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

750 ml bottle, kindly shared by gunnar. Dark brown colour, moderate beige head. Fairly nice aroma, moderately spicy notes, also notes of brown malts and leather. Flavour of brown malts and brown sugar (without being very sweet), moderate hops. An okay brown ale!

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

Bottle, kindly shared by gunnar. ABV is 0.0%. Golden colour, low head. Sickly aroma of unhopped wort, grain, porridge and over-boiled vegetables. Flavour of wet cardboard. Pass.

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

Bottle, kindly shared by gunnar. ABV 3.5%. Very dark reddish brown colour, low beige head. Strong aroma of canned cherries, marzipan and almond essence - lovely (in a weird way). Flavour of cherries, marzipan and brown malts. Nice enough to drink.

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

500 ml green swingtop bottle, as Chodovar Zámecké Černé, kindly shared by gunnar. ABV is 4.2%. Dark brown colour, moderate beige head. Malty aroma, notes of brown bread. Malty flavour, medium sweet, some caramel. Okay, but not the very best Czech dunkel.

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

Bottle, kindly shared by gunnar. ABV 4.5%. Hazy pale golden colour, moderate white head. Moderate spicy aroma of wheat beer yeast, coriander and orange peel. Spicy flavour, coriander, cloves and orange. A very drinkable beer!

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

Bottle, kindly shared by gunnar. ABV 5.7%. Dark redddish brown colour, moderate beige head. Strong malty aroma, notes of caramel, bakery and prunes. Very malty flavour, also vinous notes, prunes. A tasty and interesting beer.

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

Bottle, kindly shared by gunnar, courtesy of OleR. ABV 6%. Cloudy orange colour, big white head. Strong aroma of piney and resinous hops, a hint of camphorwood, also tropical fruits / passion fruit - excellent! High level of carbonation. Hoppy and peppery flavour, fairly bitter aftertaste. New Zealand hops rule!

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

Bottle, kindly shared by gunnar. ABV 6.5%. Golden colour, moderate white head. Effervescent and slightly spicy aroma and flavour, crisp and nice, but nothing special.

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

Bottle, kindly shared by gunnar. ABV 7.5%. Black colour, moderate beige head. Moderate roasty aroma, notes of mild coffee and oak, hints of bourbon. Moderately roasty flavour, mild coffee, moderate notes of bourbon and vanilla.

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

355 ml bottle, kindly shared by gunnar. ABV 10.5%. Pitch black colour, low head. Strong and intense aroma of heavily roasted malts, cigar box, burnt caramel and oak. Equally strong and intense flavour, again heavily roasted malts, burnt caramel and oak. Pretty impressive stuff.

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

500 ml bottle, bought at Vaaland, Bryne, also Cardinal Pub & Bar, Stavanger. ABV is 4.5%. Sediment, the bottle should be turned upside-down a couple times to get more wheat yeast flavour. Cloudy brownish-yellow colour, moderate white head. Moderate wheaty aroma, notes of citrus, hints of cloves and banana, but not as much as in most German hefeweizens. Light bodied. Refreshing wheaty flavour, moderate notes of citrus, cloves and banana, dry and slightly peppery finish.

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

330 ml bottle, bought at Vaaland, Bryne. ABV is 4.7%. Deep golden to amber colour, moderate head, slightly off-white. Dull aroma of grain, just a hint of grassy hops. Fairly clean and refreshing flavour with grainy notes, a hint of caramel and very moderate hops.

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

500 ml bottle, bought at Vaaland, Bryne. ABV is 4.5%. Slightly hazy brown colour, big off-white head. Moderate but pleasant aroma of brown malts and citrus, hints of spices. Refreshing flavour, citrus and wheat, hints of mild spices, not very sweet, minimal hops.

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

330 ml bottle, batch #297, bought at Coop OBS, Bryne. ABV is 4.7%. Dark brown to black colour, big beige head. Strong sweetish aroma of ginger, cocoa and oranges. Light bodied, can’t be expected to be a match for its big brother Santa Paws. Fairly refreshing flavour, not very sweet, strong notes of ginger and cocoa, bitter and peppery finish. Seems somewhat unbalanced with all its spiciness, lacks a malty backbone.

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

330 ml bottle, from Vinmonopolet. ABV is 8.5%. Cloudy brown colour, big off-white head. Moderate aroma of brown malts and brown candi sugar, hints of Christmas spices. Flavour of brown sugar and malts, medium sweet, moderately spicy finish. Minimal hops. Nice enough, pleasant to drink, but maybe not exceptional.

