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

Cask at the GBBF 2008, gravity dispense. Cloudy golden colour, moderate head. Nice fruity / berries aroma. Berries in the flavour too (blackcurrants, boysenberries) with a moderate but nice hoppy finish.

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

500 ml bottle, courtesy of Cardinal Pub & Bar, Stavanger. ABV is 3.8%. Clear deep golden to orange colour, decent white head. Interesting aroma of fresh coriander, spicy and herbal notes, some fruit too. The flavour has loads of fresh coriander, a slight fruitiness, hints of toffee, decent hops (and more coriander) in the finish and aftertaste. Not too sweet. An interesting beer with a moderate ABV, but probably not my choice for a whole "session".

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

Served from the oak barrel in which it had been aged, at the GBBF 2008. Room temperature, gravity dispense. Pitch black colour, minimal head. Intense aroma of tar, woodwork, coffee, liquorice and alcohol. Intensely roasty flavour with coffee, alcohol, tar, liquorice and dark bitter chocolate. Pretty impressive, but certainly not easy drinking.

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

Cask, gravity dispense, at the GBBF 2008. ABV was said to be 9.5%. Pitch black colour, minimal head. Complex roasted aroma with notes of oak, dark chocolate, liquorice and tar. Intense flavour of cocoa / chocolate, figs(?) and coffee(?) - I have some difficulties reading my own handwriting here .... Warming mouthfeel, oaky and alcoholic notes. A great sipping beer.

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

Cask at the GBBF 2008. Black colour, minimal head. Nice roasty aroma, notes of liquorice. "Dead" mouthfeel. Fairly bland flavour. Very moderate roasted notes and a very moderate fruitiness.

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

Cask at the GBBF 2008. Golden colour, low head. Very nice hoppy aroma with notes of tropical fruits. Nice hoppy flavour, notes of grapefruit, hints of spruce / resin.

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

Cask at the GBBF 2008. Golden colour, low head. Lovely hoppy aroma with strong notes of tropical fruits. The flavour is a hoppy explosion of citrus and tropical fruits, on a distinctly sweet base. Long hoppy aftertaste. Very good.

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

500 ml bottle, courtesy of Cardinal Pub & Bar, Stavanger. ABV is 8.5%. Vintage 2006, bottled March 2008, BB March 2010. (This beer is also imported to USA by Shelton Brothers.) Cloudy dark reddish brown colour, big tan head. Intense aroma of red wine vinegar and oak. The flavour is VERY sour (too sour), with oaky notes and a sharp and lemony finish. Some hops in the finish, but overall the malts and hops are very subdued - this is really all about acidity and oak. Still an interesting beer, and definitely something out of the ordinary. The alcohol is well hidden. If the average pale lager drinker Joe would sample this beer, he would probably be killed by the shock.

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

Cask at the GBBF 2008. Black colour, reddish brown in the highlights, moderate creamy head. Moderate roasty aroma with a certain fruitiness, notes of woodwork too. The flavour is also moderately roasty with a slight fruitiness. "Dusty" finish.

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

500 ml bottle, courtesy of Cardinal Pub & Bar, Stavanger. ABV is 4.0%. Chestnut coloured beer, big light tan head. Aroma of berries and malts, hints of toffee. The flavour is brimming with fruit/berries, caramel and malts, but is not too sweet, with a pleasant hoppy bitterness and some chocolate notes in the finish. Excellent beer, and quite amazing that it is only 4%.

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

500 ml bottle, bought in Norway. A new beer from Adnams, developed from their long gone Champion Pale Ale. Amber colour, big off-white head. Biscuits, some malts and a moderate fruitiness in the aroma. The flavour has fruity hops on a decent malty base, and the mouthfeel is very good for a 3.4% beer.

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

Cask at the GBBF 2008. Pitch black colour, no head. Intensely roasty aroma, some undefined perfumed notes too. The flavour is sweet, winey and roasty. Good beer.

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

Cask at the GBBF 2008. Cloudy golden colour, low head. Lovely aroma of yeast,fruits, spices and honey. The flavour is yeasty and spicy / peppery, fairly dry, slightly medicinal in the finish.

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

Cask at the GBBF 2008. Black colour, dark brown in the highlights, low head. Moderately roasty aroma with some winey notes. The flavour is smooth and moderately roasty, with a moderate bitterness in the finish. Easy drinking, quite nice.

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

330 ml bottle, at the GBBF 2008. ABV was 7.5%. Served too cold. Pitch black colour, moderate head. Roasty aroma, notes of rubber, malts and coffee. The flavour is heavily roasted / burnt with grainy and rubbery notes - quite strange. I hate it and love it - simultaneously.

