One last beer from Russian River, or at least for a while, as not only are we swinging towards home, but this 
pretty much depletes the Russian River back stock we had built up. This marks beer number four from Russian River—Temptation, Pliny the Elder and Blind Pig round our drinking pleasure. Plus, they love definitions, which means we love them—who doesn’t love paying attention to language?
Described on the label as an “ale aged in oak barrels with currants added,” Consecration pours a reddish brown color—not quite bright enough to be garnet, but not dark enough to be burnt sienna—with a light ivory head that quickly disappears. The nose has a good amount of vinegar sourness—we think that is acetic acid—and smaller amounts of fruitiness, which is probably the currants, although there is also something of a grape-ish Bazooka Joe aroma that emerges from the
background. Flavors start with bright citric bite followed by some vinegar sourness; the middle has small amounts of fruitiness before moving into a mineral-y finish that is chalky, dry, and tart. The small amounts of fruitiness in the middle give the appearance of sweetness in the middle, even though this is about as bone dry as Temptation. The chalky, dry finish is also more pronounced here than it was with Temptation, although they both have the same light body. Consecration has a bright, puckering, and tart mouthfeel—the dryness and high attenuation, coupled with the mineral and chalky component of the finish leave a tangy and tart residual sensation on the palate after the beer is gone, along with a fair amount of dryness. The carbonation is medium; mixed with the light body, the bite is tingly and bright. An enjoyable beer; like with the Temptation, there is some flushed cheek perspiration, and plenty of mouth-puckering goodness. I like this better than
Temptation, although Elli finds Temptation more enjoyable than Consecration. I’m not sure what that means other than to say that this beer is a yummy treat.
pretty much depletes the Russian River back stock we had built up. This marks beer number four from Russian River—Temptation, Pliny the Elder and Blind Pig round our drinking pleasure. Plus, they love definitions, which means we love them—who doesn’t love paying attention to language?Described on the label as an “ale aged in oak barrels with currants added,” Consecration pours a reddish brown color—not quite bright enough to be garnet, but not dark enough to be burnt sienna—with a light ivory head that quickly disappears. The nose has a good amount of vinegar sourness—we think that is acetic acid—and smaller amounts of fruitiness, which is probably the currants, although there is also something of a grape-ish Bazooka Joe aroma that emerges from the
background. Flavors start with bright citric bite followed by some vinegar sourness; the middle has small amounts of fruitiness before moving into a mineral-y finish that is chalky, dry, and tart. The small amounts of fruitiness in the middle give the appearance of sweetness in the middle, even though this is about as bone dry as Temptation. The chalky, dry finish is also more pronounced here than it was with Temptation, although they both have the same light body. Consecration has a bright, puckering, and tart mouthfeel—the dryness and high attenuation, coupled with the mineral and chalky component of the finish leave a tangy and tart residual sensation on the palate after the beer is gone, along with a fair amount of dryness. The carbonation is medium; mixed with the light body, the bite is tingly and bright. An enjoyable beer; like with the Temptation, there is some flushed cheek perspiration, and plenty of mouth-puckering goodness. I like this better than
Temptation, although Elli finds Temptation more enjoyable than Consecration. I’m not sure what that means other than to say that this beer is a yummy treat.Look at those red highlights!
From the bottle: “When we made the Toronado’s 2oth Anniversary Ale, we had no idea that it would turn out to be one of our favorite barrel aged beers we would ever make. With that said, we have always wanted to make a dark barrel aged beer using 100% Cabernet Sauvignon barrels, bu, we never were inspired. That is, until we blended five different beers to make the Toronado beer, the tobacco character from the dark malts blended nicely with the fruit character that developed in blending. So, with Consecration we set out to make a barrel beer using all
Cabernet Sauvignon barrels. Now, we are not saying this is a replicaof the T-rooms anniversary beer, after all, a beer like that can never be duplicated, and, there was no fruit added to that beer as there is with this one. All we are saying is that it gave us great inspiration to brew Consecration. Consecration is refermented in the bottle to create its carbonation—a process commonly used to make fine Champagne and sparkling wine. Spent yeast forms a thin layer of sediment in the bottle, adding yet another layer of complexity and flavors. Pour slowly as to allow the natural yeast sediment to remain in the bottle.”ABV: 10.0%
Batch: 002X3
Brewed: 6/18/2008
Bottled: 4/1/2009
(6/29/10)
(6/29/10)
Where the shit did you get all this Russian River?
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