Thompson Island Brewing makes Best Beer List

Thompson Island Brewing Company’s Once Around the Sun made Beer Connoisseur Magazine’s 2020 list of the best 100 beers. The stout is aged in Basil Hayden’s bourbon barrels.

Beer Connoisseur Magazine named Once Around the Sun to its 2020 list of the 100 best beers. Thompson Island Brewing Company makes the bourbon barrel-aged stout in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware.

“This is an incredible achievement for our team and brewmaster Jimmy Valm,” said Matt Patton, director of operations for SoDel Concepts, which owns Thompson Island Brewing Company in a statement.

“After aging for nearly a year in bourbon barrels, Once Around The Sun exhibited the perfect balance. There were roasted notes from the stout and delicate vanilla and fig notes from the bourbon,” explained Patton, who oversees the hospitality company’s beer program. “We thought it would be the perfect submission for the wood-aged beer category.”

The beer, which comes in at 9.2% ABV, earned an impressive 92 total score on the judges’ rating sheet. It received six out of six points for appearance and 37 out of 40 for flavor.