin really. Nothing too funky, just straight forward sour brown smell.
I wouldn't call the taste sour as much as just very tangy. It hits you with cherry and vinous fruit character up front, and those flavors linger strongly. Not until the beer warms a bit do you actually detect some sweetness of malt with some raisiny caramel notes. The finish has a bit of astringence, but not too much alcohol heat to detract. The wood presence seems more in the background unfortunately, perhaps some more time in the barrel would have helped that.
I was glad to see in the appearance that the carbonation looked intense. However, I would say it came off as a little too much at first, quite sharp on the tongue, although it settles down after sitting a few minutes in the glass. Light to medium thick body.
When you let this beer warm a bit, and allow the carbonation to settle down, it turns out to be pretty good in terms of drinkability. I wasn't as amazed as I expected to be considering the hype, but I did like it. I'm not sure it is worth the price tag, but I would be interested in trying different batches to see any differences...
1,359 characters
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Batch 001x4
Deep ruby in color, with a brownish tint. Slightly hazy. The carbonation looks pretty lively, keeping the frothy tan foam at more than just a ring. Tart vinegar aroma, with cherry fruit, much like like an Oud Bruin really. Nothing too funky, just straight forward sour brown smell.
I wouldn't call the taste sour as much as just very tangy. It hits you with cherry and vinous fruit character up front, and those flavors linger strongly. Not until the beer warms a bit do you actually detect some sweetness of malt with some raisiny caramel notes. The finish has a bit of astringence, but not too much alcohol heat to detract. The wood presence seems more in the background unfortunately, perhaps some more time in the barrel would have helped that.
I was glad to see in the appearance that the carbonation looked intense. However, I would say it came off as a little too much at first, quite sharp on the tongue, although it settles down after sitting a few minutes in the glass. Light to medium thick body.
When you let this beer warm a bit, and allow the carbonation to settle down, it turns out to be pretty good in terms of drinkability. I wasn't as amazed as I expected to be considering the hype, but I did like it. I'm not sure it is worth the price tag, but I would be interested in trying different batches to see any differences...
1,359 characters
Consecration from Russian River Brewing Company
Beer rating:
4.49 out of
5 with
5,401 ratings
0 characters. We love reviews! Turn your rating into one with ≥ 150 characters.
In English, explain why you're giving this rating. Your review must discuss the beer's attributes (look, smell, taste, feel) and your overall impression in order to indicate that you have legitimately tried the beer. Nonconstructive reviews may be removed without notice and action may be taken on your account.