Commonwealth Brewing Company
Microbrewery
in
Virginia Beach,
Virginia,
United States 🇺🇸
Associated with 2 Venues
Established in 2015
Contact
2444 Pleasure House Rd, Virginia Beach, VA, 23455, United States
Description
Commonwealth Brewing Co was founded as the manifestation of one family’s love for making uncompromising, exceptional beer and sharing the experiences with friends. The spark of inspiration was ignited during a revelatory European brewery and beer hall tour while Jeramy was visiting Natalie, who was traveling (aka wandering) abroad for two years. But it wasn’t until 2013, after years of stove top excellence, beer geekery and a house too full of brewing equipment, that it was time to fully embrace the craft beer lifestyle.
Commonwealth opened Sept 6, 2015 as a result of next level commitment, mild insanity, family, friends and a profound sense of purpose. Since then, we’ve grown into a tight knit band of like minded people who believe beer should be adventurous, diverse, extremely drinkable, and defy boundaries. We honor farmhouse traditions, huge hop American styles, and the complex depths of wild fermentations.
Located inside a fully renovated, former fire and rescue station built in 1962 and nestled in a funky beach cottage community (flip flops mandatory) on the Chesapeake Bay in Virginia Beach, our facility is complete with a double garage bay tasting room, private event spaces, an outdoor beer garden, and a conditioned barrel cellar housing hundreds of barrels of mixed fermentations for long term aging.
Commonwealth opened Sept 6, 2015 as a result of next level commitment, mild insanity, family, friends and a profound sense of purpose. Since then, we’ve grown into a tight knit band of like minded people who believe beer should be adventurous, diverse, extremely drinkable, and defy boundaries. We honor farmhouse traditions, huge hop American styles, and the complex depths of wild fermentations.
Located inside a fully renovated, former fire and rescue station built in 1962 and nestled in a funky beach cottage community (flip flops mandatory) on the Chesapeake Bay in Virginia Beach, our facility is complete with a double garage bay tasting room, private event spaces, an outdoor beer garden, and a conditioned barrel cellar housing hundreds of barrels of mixed fermentations for long term aging.
7.9/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 7.5
Can purchased from Dominion Wine & Beer. Poured a very nice, slightly hazy yellow color with a huge, foamy white head. Aroma was really nice juicy tropical fruits. Some tangerine, sweet citrus. Juicy. Very nice, smooth, very easy to drink.
Tried
from Can
on 30 Nov 2018
at 07:07
7.8/10
—
Appearance 6
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 8
Draft at Dominion Wine & Beer's upstairs bar. Poured a very slight hazy yellow color with a small off-white head. Aroma was super juicy, Tangerine. Orange. Clementine. Light boozy character in here. Mild resin. Really nice.
Tried
from Draft
on 30 Nov 2018
at 06:35
6.5/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 6
Texture 6
Overall 6
Canned 10/26, drunk 11/28/18.
Moderately hazy lemon-to-bronze golden. White head atop is small, fading steadily to a ring.
Smells of a bit dirty, heavily earthy hops. Dried cherry, light lime zest and a touch of mineral, but very little, if any juiciness remains, if it were ever there to begin with. Malts show typical cracker/biscuit which would keep the focus on the hops, yet in this case just serves to highlight the odd earthiness/dirt character. No alcohol or resin.
In the mouth it's surprisingly full of papaya, peach and pineapple. Almost fruit cup-like with too much twang and very overripe in its fruit character. Light bitterness, almost sourness even, on the finish with a soft, dry, malty texture and tight carbonation. After looking up that this is (I believe 100%) Enigma, it makes sense, given the hop's propensity for very bizarre notes. But perhaps it just doesn't age well, as nothing here is particularly enjoyable.
Moderately hazy lemon-to-bronze golden. White head atop is small, fading steadily to a ring.
Smells of a bit dirty, heavily earthy hops. Dried cherry, light lime zest and a touch of mineral, but very little, if any juiciness remains, if it were ever there to begin with. Malts show typical cracker/biscuit which would keep the focus on the hops, yet in this case just serves to highlight the odd earthiness/dirt character. No alcohol or resin.
In the mouth it's surprisingly full of papaya, peach and pineapple. Almost fruit cup-like with too much twang and very overripe in its fruit character. Light bitterness, almost sourness even, on the finish with a soft, dry, malty texture and tight carbonation. After looking up that this is (I believe 100%) Enigma, it makes sense, given the hop's propensity for very bizarre notes. But perhaps it just doesn't age well, as nothing here is particularly enjoyable.
Tried
from Can
on 29 Nov 2018
at 20:31
6.9/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 6.5
Canned 10.11.18, drunk 11.28.18.
Heavily hazy, peach-passion fruit juice-golden. White head to ring.
