Dominion Stout

Product Reviewed: Dominion Stout
Brewed by: Old Dominion Brewing Co.; Ashburn, Virginia
Reviewed by: David Brockington
Original Posted to Usenet: June 2, 1994

Initial Impressions:

This beer was bottled on February 17, 1994, and reviewed on May 28. Hence, assume the usual caveats. I would like to take this opportunity to once again reiterate how much I am in favor of brewers actually placing the bottling date on their beers. The beer received inordinately good treatment on either end of the shipping. I don't even treat my own beer as well as I have treated the beers that I review. :)

The pour created a beautiful tan head (but then, how can such a thing not be beautiful?) which slowly dissipated. The beer was not completely opaque; when it was held up to the light a deep reddish hue could be seen in the corners of the glass.

Nose:

Roast is the predominant feature of the bouquet of Dominion Stout. Following the roast one can pick out hints of maltiness. No hops were evident in the nose, which could be a function of age. However, if the Stout was brewed correctly (IMHO) there ought not be any hop nose to speak of, assuming an Irish Dry was being replicated by the brewer.

Flavor:

The first thing I noticed about this beer was its relatively thin body, but that is probably due to my being spoiled with the West Coast Stouts, which tend to be more assertive than the true Irish examples of the style. The thinness in body is ok, then. Quickly one notices the roasted barley, which dominates the beginning of the flavor profile, and then a long, solid patent malt finish lingers. Serving as a foundation for these two sensations is a nice hint of maltiness balanced by an appropriate degree of hop bitterness, with alcohol flavors adding color to the sensation.

Final Analysis:

While this stout is not as assertive as I like my stouts, there are not many stouts which pass this test. (I'll give you a hint -- Guinness doesn't come close). So, that makes my tastes in stout somewhat atypical. I will say that of the midwest and east coast stouts that I have had the pleasure of trying, Dominion Stout ranks as one of the most aggressive of the bunch. All in all, a very good beer.

***1/2 (based on 5)

Next Up:

Dominion Millennium

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