Dominion Ale

Product Reviewed: Dominion Ale
Brewed by: Old Dominion Brewing Company; Ashburn, VA
Review By: David Brockington
Original Posted to Usenet: May 24, 1994

Initial Impressions:

The Ale was bottled in the same manner as the Bock, except this bottling was a tad older than the Bock, being bottled on February 21, 1994. The beer was reviewed on May 20, making the beer three months in the bottle. Hence, take the following review with the appropriate measure of salt, but I think you will see that this beer travels well. The bottle has no style appellation apart from "Ale", so I am left with little style guidelines with which to review the beer. Lacking any such indications, I decided to review it as an Ale, which means it didn't stand to lose any "style points" unless it was a crisp, clean, ester and/or diacetyl free beverage. It wasn't. The pour created a light amber glass of beer capped with a medium-beaded white head. Head retention and lacework were average. Clairity was excellent.

Nose:

The nose revealed a hints of both maltiness and fruitiness, with the latter predominating as the beer warmed.

Flavor:

A crystal-malt induced maltiness led off the taste sensations, followed by a slight diacetyl butteriness supported by more standard maltiness, with a subtle balancing act of hop bitterness and slight, teasing hop flavor in the finish. Altogether a pleasant experience.

Final Analysis:

An exceptionally clean (no faults) beer with the classic characteristics of an English Ale. My guess is that this is an ESB, although since my example was in bottled (not draft) form, it technically would be a Pale Ale. It compares favorably to Red Hook ESB, imho. I was torn about scoring it the way I did, because that was the same score I issued to Boston Burton Ale, and I believe the Dominion Ale to be a superior product.

***1/2 (out of 5)

Next Up:

Big Shoulders Porter from Chicago Brewing Co.

David Brockington, Seattle, USA
bronyaur@u.washington.edu