Russian River Consecration

Brewed by Russian River Brewing
Style: Sour Ale
Santa Rosa, California USA

Bottle: Poured a hazy reddish color ale with a large foamy head with good retention and some good lacing. Aroma of oak and tart notes with some blackcurrant notes – very complex. Taste is also a very complex mix between some blackcurrant, some tart notes and some pedio with light sweet figs at the end. Body is quite full for style with good carbonation and no signs of alcohol even though it does pack quite a punch. Very well done.

750 ml bottle
Thanks to a generous trader for sending me a bottle of this a few months ago. For Rating #1200 it seemed like a slam dunk so I fished it out of the cellar and let it chill for about an hour. My reward was one of the best sours I have tried - there are a few lambics which are better but this is not one to complain about.

Aroma / Appearance - Reddish black and opaque with a short lived head there was still plenty of carbonation. Citric acid, black cherries, and oak form a crisp sourness about on par with a mellow Cantillon. It smells almost like a cola which has been spiked with brett and lacto.

Flavor / Palate - Tart hayseed, flat cola, and raspberries rinse the tongue before drying out the throat. Medium grade as I expected this was drinkable without being too harsh on the palate. The total impression is like an amped up New Glarus Unplugged Olde English Porter - maybe that will take on some of the same characteristics in time. It wasn’t hard to finish two glasses but I would not want to drink a whole bottle by myself.

Bottle thanks to Byaeger (thanks Brian). Pours a murky amber-brown with a small beige head that quickly dissipates. The aroma is strong with berries, wine, spicy oak, and funk. The flavor is complex with sour cherry pits, berries, lots of oak, red wine(merlot or cab), vanilla and caramel. The mouthfeel is silky smooth with lively carbonation. The finish is long and dry with lingering complex tart flavors. Overall an impressive sour.

Sample @ BBF Night of the Funk. Pours a deep brown with a thin off-white head. Aroma is oak, dark fruit, and a bit of brett/funk as well. Taste is cherry, currant, raisin, with an explosion into a funky oak finish that pulls the beer together beautifully. I was almost in tears at the quality of this beer. This brewery is now 2 for 2 with me, and I can’t wait to try more from them.

Dark brown color with a thin tan head and lots of carbonation. Powerful aroma of dark fruit, oak, and some vinegar. Tastes of tannin, cherry, oak, and a sour vinegar ending. One of the best.

Sample from a bottle at NotF. Pours a dark brown fizzy color with a small head. Nose is lightly toasty and biscuity with a light oaky and funk note. Palate is full and fizzy. Flavor is more of the toast and light notes of dark fruits.

Small tan head with good retention, minimal lace. Lightly hazy amber body, red hued. Tart funky nose light vinous notes, pleasently musty, fruity. Medium body, gently carbonated, tart but not overly, the way i enjoy them. Dark fruit flavors, raisins, berries, gentle woodiness faint caramelly malts, cherries, spicey with a just right alc. warmth. Nicely tart fruity finish. Props to Gabe/Steve(cougar killer) for sharing this @ the Sour tasting! Thanks guys! Batch 001-4x. Nice...

Earthy garnet pour with a bubbling, rocky head that quickly disappears completely. Looks like wine in my glass, and is one of the prettiest colored beers I have ever seen when held to the light. Aroma is funky red grapes, cranberries, and rain-soaked wood. Flavor follows the nose but adds iron-like tannins, cherry pits, and nuances of balsamic and oak. Palate is dry and hides the abv perfectly. The carbonation in the mouthfeel is surprisingly great considering the lack of head/lacing. Overall, a stellar brew, and one that I will come back to again and again through the years. Definitely one of my favorite wilds/sours. Once you have a handle on all the flavor nuances, do not be afraid to let it cut right through a nice semi-soft cheese like Abbaye St. Mere.