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

500 ml can, bought at Vaaland Spesialbutikken, Bryne. ABV is 4.5%. Deep golden to amber colour, big head, slightly off-white. Very moderate aroma, slightly malty, nutty and dusty, hints of caramel. Flavour of a standard lager with some extra caramel malts added, the "dusty" malts dominate the flavour but the beer is not very sweet, fairly dry finish. Moderate hops in the aftertaste. Definitely drinkable, but CB could have come up with something more exciting for their 150th anniversary.

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

The thinnest of Norwegian 'bayers' (Munich Dunkel) I've had so far. This is a style I appreciate - it's a pity that the Kristiansand brewery couldn't make a better show of it. This beer has just too little of everything the style should have. (For a few years, before the Hansa-Borg partnership, CB made Tou Bayer, which again originally was made by Tou Bryggeri in Stavanger, now part of the Ringnes group. Alas, Tou Bayer exists no more - but I remember it, right or wrong, to have more flavour than the stuff CB makes now.)

Aroma: 2 | Appearance: 3 | Mouthfeel: 2 | Flavor: 3 | Overall: 3

(500 ml can). Very light colour, moderate head. Weak aroma. Hardly any flavour or aftertaste at all, just a hint of bitterness. If it wasn't for the alcohol you might as well drink CB's "crystal clear source water". As if their ordinary pilsener wasn't bland enough... This "vacation pils" needs to be sent on a looong vacation - on its own. Avoid!

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

Dark golden coloured and moderately carbonated, this Norwegian lager relies heavily on the caramel malts used. The flavour is distinctly sweet, but quite well balanced with the hops. Lager lovers with a 'sweet tooth' will find it attractive, the rest of you will at the best see it as an acceptable 'change of pace' beer.

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

Reddish brown colour, good head. Weak aroma. Moderate sweetness, watery. More hops than I expected in the aftertaste. Drinkable, but CB beers are generally thin. Go for the stronger (klasse F) version.

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

Rerate 2002: Apparently they have changed the recipe this year. Darker brown colour, gone is the thin mouthfeel and lack of malts. This year both the aroma and flavour are malty enough (caramel and oak therein), and the beer got a high rating in Norwegian newspapers. IMHO however it lacks some of the spicyness in aroma and flavour that a Norwegian juleøl should have. Maybe next year? There's sufficient bitterness in the palate, but I've tasted better hops than these.

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

(330 ml bottle). Reddish brown colour, moderate head. Aroma is initially citrussy, then a bit oaky and spicy. Too aggressive carbonation. Flavour is thin and not complex, some malts but quite dry. Watery mouthfeel. A peppery bitterness in the finish.

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

330 ml bottle. Light (which in Norway means low ABV) lager with some bitterness but otherwise little flavour. Like all light beers easily forgettable.

Aroma: 5 | Appearance: 5 | Mouthfeel: 4 | Flavor: 4 | Overall: 4

Good head. Very pale golden colour, more bitterness than the ordinary CB Pilsener, but where are the malts?? Bland, watery mouthfeel. Even a pils should taste of more than water with some hops added.

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

Reddish brown beer with a good head. Weak aroma. This is supposed to be some kind of Munich Dunkel, but isn't nearly as good as the best Dunkels ("Bayer" in Norway). Pils + colour is not enough to make a good Dunkel, a decent amount of malts is needed too! Thin and watery mouthfeel like most CB beers. Still, there's more flavour in this one than in CB's bland pilseners. Not as sweet as I expected, at least you can taste the hops. Drinkable, but not much more.

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

This is a light golden coloured Norwegian pils with a pleasant, fruity (but not very strong) aroma, easily drinkable, too lightly hopped (even for me, who's far from being one of the extreme 'hopheads'), hardly any aftertaste.

Aroma: 4 | Appearance: 2 | Mouthfeel: 3 | Flavor: 2 | Overall: 2

500 ml can. Pale golden colour, fizzy shortlived head. Moderate carbonation in the glass. Sweetish unpleasant aroma of artificial candy / pear drops. The flavour is "empty", not very sweet - but the little sweetness there is, actually constitutes most of the flavour. Pear drops in the finish. Hardly any hops. Even for a Lite-beer, this is really bad!

