Nøgne Ø # 100 (Batch 100)

Brewed by Nøgne Ø
Style: Imperial/Double IPA
Grimstad, Norway

Editor’s note notwithstanding, this seems to lean more towards barleywine in my estimation. At any rate, this is one tasty beer. Pine and dried fruits in the aroma. The flavor explodes with dried fruits: dates and apples. Nice.

Bottle. Pours dark brown with a one finger mostly lasting off-white head that leaves good lacing. Aroma of citrus and pine hops with notes of caramel and dark fruit. Taste is the same as aroma with a hint of roasted malt. Medmium mouthfeel with a moderate amount of bitterness and well hidden alcohol. After pouring the beer it looked more like a BW then an IIPA but the American hops let themselves be known in the aroma and flavor. Very good.

A lightly murky brown ale with a thin frothy moka head. Interesting alcohol aroma, not very hoppy for the style, but light butterscotch and sweet chocolate. In mouth, very pleasant I2PA, with subdued piny hops, licorice, roasted malts, sustained hops bitterness, all very classy. Rich and lasting. A good if offbeat I2PA. Bieropholie private imports. BB 15-07-2011. Marries well with smoked provolone, less so with goat cheese.

Deep copper color, big head. Beautiful aroma of pine needles and sap. The piny hops come through in the taste as well, along with juicy malts and some alcohol. A well-crafted beer, but not a personal favorite.

A reasonably vigorous pour produces a four-finger thick, darkish tinged, tan colored head in my Tripel Karmeliet tulip. The beer is a deeply concentrated, burnt amber color that just shows a deep, clear, concentrated ruby hue if held up to the light. This smells of sticky hop character even as I am pouring this beer. A closer inspection confirms this with notes of candied citrus peel, sweetened berry notes, sweet pine sap, orange blossom honey, a soft herbal reek that can lean towards garlic chive at times as well as a touch of menthol aromatics. As is typical with my experience of the new breed, hoppy northern European beers there is still a substantial malt backbone here that contributes a deep toasty grain character, and nice whole grain bread aromatics.

Hoppy from the first taste, this has a bracing bitterness that becomes more astringent and aggressive through to the lingering, bitingly hoppy finish. Lingering herbal notes, menthol, concentrated pine sap, bright bergamot, ruby-red grapefruit, tangerine, ample lychee form the biggest part of the flavor profile, but supporting hop-derived notes of light cured leather, some tobacco flavors, garlic chives and milkweed are also noticeable at a much more subtle level. The malt contributes lots of chewy, viscous body to this brew as well as some light toasted-almost-roasted touches in the finish, hop supporting caramel character, and some malty crushed cracker flavors in the middle that get drowned out by the caramelized malt sweetness by the finish. As the beer warms up in my glass it smoothes out just a bit with some of the harsher hop notes and the bitterness becoming a bit softer and a touch more integrated.

Definitely on the thick side of a double IPA, indeed more in line on this front with a Barley wine, but it certainly plays the hop card in spades as this is clearly the dominant character, even despite the interesting malt depth. This is one of those beers that really needs to warm up (even though it only started at 50°F / 10°C, it was still a bit too cool) and perhaps even breath a bit in order to lose a bit of the sharp, astringent hop edge. This really is just insanely hopped, though I find it quite enjoyable. I definitely am enjoying the depth the mares otter malt adds and even the slight roasted note from the chocolate malt is a nice addition.

Purchased: <a href=http://www.ratebeer.com/Places/ShowPlace.asp? Liquors, Tucson AZ

Bottle. Very sweet nose, light alcohol, figs. Dark pour, thick bubbly creme-colored head. Great balance, sweet with some alcohol and smoke, finishes very clean. Very nice palate- creamy with a dry finish.

Amazing! The bottle said BW, and when I poured it, it looked like a BW. But when I smelled and drank it, it was a roasty Double IPA. A very good one at that. Pours dark with minimal brown to tan head that receded quickly. There’s a little caramel malt there, but the flavor is all hpps. Very resinous, piney hops take front stage, while the citrus types take a backseat - but they’re there! Very good, and yet very different than the American styled ones. Hard to say why - could be because they bring out the hops without going too far. Notes of pine, grapefruit and even smoke. ON SECOND ANALYSIS: Damn this good! Aggressive pour gave me fluffy clouds of head, and the flavor is so piney, yet smokey.

Bouteille 500ml, courtoisie de Hogtownharry. De couleur brune-rouge assez foncée et légèrement voilée. Nez malté de caramel sucré et moyennement rôti, de houblon citrique (pamplemousse), légèrement herbeux, résineux, floral et aux notes terreuses, moyen de chocolat et de fruits (raisins aux petites notes vineuses, léger de cerises, notes d’agrumes et d’abricots) et de vanille avec des notes d’alcool. Moyenne-ronde en bouche avec un pétillement moyen et une texture riche, crémeuse et aux notes résineuses et huileuses. Goût fruité (raisins, léger de cerises, notes de dates, d’agrumes et traces d’abricots) accompagné dun goût amer de houblon citrique (pamplemousse), moyennement floral et légèrement résineux (une amertume présente toute la gorgée) ainsi qu’un léger goût de vanille lors de l’entrée en bouche auquel se rajoute un goût de malt très rôti (légèrement brûlé), moyen de chocolat noir, léger de caramel sucré et avec des notes de biscuits, de pain grillé et de blé. Parallèlement l’on retrouve un moyen-léger goût d’alcool aux notes réchauffantes ainsi qu’un léger goût de fumée de bois jusqu’en finale, où l’on assiste à un regain d’amertume plus asséchante de houblon plus herbeux, légèrement plus résineux et aux petites notes terreuses ainsi que des traces de noix et d’épices (poivre). Post-goût long et moyennement sec, assez amer de houblon citrique, résineux et herbeux, de rôti-brûlé, moyen de chocolat et d’alcool ainsi qu’un léger goût fruité (zest d’agrumes, léger moût de raisins) et des notes fumées.