Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 8

500 ml bottle, courtesy of Cardinal pub, Stavanger. Bottle conditioned. ABV is 5.3%. Golden colour, hazy. Large and lasting off-white head. Nice hoppy / citrussy aroma. The flavour is also distinctly hoppy throughout, but there is also a noticeable presence of alcohol - in a blind test I would have guessed that the beer was somewhat stronger than 5.3%. There’s a moderate sweetness in the background. Moreish.

Aroma: 9 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 8 | Flavor: 9 | Overall: 9

500 ml bottle, courtesy of Cardinal pub, Stavanger. ABV is 5.0%. Beautiful deep amber colour, large off-white head, leaves a nice lacing. Sweetish aroma with plenty of malts, notes of caramel, bakery and raisins. The flavour is very rich and malty, but also fruity with well balanced hops. Not too sweet. Hoppy aftertaste. A first class premium bitter in my book.

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 8 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 8

500 ml bottle, courtesy of Cardinal pub, Stavanger. Bottle conditioned. ABV is 6.0%. Brewed by RCH Brewery, bottled by Integrated Bottling Solutions. Amber coloured beer, huge and lasting off-white head. Pleasant hoppy and fruity aroma, also hints of toffee and oak. The flavour is fruity and malty, with a noticeable alcohol presence. Dry hops in the finish. A powerful extra strong bitter, but no session beer - one bottle is enough.

Aroma: 9 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 8

500 ml brown bottle, courtesy of Cardinal pub, Stavanger. bottle conditioned, ABV is 4.5%. Very dark brown colour, nearly black. Decent and lingering creamy tan head. The slug-like "trail" of the head down the side of the glass as you drink has allegedly given the beer its name - together with the fact that the brewers had to "fight" slugs coming into the brewery at the old premises. (As we know, slugs LOVE beer.) Pleasant aroma of prunes, mild coffee and chocolate. Roasty flavour, fairly dry, notes of coffee, dark bread and chocolate. Some fruity notes in the finish, "coffee" aftertaste. A decent porter with a moderate ABV.

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 8 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 8

500 ml bottle, as RCH On The Tiles, courtesy of Cardinal pub, Stavanger. Bottle conditioned. ABV is 4.0%. Deep golden to orange coloured beer, slightly hazy, low off-white head. Very nice hoppy aroma, notes of tropical fruits. The flavour has a nice balance between the malts (with a hint of caramel) and the distinct and grapefruity hops throughout. Hoppy finish and aftertaste, but not too bitter. Possibly inspired by American pale ales? Anyhow, I like it!

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 8

500 ml brown bottle, courtesy of Cardinal pub, Stavanger. Bottle conditioned. Brewed with pale malt only. Golden colour, just a slight haziness, large off-white head. Nice hoppy aroma, hints of citrus, leather and maybe some oak. Distinct hoppy flavour throughout, some citrus and toffee, fruity finish. Bitter and long lasting aftertaste. A refreshing beer - not bad at all.

Aroma: 9 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 7

Rebel Černý, 500 ml bottle, bought in Denmark. ABV is 4.7%. Mahogany coloured beer, huge and lasting beige head. Pleasant aroma of caramel and bakery. Malty flavour with notes of caramel, brown bread and slightly burnt toast. A moderate but noticeable bitterness in the aftertaste.

Aroma: 9 | Appearance: 6 | Mouthfeel: 5 | Flavor: 5 | Overall: 5

250 ml bottle, from Vaaland, Bryne. ABV is 3.1%. Clear red colour, like Norwegian "Eventyrbrus", huge pink head. Intense aroma of red fruits candy. Sweet flavour of artificial red fruits candy, lacks freshness and acidity, no bitterness. Still drinkable, but there is absolutely nothing here to remind you that this is a beer.

Aroma: 4 | Appearance: 3 | Mouthfeel: 3 | Flavor: 3 | Overall: 4

Not much flavour here. Carbonated mineral water with some malts and hops added. Probably an OK beach beer in the Jamaica heat, brewing it in Europe seems like a bad joke. Cute bottle.

Aroma: 4 | Appearance: 4 | Mouthfeel: 3 | Flavor: 4 | Overall: 4

500 ml red can, now available in Norway ("hooray!" - NOT!). I saw this low carb beer in England too (but resisted buying it there), it’s contract brewed by German brewers Gebr. Maisel for some shady London company wanting to profit on the American-inspired "low carb" craze. www.redlightbeer.com Maybe Maisel feel as if their brewing skills are sold for "prostitution" (in terms of craft pride) - that could explain the "redlight" name of the beer... I’m sure it will become popular in the "redlight districts" of Europe - or maybe not .... Anyway, like all(?) low carb beers the colour is very pale straw coloured, head goes from large & fluffy to none. There actually is some aroma: grass and hints of citrus. Not much flavour of course, but better than feared, at least it’s not offensive - fairly clean with a faint hint of hops. Watery and slightly metallic mouthfeel, as expected. Aftertaste is next to none. But seriously - why "low carb" beers? Go for a walk in stead!

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 7

September 2013: 330 ml bottle conditioned, as Redwillow Ageless Double IPA, at Cardinal Pub & Bar, Stavanger. ABV is 7.2%. Deep golden colour, slightly hazy. Huge and lasting white head. Strong aroma of fruity American hops (esp. oranges), also notes of pine and sweetish crystal malts. Sweet flavour with plenty of crystal malts and American hops, notes of oranges, grapefruit and resin. Very bitter finish.

