Dominion Millennium

Brewed by Old Dominion Brewing Company (Coastal Brewing Co.)
Style: Barley Wine
Dover, Delaware USA

Serve in Snifter

Cellar Reduction Night, Oct 20, 2007. Murky orange color with no head. Very strong, sweet malt aroma. The taste is very strong on the sweet malt. A little port/sherry flavors. Some mint.

Clear ruby red with a thin head. Nice smell is caramel figs booze and oxiation. Smooth mouthfeel. Taste mirrors the smell with a nice alcohol bite finish. Feb192004 bottling date. 61306

Courtesy of Eric @ Trappeze pub, Athens GA. Feb08 bottle Pours copper with beige head. Aroma caramel profile, hoppy floral with some honey like nose. Taste, smooth thick and creamy. Lots of candi sugar and acarmel with a light hoppy finish. Comes off with an peach like palate and spices.

Bottle: Caramel, slight haze, white head, dissipates quickly, spotty lacing, light sediment.   Fruity nose - candied, caramel malts, slight heat.   Young grapefruity citrus bitterness up front, somewhat sticky malts, semi-sweet.   11.4% is very well hidden (bonus point).   Very light finish, too light in fact.   Decent body, mediocre mouthfeel.   Clean, but not big.   Thanks Ben!

UPDATED: NOV 18, 2004 Above average American barleywine. Reddish brown in color. Strong alcohol taste with slight spice but can be occasionally soapy. That’s the only drawback me or my friends can find. They prefer Monster while I prefer this.

11 ounce goblet - $4.25 at Taco Mac in Buford, Georgia. Appearance: Arrived at Table Fifty-Three a clear, dark amber body with a thin, fine, egg shell-colored head. Smell: Sweet-smelling, fruit-scented nose of malts (brown sugar, then dark caramel, then Grade B maple syrup) and fresh-made chutney with an overall earthiness to it and marked by whiffs of alcohol. Taste: Sweet tastes brown sugar and dark caramel with just a touch of chewy breadiness to the overall maltiness. Fruity mixture of ripe cherry, apple, and discarded plumskins which, along with the booze contained within, gives these tastes a slight liqueur feel to them. Sure, I’m willing to cheerfully accept a certain amount of alcohol, but the level of heat its imparting is rather unbecoming. Hint of cinnamon with a wry, knowing wink and the "shhh" finger. Earthy, woody hop character with maybe a light vague touch of citrus. Moderate hop bitterness. Then, it’s back to the fruits swirled in brown sugar and maple syrup. Finishes fruity, bittersweet, and with more than a noticeable hint of alcoholic heat. Mouthfeel: Medium-full body. Medium carbonation. Drinkability: At this stage, it’s still a bit coarse and unrefined, but it’s basically good. Though it does make me more than wistful for a bottle of J.W. Lee’s Harvest Ale or, hell, one of my older bottles of Oak Barrel-Aged Millennium. I’m just sayin’!

This is a very hoppy barleywine, much like SN Bigfoot, or 3F Behemoth, but this lacks the fullness and complexity of those big ones. Don't get me wrong, this is good, but there are so many great barleywines out there, that I wouldn't call this one one to really seek out - slight white lacing, clear copper color - malty aroma with a bit of honey - honey initially in the flavor, then the hops come in - heavy maltiness comes back toward the end, with some fruits (cherries mostly) - the malt/hop balance is pulled off well in this one, much like the beers mentioned above, but this is still one notch under those greats.

2/24/11. 12oz bottle. Clear light red pour with a small white head that’s gone instantly. Light aroma of dark fruits and brown sugar with some cardboard. Sweet dark fruit flavor with orange peel and brown sugar. On the light and straightforward side.