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

375 ml corked bottle. Large head, disappears rapidly. Deep golden colour, cloudy when the yeast is poured. Heavenly aroma of barnyard and ensilage with white wine vinegar elements. Flavour is crisp and very dry, reminiscent of a very dry white wine or brut champagne. Not as complex as I expected. Really a beer for the "Champagne Brut" people.

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

Fairly dark golden beer, apparently made with some caramel malts / colour malts. Pleasant, slightly sweet flavour, a bit thin. Could use more hops. The old Viking king or earl or whatever pictured on the can would want something more powerful than this.

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

Rich and sweetish Norwegian dark bock, spicy, hints of coffee and caramel. Not a bad bock this one, but not as good as Aass Bock. Brewed by Borg Bryggeri in Sarpsborg, which survived by merging with Hansa (Bergen) and CB (Kristiansand) into the Hansa-Borg group.

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

A very pleasant dunkel, despite the relatively low ABV. Much better than Carlsberg Lagerøl. Beautiful colour, malty flavour. It's a shame that Carlsberg (who owns Tuborg) retired this beer.

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

Pleasant but not very strong aroma, malty flavour characterized by caramel and spices. More hoppy bitterness than other Norwegian bayers. An excellent accompaniment with beef and game dishes, also as an ingredient in the very same dishes!

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

There are, at the present, only 4 Norwegian standard strength bocks (alphabethical order is identical with my quality ranking): Aass, Borg, Frydenlund and Mack. However, they are all well worth sampling. Frydenlund has a good head, pleasant oak and nut aroma (but not as good as Aass), malty flavour, acceptable aftertaste. The Frydenlund brewery was bought and closed many years ago by Oslo rival Ringnes, who continue to brew their beers.

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

Brewed for every Christmas since 1999, this year (2002) unbelievably is the first (but definitely not the last!) year I have had this excellent beer. The recipe this year is supposed to be slightly less sweet than in 2001. Dark reddish brown colour, low head, pleasant but initially surprisingly weak roasted aroma (improves as the beer warms up). This is par excellence the most flavourful beer in Norway for nearly a century (between 1909 and 1999 max. ABV was 7%). Not as subtle and complex flavour as Aass Bock, but robust as hell. Roasted malts and coffee abound, Christmas spices and decent hops are balanced by a sufficient sweetness. Alcohol (9,9%) is well hidden. Robust aftertaste. Now THIS is a beer for the big boys! (OK, for big girls too.) Rerate Christmas 2004: Still excellent! Robust and "raw" in the edges, but I love it!

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

A middle-of-the-road, reasonably decent Danish pilsener. Not very different from its "økologisk" (organic) counterpart. A good regional alternative to Carlsberg and Tuborg. Rerate on tap: Drinkable but always served too cold. Generally Danish beers are served ice (and I mean ICE) cold, even if Danish summers normally are far from hot.

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

One of the better Danish pilseners - and it’s organic! Standard pilsener golden colour, moderate head. "Clean" flavour with a well balanced amount of hops. Maybe nothing to get ecstatic about, but nice enough.

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

Organic strong lager, moderate head. Deep golden colour. Strong enough but not what I would think of as a Christmas brew. Too light bodied despite the strength.

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

Rerate, 500 ml bottle, new label, from NETTO, Denmark. ABV is still 5.8%. Golden colour, moderate white head. Half-decent hoppy aroma, grassy and herbal notes. I don’t find the flavour too bitter any more, the bitterness is balanced by a more pronounced sweetness than I remembered. Still, this is just another pilsener (only with organic ingredients), not bad, but not really remarkable either. Original rating, on tap and 330 ml bottle, in Denmark: Too bitter for my taste (= too light bodied for the hops). Try Thy Økologisk Pilsner in stead. They are both organic beers, a niche that seems to have been successful for Thisted Bryghus.

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

Dark brown, low head. Extremely sweet and malty and very little alcohol (but plenty of Vitamin B, I'm sure), this a drink for convalescents to regain their strength - not what you'd normally think of as a beer.

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 6 | Mouthfeel: 4 | Flavor: 4 | Overall: 4

Danish "hvidtøl" really are a style of their own - very dark brown, malty and sweet wheat beers with very little alcohol. This is one of them. Sweetish flavour. Maybe the kids will like it? I don't. (Actually, Danish kids are often allowed to have these beers with their rice pudding on Christmas eve, which leads them to keep a soft spot for "hvidtøl" for the rest of their lives).

