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

500 ml can.) Mack Bryggeri in Tromsø, the worlds northernmost commercial brewery (there’s a brewpub further north) is a macro brewery by Norwegian standards (not by American!), but they have recently also bought a full micro brewery equipment in order to brew "niche" beers (= ales, mostly) as a welcome change in the Norwegian pale lager desert. You have to give them props for trying, even if the results are not remarkable (and I’m not sure that the "micro" varieties, all named "Ludwig" something after the founder of the brewery, will help them out of their financial problems). Their attempt at a German hefeweizen is drinkable, but unfortunately the pleasant standard hefeweizen aroma is flawed by strong sidenotes of SOAP. Typical cloudy hefe appearance. Flavour is tolerable, but fairly bland and far from great. Still, they ARE trying. And I’d prefer their Hvete (wheat) to their standard macro lagers. Doesn’t take much, really. But any German brewed macro Hefeweizen is still a better choice than this micro ...

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

(500 ml can.) Mack Bryggeri in Tromsø, the worlds northernmost commercial brewery (there’s a brewpub further north) is a macro brewery by Norwegian standards (not by American!), but they have recently also bought a full micro brewery equipment in order to brew "niche" beers (= ales, mostly) as a welcome change in the Norwegian pale lager desert. You have to give them props for trying, even if the results are not remarkable (and I’m not sure that the "micro" varieties, all named "Ludwig" something after the founder of the brewery, will help them out of their financial problems). Their attempt at an English brown ale has a deep golden brown colour and pours with a large head. Aroma is yeasty and fruity (apples). Flavour is very mellow, some maltiness but not much else. Minimal hops. Flat and bland finish. If Mack’s purpose is to brew a truly GREAT brown ale, they have a long way to go ....

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

Bottle, RBESG 2005, Grand Tasting (courtesy of the brewery). Brown colour. Yeasty, nutty, caramel and toffee aroma with hints of white pepper and ammonium in the background. Flavour is nutty with moderate hops, quite nice, a bit thin mouthfeel though.

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

Bottle, RBESG 2005 Grand Tasting (courtesy of the brewery). Clear golden colour. Tolerable hops aroma, hints of elderflowers. Also some strange hints of ammonium cleaning fluid in the background. Flavour is kind of lagerlike. I probably drank it too warm, though. Fairly dry mouthfeel. A drinkable beer, but no masterpiece this one.

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

Bottle conditioned, RBESG 2005, Grand Tasting (courtesy of the brewery). Golden colour, low head. Yeasty aroma, notes of fruits (esp. raisins) and oak, flavour is oaky and raisiny with a certain alcoholic punch. Not bad at all.

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

Bottle conditioned, RBESG 2005, Grand Tasting (courtesy of the brewery). Murky / cloudy pale brown colour. Lots of sediment in the bottle. Typical hefe aroma, cloves and ripe bananas. Yeasty flavour with cloves, a bit more hops than in many other hefes.

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

Bottle conditioned, RBESG 2005, Grand Tasting (courtesy of the brewery). Murky dark brown colour, lots of sediment. Yeasty aroma and flavour, some cloves.

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

Bottle conditioned, RBESG 2005, Grand Tasting (courtesy of the brewery). Lovely hoppy aroma (Cascade?), notes of grapefruit and very subtle oak. Flavour is somewhat less impressive, fairly light bodied and bitterness is not overwhelming - still, this is another decent beer from Haandbryggeriet

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

Bottle conditioned, RBESG 2005, Grand Tasting (courtesy of the brewery). Lightly roasty aroma with notes of coffee and dark chocolate, hints of dried fruits. Flavour is fairly dry with a roast malts base, notes of coffee. Moderate carbonation. Nice.

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

This beer is now finally brewed in Berentsens Brygghus' own facilities in Egersund. My comment while it was still contract brewed by Aass Bryggeri in Drammen: (330 ml bottle). Rogalands Pils is a new beer, temporarily brewed by Aass while Berentsens in Egersund are setting up their own brewing facilities. (Aass also brewed another Rogalands Pils a few years ago, for the Stavanger firm Middelthon). The beer has a typical pils golden colour, moderate head, quite strong fruity, flowery and slightly yeasty aroma. Flavour is clean, fresh and rather "neutral", just a hint of fruity sweetness. Moderate bitterness (too moderate). Average.

