Nøgne Ø God Jul

Brewed by Nøgne Ø
Style: American Strong Ale
Grimstad, Norway

Ha! I guessed it would be classed under American Strong Ale at first whiff, and I was right! Hooray for me! Duh. Anyway, big complex aroma that features quite a bit of malt and hops, Chocolate, nuts (toasted almonds, pecan pie), some roasted malt, and resiny grapefruit hops that are a touch sweaty. I like how they are definitely present but do not overpower the rich malt aromas. Creamy smooth palate, with a roasted chocolately nutty flavor, with only mild sweetness balanced by a mild resiny hop component at the edges, all leading into a semi-dry smoky, ashy finish. Wonderful. Dark reddish brown appearance, thin head.

Sampled from a 500ml bottle. Very dark brown colored body with some red hue at the bottom, and a medium-dark tan or brown head on top. Nose of smoke, char, toffee, amaretto, juniper berries, spiced rum and jasper and pine needles. Flavor is creamy, smoky sap and pine needles, more juniper and jasper, with some sappy, spicy “Christmas” flavors… reminds me of a few years of Anchor OSA. Fizzy, frothy, but not too thick. Really, really tasty, but I tend to like beers that taste like trees.

Dark brown in colour, rich lingering tan coloured head, good lacing. The aroma is very earthy, burnt and toasty, caramel and chocolate malts, liquorice, nutty and spicy. The flavour is quite sweet but not overpowering, some molasses, light smoke, good roast, caramel, chalky chocolate. Mildly bitter mouthfeel, medium/large body, medium carbonation. Finishes long, light alcohol warmth, light spice, bitter. Excellent winter warmer, great balance with good sweetness. The alcohol only makes an appearance at the very end.

500ml bottle from the <a href=http://www.ratebeer.com/Place/new-york target=blank>Premier Gourmet in Buffalo, New York graciously picked up for me by <a href=http://www.ratebeer.com/ViewUser.asp?U target=blank>IPFreely, many thanks Tim.
Opened on June 1, 2007.
No best before date.

Bottle, probably approaching 5 or 6 months of age, drunk on 7/18/07
Not quite as prominent a head as you usually get with Nogne O’s beers, but still nothing to scoff at and moderate retention as well. Head is a drab, olivine-brown with a dark brown body, tinted with deep magenta/violet. Lacing is moderate, clarity medium-high.
Smells sweet. Yep. Caramel and toffee and brown sugar all mix about, while a strong nuttiness and dense, moist, bready sweetness, akin to fruitcake, takes hold as well. An odd peppery/spicy finish that I suppose may be hops, though it could be any spice/herb for all I know. It hits on the back, but is mostly muted from all of the sticky, thick sweetness of the malt. Warming/breathing do little to alleviate the fat malts in your face and the complexity never really improves. Just seems like a whole ton of caramel malt to me. Roasted/toasted notes are present, but, as in the spicy note, are just beaten back by the sweetness. Medium strength of aroma. A little limpid. No alcohol noted in the nose.
Huge nutty-sweet caramel and brown sugar. Lower than necessary carbonation levels really concentrate the sweetness, but even with more/tighter carbonation, the stuff just seems way too underattenuated. Even what’s there isn’t very complex. Just variations on caramel/brown sugar. Some odd spicing/bitterness as an afterthought, and a sharp alcohol bite on the very tip of the finish. Syrupy, cloying, not complex. Even some oiliness comes through from the, assumed, dark malts, yet I find little roasted notes in the flavor.
Poured it out. Will try again this winter. I guess I’m way off-base here, looking at the other scores.

Bottle: Dark ruby color, maybe black, tan head, light lacing. Nose of grape, smoke, licorice, dry rice, some cherry or apricot. The flavor is very smoky and briney with vegetal notes and plenty of hops....vegetal hops. Roasty, spicy, hoppy. Finishes with a large intense body. Good combination int he end.

sampled at the blind tiger ale house in nyc. Heavy and oaky but not as heavy as avery jubilation which I had before this. Roasted nuts, oak, tiny hint of chocolate. Well masked, bitter finish

pours an opaque brown with a sudsy brown head that retains poorly. the aroma is dark berries married with chocolate and heavily roasted malts, reminding me of some robust porters I have encountered. The flavour was bittersweet roasted chocolate malt with nice bitter hops balancing out the flavour. Some dark pitted fruits are evident, too. There is also a fair amount of yeasty esters in the tatse. The finish is chocolate mostly. The palate is velvety smooth and long lasting. Very soft carbonation adds to the silky quality of the palate.

Pours an Opaque brown colour with a small tan head. Aroma of caramel malts, chocolate, dark malts and hints of floral hops and copper. Initial taste is roasty, caramel, dark chocolate and slight bitter hops. Finishing with a a chocolate palate that is above average. Mouthfeel is slight sticky with a soft carbonation. Minor head retention of just a light ring around the glass.