Dominion Oak Barrel Stout

One of the best things about writing a blog - even for someone who writes as sporadically as me - is that when I tell people that I write a beer blog, they're usually pretty in to it, and if they're in the beer biz, I sometimes score free beer. For instance, just last week I met a couple of cool guys who were visiting from Baltimore (well, one was from CA visiting his friend in Baltimore, but you get the point). We got to talking and it turns out that one of them is a sales rep for Old Dominion Brewing out of Dover, DE. Luck was on my side and he gave me a couple of samples of their brews - Oak Barrel Stoute and Double D IPA. Both were really good, and got me wondering why I don't see them on tap in Philly. This post won't answer that question, but it will give you my impressions of the Old Barrel Stout.

Peated and smoked malts serve as the malt foundation, and dry hopping is done with vanilla beans and oak chips. The pour is black, with some dark ruby brown overtones. The smell is of coffee, toffee, caramel, and vanilla. The taste is roasty and bitter to start, followed by a sweetness that is caramelly, chocolatey, and coffeey (I know it's not really spelled that way but it followed the others). This is a great beer! While I'm really loving stouts this winter (even with the somewhat mild weather), this is one I could enjoy on a more regular basis, especially since it's only 6.1% ABV. Unfortunately, my stash was limited to only 2.

Now, I'm not saying that you'll get to try the beer for free, but if you see Old Dominion around (and apparently it's available at Wegman's in PA), it's definitely worth a try. Cheers!