Nøgne Ø God Jul

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

Bottle. Very dark hazy brown, dense velvety light brown head. Spicy dark caramel and cream aroma with a little coffee-- very enticing. Dark caramel, toast, subtle fruity yeast with some mild coffee bitterness in the finish. Beautifully balanced, delicious. A real treat!

Pours deep dark brown with red edges and weak light brown head. The aroma is light with seemingly roasted malts, sweeter malts and faint dark fruitiness. This beer tastes like a hybrid Porter – Imperial Stout but leaning much more on the Porter side of things. The biggest flavor note to start is burnt malts followed by chocolate malts and then a lighter amount of sweet malts and caramel. By midway a hint of dark fruitiness surfaces and is then run down as the malt flavors return. I notice a burnt malt and slightly caramel flavor left behind in the after taste.

Somehow, I think I would’ve enjoyed it even more as "God Jul". Anyway, Dark brown, with a big brown head. Some notes of milk chocolate, some mellow herbal notes. Surprisingly clean finish. Very tasty.

500ml Bottle: Lightly sweet aroma. Smells of malts, chocolate, raisins, and hints of fruit and alcohol. Poured dark brown in color with a large, dense, foamy, brown head that lasted throughout. Opaque. Very good lacing. Flavor of chocolate, dark malts, candi sugar, roasting, piney hops, and a hint of vanilla. Medium body. Creamy, chalky texture. Soft carbonation. Sweet, chocolate finish is a bit chalky. 8.5%ABV is well hidden.

I liked the creativity of the brewing here--three "C" hops, English yeast, etc. It showed. For my part, although the hops were notable for their sharpness, the biggest feature was the deep roasted quality. It lasted long into the finish and was nicely balanced by the sweetness and richness. I thought this could have easily passed as a porter, even an imperial porter. The alcohol was actually moderately present, even through as many other flavors as were going on here, which suggests it may not have been in perfect balance. Even so, good stuff. I’d take a few more bottles of this.

Shared by my good buddy Odeed! Labeled Winter Ale! Nose of smokiness, caramel and citrus hops that I picked up from far away from the bottle; very dark brown with a small beige head; flavor of hop bitterness, caramel, and some smokiness (again)!

Very dark red, kind of burgundy pour, with large, fairly well-sustained tan head - very doughy, biscuit-like malt aroma, with hints of roasted nuts, light spice presence, chocolate pudding, and a touch of brown sugar - smells very much like an english strong ale - fairly soft carbonation, with a medium body - nice balance between sweet, bitter and roasty - lots of nutty flavors, with touches of dark chocolate and mild background spices - the pudding-like quality from the aroma comes out in the finish - everything about this beer seems like an english strong to me, so much so that’s I’d call for a reclassification of this one.

The aroma is hoppy with caramel and toasted malt. The appearance is dark brown with a tan head. The flavor is like the aroma and very bitter. The palate is smooth. Overall it’s OK.