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

A pleasant Danish Christmas brew, sampled in June(!). Goes very well with the traditional Danish Christmas dinner, roast duck and pickled red cabbage (which I also had in June!). Related to Norwegian Christmas brews, but slightly less spicy. Nice caramelly sweetness, not too much. Rerate Dec. 2002: Amber/golden colour, moderate head. Light bodied, distinct bitterness that balances the sweetness quite well.

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

According to the back label, this beer should be 'consumed ice cold from the bottle'. Sure, best way to hide the foul flavour - as far as there is any flavour at all. Well, I suppose this one has marginally more hops than the lousiest beers of this lousy style - but that should not detract from the basic fact: This is CRAP! Jesus - I must stop buying these shitty and (in Norway) over-priced beers! You know I buy them just to get another rating!

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

A very light and pale "designated driver's" beer, like most of its kind without much character. Drinkable with a meal, but not much to make you happy when on its own. You might want to consider selling your car in stead.

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

A medium strong golden lager, out of the ordinary due to the bog myrtle (porse) used in stead of hops, interesting brew - but hardly my first choice for daily consumption. Well worth sampling, though. RERATE: After repeated sampling, I've upgraded the score, and regret one of my remarks: If it was more easily available, I would NOT mind having this beer for "daily consumption"!

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

Pale golden like a pils, smells like a pils with some more alcohol (which indeed this beer has!), tastes like a very strong pils. As such this beer is not bad, but I guess you have to be Danish to figure how anyone would choose to drink this stuff for Christmas (and even name it a "Christmas Brew"). Alcohol is not everything, for Christmas I want darker malts than they have used here! This beer must be a distant relative of Carlsberg's Elephant. Save it for a cool summer's night.

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

A heavy mouthful from one of Denmark's few independent regional breweries, which I'm always happy to support every summer. A nice region with nice people who make several acceptable beers - this is their very best one. However, I have to admit that Gl. Carlsberg Imperial Stout Porter is slightly better. RERATE: Characterized as a 'double brown stout' by the brewery, this stout / (Baltic) porter (in Denmark that's more or less the same thing) is really so different from Gl. Carlsberg Imperial Stout Porter (now called Carls Porter) that it's a bit unfair to compare the two. The smoked flavour of the Limfjordsporter is really something out of the ordinary. I've never had a rauchbier (*I have now!), but I guess this one has some elements in common with that style (* i.e. it's smoky, but not smoked meat like the Aecht Schlenkerla, thank God). I highly recommend a sample of Limfjords-Porter! RERATE 2: Hey, this beer grows on you! Black (okay, extremely dark brown) as the deadliest of sins, moderate thick tan head, aroma and flavour of tar, resin and midsummer bonfires. Overwhelming smoked bitterness. Tastes like it's been stored in a Viking ship through seven battles and a round-the-world tour. Simply outstanding.

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

(500 ml bottle). Reddish brown colour, hazy (unfiltered). Very good thick head. Moderate malty aroma, notes of caramel. Flavour is malty and slightly spicy, not too sweet. Well balanced with a nice hoppy bitterness in the finish. Mouthfeel is a bit watery, but tolerable. Not bad this one.

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

700 ml bottle, unfiltered. ABV was 5.8%. Copper coloured, slightly hazy, good head. Moderate malty aroma with caramel and spices, hints of fruits. Flavour is malty, caramel, nuts and spices with a substantial hoppy bitterness. Moderate bitterness in the aftertaste. In a blind test I’d probably guess this was an English strong bitter / strong ale. Not bad.

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

An average+ Danish pilsener. Nice summer beer. Nothing spectacular though. While Bryggerigruppen's beers are losing more and more of their local identity, the people of the island of Fyn (Funen) stick to their Albani Odense beers. Available elsewhere in Denmark too.

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

Decent on tap (except that all Danish draught beers are served too COLD in their home country). Dark golden colour, moderate head. Fairly malty, lacks hops. Hints of caramel, but not really sweet. Tolerable beer.

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

(Domestic Danish version). Brownish colour, moderate head. A quite acceptable strong Danish beer. Spicy, perfumed aroma and aftertaste. Flavour is malty, but also somewhat sweetish and alcoholic and may not be to everyone's taste. This is the standard strong beer in the Copenhagen Zoo restaurant, and after one or two of these + a shot of "Gammel Dansk Bitter" you are ready to face the REAL giraffes any time!

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

An average Danish Pilsener. The Thor brewery in Randers is now closed, but the beers are still brewed at other Bryggerigruppen breweries. Bryggerigruppen are desperately trying to keep up the market shares in the Randers region, where Thor beers for decades were a part of the local identity.