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

(500 ml can). Pale golden colour, moderate head, weak but not unpleasant grassy aroma, fairly "neutral" standard pale lager flavour, at least some (but not much) bitterness. CB (on Norway's "sunshine" South coast) make a lot of hype around their "clear source water" - a little more malts and hops would have been good too!

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

Bottle at the GBBF 2008. Golden colour, moderate head. Moderate but pleasant and "clean" aroma of hops, a hint of flowers. The flavour is reasonably hoppy (German / Czech hops?) with a moderate sweetness. Nice enough. Added note to self: the hops are certainly not German / Czech. The hops used are Cascade, Fuggles, Nugget, Target and Styrian Goldings.

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 9 | Mouthfeel: 6 | Flavor: 6 | Overall: 7

Belgian brewed Celis White, allegedly also known under its alias "Ertvelds Wit". Draught at Den Tatoverede Enke, Copenhagen. Typical wit appearance. LOVELY aroma of burnt caramel / treacle and spices. Flavour is not nearly that exciting, this is a fairly watery and bland wit.

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

500 ml bottle, from SuperBest Hjørring. ABV is 5.6%. Deep golden colour, moderate white head. Moderate but nice aroma of fruity hops, hints of orange marmalade, also notes of caramel and toffee. The flavour is medium sweet, notes of caramel and bitter orange marmalade again, plenty of fruity and piney hops, ending in a solid bitterness which is surprisingly sharp and distinct for a Welsh ale.

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

330 ml bottle, lot #235, Cardinal Pub, Stavanger. ABV is 8.0%. Hazy dark brown colour, large to moderate off-white to beige head. Strong aroma of brown malts, caramel, brown bread and burnt breadcrumbs. Well balanced flavour, notes of brown malts, nuts, caramel and moderate hops, also fruity hints of kveik and prunes.

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

330 ml bottle, at Cardinal, Stavanger. ABV is 6.5%. Extremely pale straw colour, pours sparkling with a moderate to small white head. Aroma of "nedfallsepler", apple cores, vossakveik and honey. The flavour has a considerable fruity acidity from Norwegian orchard apples, hints of honey. Unusual but interesting and drinkable.

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

On tap at Cardinal, Stavanger. Very dark brown to black colour. Roasty aroma and flavour, with sharpish piney hops throughout, quite bitter. Not too bad.

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

On tap at Cardinal, Stavanger. Orange colour, large white head. Mild aroma of ripe yellow fruits, flowers and honey. Refreshing and medium dry flavour, spicy and herbal hops.

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

750 ml white waxed bottle (hard to open!) at Cardinal, Stavanger. ABV is 6 %. Hazy dark brown colour, large off-white head. Aroma of brettanomyces / farmhouse, red wine vinegar and a hint of oak. Relatively light bodied. Medium sour flavour with the same elements as the aroma, also noticeable hops. Refreshing.

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

330 ml bottle, lot #249, at Cardinal, Stavanger. ABV is 6.5%. Cloudy "ancient pink" to dirty red colour, moderate to small off-white head. Aroma of lactic acid, lingonberries and a hint of sea water. Sour flavour, lots of lactic acid and lingonberries, only a hint of salt. Low bitterness.

Aroma: 3 | Appearance: 5 | Mouthfeel: 3 | Flavor: 3 | Overall: 3

330 ml bottle, from Gulating Ølutsalg, Stavanger. ABV is 4.7%. Orange colour, moderate to small white head. Weird and revolting aroma of lactic acid and star anise. Fizzy mouthfeel. Sour flavour, lactic acid and loads of star anise, nothing else. Drainpour. I can't believe I paid good money for this crap.

Aroma: 9 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 4 | Flavor: 4 | Overall: 5

(33 cl bottle, in Denmark.) Good head, beautiful dark brown colour, pleasant aroma, flavour and aftertaste are dominated by an overwhelming sweetness. Too sweet for me.

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 4 | Mouthfeel: 4 | Flavor: 4 | Overall: 4

330 ml bottle, bought in Denmark. ABV is 1.9%. Very dark brown colour, nearly black (the name "hvidtøl" = "white beer" for this Danish style is slightly amusing). Moderate beige head. Moderate aroma of malts, caramel and dust. The flavour is very malty and sugary sweet, notes of caramel and Danish pastry. No bitterness.