Aroma: 10 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 8 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 8

330 ml bottle, from Vinmonopolet (bestillingsutvalget). Batch #245. ABV is 8.2%. Brewed with cocoa nibs and ginger stems. Pitch black colour, big brown head. Very nice sweetish aroma of ginger, fresh Christmas cookies and cocoa. The flavour has strong notes of ginger, pepper and chocolate chip cookies. Some roasty coffee notes too, with a hoppy and roasty bitterness in the finish. Maybe a bit too far out on the "cookies" side, but an interesting and tasty beer all the same. Had no problems finishing the bottle.

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

250 ml bottle, wrapped in silk paper in a metal cylinder, from Vinmonopolet. Batch #373, ABV is 15.5%. Ingredients include sugars and coffee. 100 IBU. Pitch black colour, moderate greyish brown head. Strong aroma of stale cold coffee, roasted barley and dark bitter chocolate. Warming mouthfeel. Very sweet (too sweet) and sugary flavour, notes of sweetened coffee, syrup, chocolate and liquorice. The bitterness seems quite moderate, because of the overwhelming sweetness. Hints of resin in the aftertaste. Well worth sampling, but this is the least successful edition of Dark Horizon so far. Won’t buy again, as it is also quite expensive..

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

500 ml bottle from REMA 1000. ABV is 4.7%. Copper colour, moderate off-white head. Moderate aroma of caramel malts, hints of chocolate. Thin and fizzy mouthfeel. The flavour is slightly acidic, with moderate notes of caramel malt and a hint of chocolate malt, without being very sweet. "Dusty" and empty finish. Not undrinkable, but definitely one of the most boring Yule beers you can get in Norway.

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

330 ml bottle, from Vinmonopolet, as Silenrieux Joseph Wit Bière d’epautre Bio. ABV is 5%. Milky pale straw coloured beer, moderate white head. Yeasty and estery aroma, notes of citrus and spices (coriander). Fizzy mouthfeel. The flavour is very citrussy, nearly acidic, moderate spicy notes. Refreshing, but not really a remarkable beer.

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

500 ml bottle, from Vinmonopolet. Brew #384. ABV is 6%. Dark brown colour, slightly hazy, big cream-coloured head. Nice aroma of Christmas spices and caramel malts, hints of oranges. Rather light bodied for a 6% beer. The flavour is somewhat acidic and citrussy, notes of Christmas spices, not much sweetness, very moderate hops. Drinkable, but far from the best Christmas beer I’ve had.

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

500 ml bottle, Christmas 2010, brew #379, from Vinmonopolet. ABV is 8.0%. Ingredients include barley malts, wheat malts (6 different malts, the base malt grown in the brewery’s own field), cane sugar, Belgian ale yeast, aniseed, coriander and 2 American hops. Dark brown colour, slightly hazy, big and lasting beige head. Moderate aroma, notes of malts, caramel, anise and coriander. Full and rich mouthfeel. Malty flavour, medium+ sweetness, caramel, distinct notes of anise, subdued hops. I am not a fan of anise, but this beer is not too bad.

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

330 ml bottle, as Leireken Bio Boekweit Blond / Sarrasin Blonde, from Vinmonopolet. ABV is 6%. Extremely pale straw colour, nothing amber about it at all (are you sure the Amber is the same as the Blond?). Moderate white head. Strong yeasty esters in the aroma, spicy notes. Citrussy, spicy and wheaty flavour, quite nice. Very refreshing, low bitterness.

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

500 ml bottle, courtesy of Cardinal Pub & Bar, Stavanger. ABV is 7.6%. Black colour, huge tan head. Moderate but nice aroma of mild coffee with just a hint of aniseed. Nice and full mouthfeel, medium sweet, roasty notes of coffee and dark chocolate, also moderate notes of aniseed and fennel seeds. Okay.

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

330 ml bottle, from Joker Madlatuå. ABV is 4.5%. Amber to copper color, moderate head, slightly off-white. The aroma has sugary (candy, caramel) and grassy notes, not particularly good. The flavour is moderately sweet with notes of caramel, drinkable when cold, but won’t be my choice for the Yuletide.

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

650 ml bottle, as Southern Tier Imperial Crème Brûlée Stout, courtesy of Cardinal Pub & Bar, Stavanger. ABV is 10.0%. Pitch black colour, big tan head. Intense aroma of crème brûlée and vanilla from the moment you open the bottle, amazing! The smell includes caramel, of course - but also chocolate and mild coffee. The sweet flavour is first and foremost crème brûlée again, but also roasty notes of strong coffee, dark bitter chocolate and liquorice. Also some hoppy bitterness in the finish. Warming mouthfeel. An incredible dessert beer!