Williamsburg Stock Ale
Williamsburg Brewing Company

Williamsburg Stock AleWilliamsburg Stock Ale
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From:
Williamsburg Brewing Company
 
Virginia, United States
Style:
English Brown Ale
ABV:
5%
Score:
82
Avg:
3.41 | pDev: 16.42%
Reviews:
12
Ratings:
13
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Jan 26, 2012
Added:
Jul 08, 2002
Wants:
  0
Gots:
  0
No description / notes.
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Ratings by Gavage:
Photo of Gavage
Reviewed by Gavage from Nevada

3.5/5  rDev +2.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Clear copper in color with a nice 1" fluffy head. Some large bubbles cling to the insides of the glass, while smaller carbonation bubbles rise quickly. The aroma was of caramel and ripe dark fruits. The flavor was light on the malt side, as caramel, raisins, bread, and soft earthiness rounded it out. The bitterness level was very light.

Smooth and lightly crisp at the start. The finish was smooth, as caramel and bread tones lingered into the finish. Not a bad drinking brew, but not one to be overwhelmed by.
Aug 11, 2005
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 2.5 by AndrewMichael from Virginia

Jan 26, 2012
Photo of tgbljb
Reviewed by tgbljb from Pennsylvania

2.96/5  rDev -13.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
poured a very deep copper color woth large tan head that feel to a slight ring. Smell is sweet with slighly roasted undertones. The First taste is strangely metallic. This is the third beer of theirs that I've had and everyone started off metallic. This seems to disappear as the glass is consumed. It then tastes of caramel with a slight sweetness. Mouthfeel is slightly dry and enjoyable. A good beer after the first couple sips.
Jul 14, 2005
Photo of NeroFiddled
Reviewed by NeroFiddled from Pennsylvania

4/5  rDev +17.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
A huge head of big-bubbled off-white froth rises mightily above the slightly hazy (it's bottle-conditioned) copper-orange body of the Williamsburg Stock Ale. It's described on the label as an American-style brown ale, but I don't think it ever really gets that far. (Although in A northern English brown ale (think Newcastle) perhaps. Regardless, it's certainly an entertaining and enjoyable quaff.

The label also points out that it's a style of beer first brewed in the colony of Virginia (1607), which may or may not be true; but which clearly dismantles the common misconception that beer was brought to America by the Pilgrims on the Mayflower (1620). If beer wasn't already made by the natives, it was probably brought by the Spanish... but if not, it had to have been brewed at Roanoke (1587)! And keep in mind, the Mayflower was chartered to Virginia! (And re-routed by the Pilgrims - who were a minority on-board - to Plymouth for their own purposes.... not because the ship "ran out of victuals, especially beer").

But I digress.... The nose is quite enticing with a lively blend of yeasty fruitiness, subtly chocolate-accented malt, and floral and grassy hops. It's sweet, and that carries over into the flavor as well. It's toasty, and subtly chocolatey malt is permeated by a bright yeasty fruitiness that leaves it "juicy"; and accented by delicately citrusy, lightly grassy, and floral hops. It finishes dry with a quick smack of bitterness, some lingering chocolate, and light caramel note.

It's well-balanced, satisfying, and quaffable! Well done!
May 22, 2005
Photo of skynxnex
Reviewed by skynxnex from Virginia

3.58/5  rDev +5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5
Left a big, three to four inch, head in the glass after pouring. A small trail of yeast was in the bottom of the pour. Color is transparent reddish-brown-copper.

Smell is mostly malt sweetness, some caramel, and very little hops. Pleasant enough. Taste is sweet, almost sticky at the start. Some slight woody aspect. Hops linger in the background and keep the beer from being too sweet. Carbonation is medium to light. The aftertaste is sweet with a hint of alcohol and hops. The woody sense comes back as well.

I ended up having about two bottles and I had no problems drinking it them, although it is a touch sweeter than seems ideal to me. However, I haven't drunk many brown ales before, so maybe that will change. The mouthfeel was good, maybe light-medium on my scale. Not a great beer, but still drinkable.
Mar 23, 2005
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Reviewed by pentathlete from Virginia

2.48/5  rDev -27.3%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 2.5
Geez, I wanted this beer to be good. It has to be better on tap. Poured into my Williamsburg Brewery pint glass a medium dark brown. Not much head and it didn't last. The smell didn't bring too much to the nose. I was hoping for some dark roasted malty smells, but just a hint of malt, not much else (maybe because of the apparent lack of carbonation.) At this point I double-checked the label...last time this happened I was throwing back an 11% old ale...but this is a 5% beer. Taste was sweet, woody, very mild bitterness in the finish. Mouthfeel was thin when it should be full. This has got to be a bottling problem, though the beer tastes fresh, it does seem too flat. Tastes like malt water, like what a Yoo-hoo is to chocolate milk. I will find this on tap and try again.
Mar 16, 2005
Photo of mmmbeer
Reviewed by mmmbeer from Massachusetts