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

Cask at the GBBF 2008, gravity dispense. Pitch black colour, minimal head. Nice roasted aroma, notes of coffee. The flavour is also roasty with notes of coffee, but the mouthfeel is a bit thin. Fairly dry. Some hints of liquorice and dark bitter chocolate, but not really impressive. Rather "dead" finish with a moderate bitterness.

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

Cask at the GBBF 2008, gravity dispense. Yellow colour, minimal head. Moderate aroma with hints of honey and flowery hops. Reasonably hoppy flavour, hints of citrus, "dusty" hops in the finish. OK, but not really that impressive. Nice hoppy aftertaste though.

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

Cask (gravity dispense) at the GBBF 2008. ABV was said to be 6.5%. Deep golden colour, no head. Very nice aroma of distinctly fruity hops, notes of blackcurrants. Distinctly hoppy flavour with an assertive bitterness, notes of pine / resin and some grapefruit. Good beer, but I’d like even more fruitiness in the flavour.

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

330 ml unlabeled dark blue bottle, thanks to Rune. Very dark brown colour, with a big and lasting brown head. Unusual herbal aroma, with notes of apricots. I have trouble deciding how well I really like this aroma. At least it is interesting ... The flavour is very sweet (too sweet) and malty with notes of apricots, birch sap and chocolate. Alcohol is noticeable and leaves a warming mouthfeel. Moderate hops in the finish. Not my favourite Baltic porter this one, but Mack HAVE been trying ...

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

500 ml bottle, bought at Maxi Stormarked, Sandnes. Batch 151. ABV is 4.5%. Cloudy yellow colour, big to moderate white head. Nice and strong yeasty aroma with spicy and herbal notes, hints of citrus. Spritzy mouthfeel, high level of carbonation. The flavour is also spicy, even peppery, but the yeast is a bit too dominant. Still a beer I’ll most likely buy again.

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

330 ml green bottle, from REMA 1000. ABV is 4.7%. Clear brown colour, decent off-white head. Unpleasant "industrial" rubbery aroma, some malts and caramel but also some of the sickly "boiled" notes (over-cooked vegetables, baby porridge) that you normally find in n/a beers. The flavour has some caramel, but is otherwise very bland and boring with minimal hops and a "dead" and slightly metallic finish. In a blind test I would probably have guessed that this was a "malty" variety in Ringnes’ n/a Munkholm range. Grans are obviously persistent in their aim to brew only beers that belong in the "soggy bottom" end of the Norwegian beer market.

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

330 ml can, a gift from my Indonesian-born sister-in-law. ABV is 5%. Pale yellow colour, decent head. Typical "Industrial" and sweetish pale lager aroma, notes of maize and/or other adjuncts.The flavour is far too sweet for a "pilsener", but there is at least a certain maltiness and not too many off-flavours. Very moderate hops in the finish, slightly metallic.

Aroma: 5 | Appearance: 3 | Mouthfeel: 2 | Flavor: 2 | Overall: 3

330 ml can, as Bali Hai Bir Lager / International Premium Lager Beer, a gift from my Indonesian-born sister-in-law. ABV is 5.0%. Pale yellow colour, big to moderate head. Strong "industrial" sweetish pale lager aroma, maize or other adjuncts galore. The flavour is also sweet with plenty of adjunct cereals, minimal hops, just a weak metallic bitterness in the finish. Not good.

Aroma: 6 | Appearance: 2 | Mouthfeel: 4 | Flavor: 3 | Overall: 3

330 ml can, as Anker Bir Pilsener ("Limited Edition" concerning the brewery’s 75th anniversary - I suppose the "limited edition" only affects the design of the can, not the beer inside.) A gift from my Indonesian-born sister-in-law. ABV is 4.9%. Very pale and crystal clear yellow colour, big head. Sweetish and slightly sickly "industrial" aroma, notes of grass and maize. Soft mouthfeel. The flavour is bland with some sweetness and minimal bitterness, utterly boring.

Aroma: 4 | Appearance: 3 | Mouthfeel: 3 | Flavor: 5 | Overall: 4

500 ml can, from REMA 1000. ABV is 4.5%. Another light / lite / low carb pale lager - oh God, what have we Norwegians done wrong to deserve being punished with this low carb wave? Pale golden colour, moderate head. Sweetish and rather sickly (rubbery) aroma. The flavour is not too bad for a lite beer, though - there is actually some hoppy bitterness. Could have been worse.