[1998 bottle] A hazy dark amber beer with a disappearing off-white head. The aroma is of alcohol and yeast. The flavor is sweet with notes of alcohol and oranges.

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.

Beautiful nut-brown/amber colour, nice head. A very strong and full-bodied beer with lots of hops, but I think it will improve with age.

This Same Bottle - Re-Rated, almost 10 YEARS later! 2004-2005 Batch - Brewdate: 11-Feb-2005: Same look with almost no head at all - still with no pressure when opened. Aroma of very sweet pit fruit, some light alcohol and a bit of oak - nice and mellow. Full-bodied; Rich malt notes dominate with a ton of pit fruits and a very, VERY mellow alcohol note - this one hits the palate very nicely, almost like you aren’t drinking a barley wine at all. Overall, this has aged dramatically - very subdued and only showing touches of the oak and alcohol with more notes of sugars than anything else, but this is nice. The bottle shows the fill line just from residue, but after 10 years with no movement, this makes sense. A GREAT beer, and sadly, my last of this vintage and some of my last ever from this once great brewery. I sampled this twelve ounce bottle on New Year’s Eve 2015. Rating for this sample: 9,3,9,4,16 2004-2005 Batch - Brewdate: 11-Feb-05
Clear strong ruby tinted amber/copper coloured body with a medium-sized off-white head. Looks nice - about right for a fresh barley wine. Aroma is VERY nice, malt, caster sugar, sweet caramel, cherries, pit fruits, coriander seed, curacao, peanuts and even some anise. Full-bodied; Strong alcohol kick (tastes like sherry) with a good malt presence, a nice hop bitterness followed with plenty of alcohol & some pit fruits. Aftertaste still burns from the alcohol, yet still shows some spiceyness and some sweet burnt sugar flavours. Overall, a bit too harsh just right now, but given a year or more and this one will mellow out VERY nicely. I sampled this just 18 days after brewing, so give it another few hundred and i’ll try another bottle. I sampled this from a six pack purchased at Total Wine in McLean, Virginia on 01-March-2005. Rating for this vintage: 9,4,8,2,15 2009-2010 Batch - Brewdate: 02-Feb-10
Slightly hazy, muddy amber coloured body with a very thin tan head that fades very fast. Aroma of pit fruits, alcohol, oak and some grapes. Resiny flavour with a lot of alcohol and potent pit fruits noticeable with a good dose of hops and wine on the back end. Aftertaste very potent and showing too much alcohol and sharp flavours - even at one year. Overall, a decent barley wine, but nothing like what it used to be - sad, but the whole Dominion story is. I sampled this twelve ounce bottle purchased from Total Wine in McLean, Virginia on 15-April-2010 sampled at home in Washington on 15-May-2011. Score for this rating: 7,3,7,2,13 2004-2005 Batch - Brewdate: 11-Feb-05
Clear strong ruby tinted amber/copper coloured body with a medium-sized off-white head. Looks nice - about right for a fresh barley wine. Aroma is VERY nice, malt, caster sugar, sweet caramel, cherries, pit fruits, coriander seed, curacao, peanuts and even some anise. Full-bodied; Strong alcohol kick (tastes like sherry) with a good malt presence, a nice hop bitterness followed with plenty of alcohol & some pit fruits. Aftertaste still burns from the alcohol, yet still shows some spiceyness and some sweet burnt sugar flavours. Overall, a bit too harsh just right now, but given a year or more and this one will mellow out VERY nicely. I sampled this just 18 days after brewing, so give it another few hundred and i’ll try another bottle. I sampled this from a six pack purchased at Total Wine in McLean, Virginia on 01-March-2005. Rating for this vintage: 9,4,8,2,15

Reddish brown. Somewhat sweetish, but, thick, powerful and well hopped. A good barley wine.

Hazy golden-bronze; monstrous malt nose with toast, some peachiness and crackerlike influences; chewy, malty palate - caramelly, earthy tones, hint of phenols.