Strong NE IPA yeast character with hops that that smell like Mosaic and/or Azacca with an edge to them. Pineapple, mango and papaya with cracker and biscuit. Bright and tropical tinted. Not sure about the mallows but some interesting, hard to place notes in here.
Soft, light, malty and dry in the mouth with juicy lemon and pineapple. Cracker and biscuit with light honey and grapefruit, light bitterness and unique if hard to place. No resin or alcohol or flaw. Dry and clean. Mallows are definitely novel but don't detract. Honey loosens the texture somewhat. Not my fav but interesting.
Heavily hazy, peach-passion fruit juice-golden. White head to ring.
Strong NE IPA yeast character with hops that that smell like Mosaic and/or Azacca with an edge to them. Pineapple, mango and papaya with cracker and biscuit. Bright and tropical tinted. Not sure about the mallows but some interesting, hard to place notes in here.
Soft, light, malty and dry in the mouth with juicy lemon and pineapple. Cracker and biscuit with light honey and grapefruit, light bitterness and unique if hard to place. No resin or alcohol or flaw. Dry and clean. Mallows are definitely novel but don't detract. Honey loosens the texture somewhat. Not my fav but interesting.
Tried
from Can
on 29 Nov 2018
at 01:31
8.1/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 8.5
Pounder: Guava, weed aroma. Opaque orange, medium head, nice lace. Guava, lemongrass, subtle aspartame and meringue notes. Full body, easy carbonation.
Tried
on 27 Nov 2018
at 01:17
8/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 8
16 oz can poured into a tulip. Hazy orange with off-white head. Aromas of tropical fruit, light salt, lime. Tastes of tropical fruit, lime citrus, tart notes, subtle smoke, some salt. Light body with a dry finish.
Tried
from Can
on 25 Nov 2018
at 04:53
7.6/10
—
Appearance 6
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 7.5
Pint can from Wine Warehouse. Pours hazy gold with a soft off-white head. Aroma is juicy citrus, pine, cat piss, melon, pineapple. Flavor is tart melon, citrus peel, pine, dried flowers. Finishes dry. Good.
Tried
from Can
on 21 Nov 2018
at 19:53
6.1/10
—
Appearance 4
Aroma 7
Flavor 6
Texture 6
Overall 6.5
Pounder: Orange, tea, and fig nose. Opaque ochre, medium head. Fig and orange, yeast and leather. Full body, easy carbonation. Good commonwealth intensity, it just doesn't taste so good.
Tried
on 21 Nov 2018
at 04:42
8/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 8
16 oz can poured into a willi becher. Clear golden orange with off-white head. Aromas of tropical and stone fruit, light malt, light floral. Tastes of citrus, tropical fruit, light malt, floral, stone fruit. Medium body with a dry finish.
Tried
from Can
on 19 Nov 2018
at 03:25
6.1/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 6
Flavor 6
Texture 6
Overall 5.5
Can, undated, drunk 11/18/18.
Pours a distinctly clear brass. Small, white head steadily fades to a ring.
Smells much more Mosaic-forward than either of the other two hops though there's a bit of sweat and cat from the Citra (I think) that I haven't smelled in a while. Mosaic shows nectarine and pine with mushy white grape that seems to pick up the worst qualities of Galaxy. That hop doesn't really reveal itself. Maybe there's light lime and a touch of spice, but none of the rich mineral or white wine; certainly no passion fruit or mango. It's not resinous, but there's a hint of scallion lingering. Malts seem well-attenuated, staying safe with cracker and biscuit and light honey as no alcohol ever arrives.
In the mouth it's more of the dull Mosaic and sweaty Citra. Vegetal and scallion-heavy with, at least, good attenuation and no booze or resin. Just never gets bright or even bitter enough. Scallion and mushy honey build heavily on the finish with white bread, sour papaya and intense white grape lingering. Soft and a bit too sweet. Love these guys, but this one didn't do it for me.
Pours a distinctly clear brass. Small, white head steadily fades to a ring.
Smells much more Mosaic-forward than either of the other two hops though there's a bit of sweat and cat from the Citra (I think) that I haven't smelled in a while. Mosaic shows nectarine and pine with mushy white grape that seems to pick up the worst qualities of Galaxy. That hop doesn't really reveal itself. Maybe there's light lime and a touch of spice, but none of the rich mineral or white wine; certainly no passion fruit or mango. It's not resinous, but there's a hint of scallion lingering. Malts seem well-attenuated, staying safe with cracker and biscuit and light honey as no alcohol ever arrives.
In the mouth it's more of the dull Mosaic and sweaty Citra. Vegetal and scallion-heavy with, at least, good attenuation and no booze or resin. Just never gets bright or even bitter enough. Scallion and mushy honey build heavily on the finish with white bread, sour papaya and intense white grape lingering. Soft and a bit too sweet. Love these guys, but this one didn't do it for me.
Tried
from Can
on 18 Nov 2018
at 23:06