Archives: Old Dominion Brew Pub 11/16/97

Old Dominion Brew Pub
Ashburn, VA
Sun 11/16/97 1:50pm
[brew pub is now - sadly - closed]

On Tap:
Dominion Stout (J)
J. Paul's Amber Ale
Tupper's Hop Pocket Ale
Belgian Blonde (B)
Aviator Amber Ale
Summer Wheat (B)
Patriot Amber
Blueberry Wheat
O.D. Brown Ale
Old Dubliner Amber
Hard Times Select
Dominion Helles
Dominion Lager
Dominion Dark Lager
Oktoberfest (out)
Root Beer

Our 3rd visit, first time to rank it. Out of Oktoberfest. Stout & J. Paul's tapped through nitrous pump. Really ugly green walls in pub. Extremely casual place.

Belgian Blonde: Very very faint aroma. No head to speak of. Very yeasty and full in mouth. Malt & fruit on finish. A hint of orange, a hint of lemon. If a little more effervescent, would be terrific. It settles for pretty good. 8.0

Dominion Stout: A substantial head that disappeared fast. Typical stout color. An interesting flavor - the gas lightens the flavor nicely. Both chocolate and coffee is in the taste. Lighter than some stouts I've had. Very drinkable. 8.5

Summer Wheat: I first ordered this at the height of summer and thought it was about the best beer this palate had tasted. Now it's mid-November, and I felt I wanted to see how the beer stacked up now. It came with a good head - was gone by the time the previous paragraph was written. [mis-spelled paragraph and noted "not sober btw..."]

A quite cloudy, yeasty look. A light, fruity aroma. Not that far removed from the Belgian except a). better head, and b ). obviously wheaty/yeastier. Yes, this is still an excellent beer. More effervescent than the Belgian - if equal in this quality the Belgian would be in the 9's. Good body. Still better as a summer beer, but ranks high among my favorites. 8.6