4.03/5  rDev +18.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
12 oz., bottle conditioned with no freshness date. Pours into the imperial pint glass with a huge, rocky, 4 finger off-white head, reducing to a half inch blanket that leaves big clumps and lots of lacing on the glass. The beer is a deep chestnut with a hint of orange. Smell is sweet and pleasant - caramel, some dark fruit, and a hint of hops. Lots of malts initially with bittersweet chocolate and coffee flavors and a little hop spiciness. The hops become more pronounced afterward with some fruity/floral notes and a nice subtle bitterness. Malts and hops are balanced well and has a nice mouthfeel. Could drink several.
Feb 08, 2005
Photo of bruachan
Reviewed by bruachan from Massachusetts

3.58/5  rDev +5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5
good lookin beer. nice garnet brown with a respectable head that drops eventually
pleasant toffee aroma with dark caramel

chocolatey, toffee taste with balancing bitterness and an orangy finish. the label describes it as an american brown ale, but it seems to be lacking a certain hop intensity to fit that description
smooth on the tongue with low carbonation (once again, seems more in synch with a british style)
Jan 25, 2005
Photo of oelergud
Reviewed by oelergud from Virginia

4.2/5  rDev +23.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Dark ruby body, tan head consisting of small to medium bubbles. fair retention and lace, no carbonation.
Smell is coffee, earth and cocoa beans, hops have a good presense in the nose.
Earth, coffee and cocoa beans dominate the taste. Malts and hops in good balance which carries over through the aftertaste where the hops gets the upper hand.
Creamy full body, decent coating and high drinkability. My first experience with this brewery was a disappointment but this brew is pretty good.

-Oelergud
Sep 27, 2004
Photo of GCBrewingCo
Reviewed by GCBrewingCo from North Carolina

2.68/5  rDev -21.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5
The beer poured golden amber with a slight haze. The head was off-white, frothy, and lasted to lace the glass.

The aroma was fruity with caramel.

The flavor was caramel and tea. Not great at all. The bitterness and malt are not working well together and the beer is astringent.

The finish was dry and bitter and astringent. The body was medium but watery.

12 ounce bottle. Skip it!
Jun 14, 2004
Photo of Greenlabel
Reviewed by Greenlabel from New Hampshire

3.41/5  rDev 0%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
I picked up a 6-pack of this product at Total Wine & More while traveling through Virginia. The ale was contract brewed at the Frederick Brewery in MD. The bottle was not freshness dated but the product seemed to be quite fresh. The highest rating I gave this product relates to its appearance - a dark brown color with a nice white foamy head. Very little smell perhaps due to the seeming lack of hops. The bottle states that a "hint" of hops are one of the elements of the beer's flavor. They weren't kidding - it seemed to be a very small "hint" as the malt clearly predominated and I could taste little impact from the hops. On the plus side, it lacked the cloying sweetness of some brown ales I've tried. All in all, not a bad product but I preferred their Pale Ale.
Mar 27, 2004
Photo of Scooter77
Reviewed by Scooter77 from Alabama

3.45/5  rDev +1.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 2.5
I had this beer on tap at the Green Leafe Café in Williamsburg. It poured a brown/slightly ruby color, topped off by a creamy off-white head that dissipates moderately, leaving a very thin lace on the glass. The aroma is mildly sweet with caramel, plums, and dark malt characteristics. The taste is very well balanced. It has a nice and subtle sweet property, as in the aroma. There was a bit of a sour aftertaste left in my mouth, but it wasn’t bad at all. This was a fairly smooth and easy drinking beer. With the brewery being just a little ways up the road from here, this beer is always readily available.
Apr 05, 2003
Photo of ThreePistols
Reviewed by ThreePistols from Florida

3.95/5  rDev +15.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
- from the bottle's label - "Williamsburg Stock Ale, American-style ale brewed in the traditional ale fashion in open fermenters and a relatively warmer ale fermentation temperatures. It has a rich malty, caramel-like flavor with a fairly low bitterness lever, a hint of Northern Brewer hops and a full mouth-feel."

This beer is bottle-conditioned, and unfiltered.

Brown color with a solid head. Malty and dark fruit aroma. Caramel and dark malt and dark fruit (figs) taste. Very smooth, low to moderately carbonated, maybe a tad too smooth. Some toasty malt character. Overall a malty brown ale, with a caramel, dark fruit complexity of malt flavor.

IMHO this was more like a Southern Brown Ale rather than an American Brown Ale because of the lack of hops bitterness and dark fruityness. Nevertheless, I found this beer to be very tasty and very enjoyable.
Jul 08, 2002
Williamsburg Stock Ale from Williamsburg Brewing Company
Beer rating: 82 out of 100 with 13 ratings