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 7

September 2013: 330 ml bottle conditioned. ABV is 5.9%. Hops are Citra, Centennial, Columbus and Simcoe. Will soon be available at Cardinal Pub & Bar, Stavanger. Surprisingly pale and hazy yellow colour, huge white head. Pleasant aroma of citrussy hops, also notes of tropical fruits, a faint hint of smoke. Distinctly hoppy flavour throughout, not too sweet, with a solid grapefruity and resinous bitterness in the finish, again with a whiff of smoke. Very refreshing. Nice one.

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 9 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 8

Cask (hand pump) at the Darlington Spring Thing Beer Festival 2011. Deep golden colour, low head. Lovely aroma of fruity hops, notes of tropical fruits / passion fruit. The flavour is also dominated by fruity hops, hints of tropical fruits, could use a little more citrussy freshness, but still good. One of the better beers of the festival.

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 6 | Flavor: 6 | Overall: 7

500 ml bottle, bought in Denmark. An ale based on pilsener malts, with artificial colouring, hmmm? Filtered and pasteurised. Pours with a beautiful chestnut colour, with a good creamy tan head. Nice malty aroma with notes of caramel, oak and dried fruits, hints of roastiness and tobacco. Flavour is malty sweet with caramel, one-dimensional, minimal bitterness. Smooth and mellow, I expected something better than this.

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 6 | Overall: 7

500 ml bottle, bought in Denmark. ABV is 7.4%. Deep golden colour, big white head. Nice aroma of caramel, toffee and butterscotch, hints of Danish bakery and marmalade. The flavour is fairly sweet and malty with loads of caramel, alcohol is noticeable but not really disturbing. Very moderate (too moderate) hops.

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 5 | Mouthfeel: 5 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 6

330 ml bottle, bought in Denmark. ABV is 2.4%. Colour (E 150) added. Very dark brown colour, nearly black. Moderate tan head. Strong aroma of smoked malts, smoked meat, bonfires and tar. Thin and slightly acidic mouthfeel, but refreshing. The flavour is smoked malts from A to B, fairly dry. Moderate hops in the finish. Highly drinkable - an interesting experience.

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 10 | Mouthfeel: 9 | Flavor: 9 | Overall: 9

750 ml corked bottle conditioned, cool label! Brown colour, slightly hazy, good initial head but not lingering, lovely spicy aroma, yeasty, malty and spicy flavour - a real treat for the Christmas table.

Aroma: 4 | Appearance: 6 | Mouthfeel: 3 | Flavor: 3 | Overall: 4

Shared bottle at local tasting. Clear pale golden colour, moderate white head. Sweetish aroma, notes of newmown grass and candy. Sweetish flavour first, drier cardboard notes in the finish, hardly any bittering hops.

Aroma: 6 | Appearance: 4 | Mouthfeel: 4 | Flavor: 4 | Overall: 4

330 ml can, in Tenerife. ABV is 5.0%. Pale golden colour, moderate white head. Weak "dusty" aroma with just a hint of wort and cooked vegetables. Fizzy mouthfeel. Typical industrial pale lager flavour, a little sweetness, and a moderate and "dusty" bitterness in the finish.

Aroma: 6 | Appearance: 6 | Mouthfeel: 6 | Flavor: 6 | Overall: 7

500 ml bottle, at the foreign beer bar of the 32nd Cambridge Beer Festival. (Was also available on draught there, but not when I decided to sample it.) This was my first Kölsch ever, as far as I can remember. Moderate head, yellow colour. Looks like a pilsener or a helles, smells like a decent pilsener: grass, hints of tropical fruits. Flavour nearly like a decent helles or one of the better pale lagers, but a slight yeastiness betrays its origin. Decent, but did not impress me.

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 6 | Flavor: 6 | Overall: 6

330 ml bottle, from Voldby Købmandsgård, Denmark. ABV is 5.8%. Chestnut coloured beer, moderate off-white head. Aroma of grassy hops, caramel and Christmas spices (cinnamon, cloves, cardamom, ginger, star anise). Sweet and malty flavour with plenty of caramel and Christmas spices. Could have been worse.

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 5 | Mouthfeel: 6 | Flavor: 6 | Overall: 6

Bottle, as Whole Milk Mild, at Schouskjelleren, Oslo. ABV 3.5%. Brewed for Alex Liberati at Brouwerij de Molen. OG 1037, FG 1011, IBU 22.1. Hops are Premiant and Sladek. Unfiltered. "Each label scratched by a genuine cat." Dark brown colour, large beige head. Intense aroma of pine wood, stale sea water and ashes, possibly infected? The flavour is lactic and smooth, a slight roastiness, just a hint of wood and sea water.

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 7

Cask (handpump) at the Darlington Spring Thing Beer Festival. ABV is 4.5%. Golden colour, low head. Moderate aroma and flavour of fruity and piney American hops, in a more subdued English version of an APA. Quite nice.

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 6 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 7

Cask at the GBBF 2008. Black colour, reddish brown in the highlights. Distinctly roasty aroma with notes of tar, liquorice and wood. Roasty flavour with notes of coffee, but fairly light bodied.

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 7

Bottle, kindly shared by my beerpal Jan Magnus. ABV is 6.0%. In addition to barley malts and hops it is brewed with rye malts, wormwood, juniper berries, rowan berries and liquorice root. Deep golden colour, moderate white head. Moderate aroma of caramel with some unusual spicy and herbal notes, hints of berries. Fairly dry flavour, moderate notes of spices and rowanberries. Decent beer, but with all these interesting ingredients I kind of expected a stronger herbal "punch" in the flavour.