Dominion Pale Ale

Brewed by Coastal Brewing Company
Style: American Pale Ale
Annapolis, Maryland USA

In the bottle. Reddish amber color. Head was not too substantial. Grainy and very hoppy aroma with possibly a little orange peel? Solid malt body supports the hops. Good IBU mouth feel. I like it. UPDATE 3/28/6: Not so much. This was the March beer of the Month selection (Thanks goes out to pman for sharing the love). Now I find this beer to be reddish copper with an off white head. The head is thick with big bubbles, pillowy in fact. There’s a faint hop aroma with honeysuckle sweetness. Mildly citrus-like. The flavor is unpleasant: a strong biting bitterness all over the tongue like a bitter chocolate (without the chocolate). The body is a little on the weak side to support such a strong amount of hops. This yeilds a harsh palate that is unbalanced.

(12 oz bottle, obtained in trade with jasonp, thanks Jason!) Oh, hell yes! Now this is my kind of pale ale! I’m immediately greeted by a big malty nose that is very sweet and fruity, but a fruit with a strong, powerful aroma like raisins. None of that soft, generic fruity nose here. And the big flavor backs up that potent nose. It’s very malty, bready, somewhat sweet, with a wonderful toastiness that just jumps right out at ya’. Stunning. Delicious. Moderately bitter hops lends some balance, but this definitely remains a malt dominated pale ale. Medium bodied, but the mouthfeel is full for the style. Very hazy, amber color. Off-white head is smallish on the pour, but maintains a thin layer for awhile before gradually fading to a sheen. Some scattered lacing is left on the glass. This is certainly one of the best pale ales I’ve tasted, at least in the top 3.

Well made Pale ale. Copper color, pours with a froth white head that quickly dissapates. Aroma is slightly citrus and grassy and malty sweet. Flavor is a balance mix of tart and sweetness. Dry finish.

(draft) Somehow I had neglected this beer all these years, and I really have been missing out. Crystal clear amber body with off-white head. Aroma is medium swet, grapefruit/floral, light caramel. Taste is medium sweet, floral/grapefruit, light caramel -- not especially bitter, but there is some bite. Light-medium body. Delicious, well-balanced beer.

This is one juicy hoppy pale ale! Starts with a floral citrus hop filled sweet malty nose. Thick sweet malt flavors accented with generous orange/grapefruit juice and woody bitterness. I kept thinking that the hops were going to pull ahead and veer this towards IPA territory, but the malts continued to bring it all back into balance with some caramel/toffee sweet smoothness. This is worth seeking out. My bottle was bottled August 12 and I bought it on 9/28/2004.

Immaculate copper. Creamy, slightly rocky ivory head. Sharp, barklike toasted malt scents interwoven with pine, English toffee, and marmalade. Subtly hoppy, but remarkably earthy. Beautifully conditioned, fine-bubbled carbonation. Gorgeously nuanced with earthy malts and vanilla, which underscore the prickly bitterness and tight piney assertions. Jellied malts complements the coarser malt elements. Softly floral hop center kissed with toffee and rich Munich. Well-rounded mineral flavor with a splash of their hallmark buttery yeast character. Ends persistently juicy with minty hop leaves wiping the palate clean, along with a deliciously coarse peach fuzz note and Cascades in the background complementing the subtleties of the nutty malt. Baffling complexity and balance. And thankfully, the acidity is never given a chance to detract from the hop and malt interplay, due to the thick malt body. Just another stunner from these Pale Ale gurus.

Bottle. Medium beige head, and amber color. Nice appearance. Aroma is winish, and has sweet odor even with the strong smell of hops. Body is malty with a medium hop presence. Slight dry finish. Pleasant, but not overwhelming.

Amber color out of the bottle with a small off-white head. Slight grain nose. Fruity malt flavors of apricot and slight raspberry with a nice floral hop finish. Some orange in the finish. Easy drinking beer, but not really remarkable. Thanks to slob for the bottle.