Haandbryggeriet Norwegian Wood

Brewed by Haandbryggeriet (Norway)
Style: Traditional Ale
Drammen, Norway

Murky Peach Brown Color with Sandy Head. Solid Smokey Aroma with Undertones of Sweet Berry. Heavy Bodied. Dry and Creamy Mouthfeel. Smoke Dominated the Flavor Profile with Undertones of Dark Malt, Chocolate and Perhaps a bit of Caramel...with Some Balancing Notes from Juniper Berries. Dry, Thick, Smokey Aftertaste. Ends Quite Balanced, Making it Quite Alluring to Keep Imbibing. Very Nice Traditional.

Poured an amber color with a small, off white head that left nice lacing on the glass. Aroma of caramel, light smoke, a bit of juniper, burnt leaves, banana, and smoke, roasted malts as well. Taste was sweet, with caramel malts, up front, light chocolate, berries, with wood, and smoke in the finish.

Milky thick brownish orange color. Light bacon aroma mixed with juniper. The smoked wood flavor really kicks in the back of the palate. Light meaty flavor throughout the body. Burnt and dark cocoa flavors. Long lasting head. Damn good for a smoked bier.

16.9oz bottle. Top knotch stuff. Thick chocolately opaque brown color. Full bodied all out smoke flavor. Rich and satisfying. The juniper gives the beer a nice spicy touch, which leaves a pleasant herbal aftertaste. Expensive at 7.99+ a bottle in the store, but well worth trying if you a fan of the rauch.

Freshly imported bottle (2007) from Shigadeyo, thanks! Drunk on 9/26/07
These top-tier Scandanavian breweries really have bottle conditioning nailed down. Between these guys, Mikkeller, Olfabrikken, Nogne O and Gourmetbryggeriet, among others, I’m extremely impressed. Glowing auburn-magenta with light peach and orange tones. Tiny bubbles rise, bolstering a massive off-white head that laces profusely and is retained throughout the entire glass. High clarity, leaving the sediment behind.
Surprisingly spicy, and not surprisingly smokey, I’m at a loss as to whether I’m smelling both hops and juniper or just juniper. It sure smells like hops up front, with a fully herbal, almost wintergreen/spearmint nose, which gives way to cinnamon and clove phenols, followed by a heaping dose of very well-attenuated, fresh, woody, smokey caramel malts. Rich, without being too sweet, they are interrupted, at interval, by poignant dots of what must be juniper acidity. Works incredibly well in balancing the sweetness (which would not be overbearing even without the juniper). Clean, but fresh yeast, no alcohol or flaws whatsoever. Marvelously elegant, with a high strength of aroma, to boot!
Sweet and spicy, with a gingerbread and cinnamon spice-like flavor incorporated in to the maltiness. Smoke is more laid back than in the nose, but still provides wonderful complexity and woody tones to contrast with the rich caramel/toffee maltiness. Near-perfect bitterness/acidity is attained from the juniper (and hops, if they’re in there), allowing one to focus on the smoke, take a break and focus on the acidity and then come back to the smoke and malt. Not on the magnitude of Schlenkerla, but then, it’s not supposed to be, nor does it need to be. Very, very carbonated, but with breathing it evens out, more or less. Supple, unfiltered texture, no flaws.

Interesting and enjoyable beer. From the bottle it pours a slightly hazed deep brown with a huge, spongey beige head. Complex aroma, malt and old wood, tart berries and pine smoke, all spiced up. The flavor is as complex, but more relaxed. The malt tastes peat smoked, there are quiet christmas spices, and a soft herbal bitterness appears. Very neatly blended. The finish is dry and smokey. Quite good, one to be repeated.

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Bottle: Pours a deep, rusty amber with a huge tan head. The aroma has a nice, feint smokiness, some dried wood, peat, crystal malt, and a bread-y hint. The flavor is a little earthy upfront, with some woody flavors, and peat. The mid-palate gives off a very light tartness from the berries, which is followed by the mildly smoky and leafy/bitter finish. The flavor is a bit less smoky than the aroma, yet it’s rich and filled with other nuances which make the flavor robust. A very nice and individualistic brew.

courtesy of fiulijn - dark ruby-brown colour with a giant and creamy beige head; unusual aroma of herbs and mint; creamy mouthfeel, a good malt body and a robust bitterness; very long and quite dry, earthy, bitter and herbal finish - deeply good and interesting