We've been enjoying a multitude of Winter beers and special releases lately. The beers of Winter are among my favorites, but that doesn't mean that's all we drink this time of year. Although these seasonal releases still take up most of the refrigerator shelf space these days, I like to keep some more conventional beers on hand. Pale Ale from Old Dominion Brewery is one of those that I picked up on a recent shopping trip.Old Dominion Pale Ale pours a dark copper color with a thick head. The heads drop fairly quick leaving sticky lacing behind. The aroma is mild but rich in piney hops. The flavor is a well-balanced mix of bitter grapefruit, a bit of pine, and a sweet malt background. The finish is slightly dry and the bitterness lingers for a long time. This is a refreshing, easy to drink beer.
Old Dominion's other mainstay beers, Lager, Ale, and Oak Barrel Stout all appear regularly on local retailers' shelves, even the chain grocery stores frequently stock them. For some reason the Pale Ale is less often seen. Now, perhaps due to the brewery's new association with Anheuser-Busch, and the associated distribution system, the Pale Ale joined the others on the shelf at our local grocery store. Even the brewery's Root Beer was sitting on the same shelf with the real beers.
The bottles of Old Dominion Pale Ale were dated November 2008, and still bore the Ashburn, VA address, so I assume these are still Virginia-produced. Even though the brewery will soon will be located in Delaware instead of the Old Dominion, I will be pleased to see the beer stocked regularly on store shelves, especially at the nearby grocery store.
I really liked the Baltic Porter. As much as people say they haven't changed since the AB affiliation there are the same amount of people that say they have changed. Keeping both of the opinions in mind I was alittle skeptical of the beer. I was really suprised (in a good way) by it. So much so I bought some for my brother in NJ as a Christmas present.
ReplyDeleteI think the beers have improved since the buyout. Of course, a lot of that is the work of Favio Garcia and the production staff remaining in Ashburn, Va. Let's re-taste once Bill Muelhauser shuts the brewery and moves the production to Dover, DE with a different brewing crew.
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