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

Now brewed in Egersund. My comments while it was still contract brewed by Aass Bryggeri in Drammen: (330 ml bottle). Typical fizzy pale Norwegian "sommerøl / summer beer". Maybe slightly sweeter and a tad maltier than most of our "sommerøl" - a pale lager style which is the work of the devil, aimed at people who think (or are fooled into thinking) that an ordinary pilsener would be too heavy (sic!) for them on a warm summer’s day. Oh well ... I will rerate when they actually have started brewing this beer in Egersund, but I don’t expect too much - style considered.

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

From 2005 brewed at Berentsens Brygghus' own facilities in Egersund. My comments while it was still contract brewed by Aass Bryggeri in Drammen: (330 ml bottle). Deep copper brown colour, darker than most Norwegian "klasse D" grocery store juleøl (Christmas/Yule beers), moderate head. Malty aroma. Clean malty flavour, not too sweet, thin mouthfeel as expected, not very complex. OKish.

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

330 ml bottle. Deep golden colour, moderate head. Moderate aroma of hops and caramel. Flavour has some toffee and and a hoppy bitter finish, drinkable but not that interesting. Hope they brew something better for their next "jubilee"! (Berentsens are new as a brewery, they have produced industrial "ciders" for 10 years or so, and soft drinks for 110 years.)

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

500 ml bottle, now available at Vinmonopolet, Norway. What a surprise! - Berentsens Brygghus have decided to prove they can brew something better than the standard Norwegian pilsener. Copper coloured, moderate off-white creamy head. Very nice aroma of caramel and Cascade hops. Flavour is from start to finish dominated by a distinct hoppy bitterness from loads of Cascade on a background of caramel malts, but the beer is not really sweet. Finish is very bitter. The beer is not bottle conditioned and probably pasteurised, there is not much complexity, but any hophead will probably be satisfied by the Cascade dominance. My guess is that the Norwegian beer-drinking "general public" will find it too bitter, but they sure need a challenge! Not nearly the same quality as the best b/c Nøgne Ø beers, of course - but props to Berentsens for their initiative. May they continue (and improve) their efforts in the same direction!

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

330 ml bottle: Reddish amber colour, relatively pale for a dunkel, good head. Malty aroma with caramel and some aromatic hops. Light bodied but well balanced, fairly malty but not really sweetish, nutty flavour with a reasonable amount of hops which make it refreshing. Nice.

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

500 ml can, sold at Vinmonopolet. Peculiar yeasty (even though this is a filtered and pasteurised lager) sweet and fruity aroma. Flavour is nothing to shout hurrah! for (bland and alcoholic), very little aftertaste. You'll be so more happy drinking any Norwegian Christmas beer ('Juleøl') - just be sure to get the strong ("klasse F", Vinmonopolet) version. Beers like this one just aren't flavourful enough for winter, and not refreshing enough for summer!

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

750 ml corked "champagne" bottle. Vintage 2003. As far as I know, this is the only commercially produced craft cider from Norway (the other Norwegian "ciders" are more or less industrial alcopops made with a little apple or pear juice). Very expensive (NOK 145 at Vinmonopolet). Pours very fizzy (strong natural carbonation), no lasting head, carbonation dies out quickly. Pale yellow colour. Aroma of fresh and fermenting apples, notes of oak and apple cider vinegar. Flavour is sweet (too sweet) and alcoholic, notes of oak and vinegar, hints of spices. One small glass is enough. Apparently the 3 apple varieties used (Aroma, Gravenstein and Torstein, all good to eat) are not ideal for cider production. Overall disappointing. Will not buy again.

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

(500 ml can). Pale golden colour, moderate head. Run of the mill pils, "neutral" flavour, thin mouthfeel. Nothing to write home about. Trio Bryggeri is a former soft drink factory that started brewing a few years after the old brewery in Skien, Lundetangen Bryggeri, was closed.

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

(500 ml can). Golden colour. Pleasant aroma. Clean, well balanced flavour. Not a bad lager. Better than Trio Pilsner. "Fatøl" is Norwegian for "draught beer", but this beer still comes out of a can!

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

(330 ml bottle). Very pale golden colour, some malty sweetness - and then: not much more. Thin mouthfeel. Not good. Norwegian "sommerøl" (summer beers) are all uninteresting pale lagers without any character - as if our ordinary pilseners were not "summer beers" good enough!

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

(500 ml can). Golden colour, fairly malty aroma and flavour, sweet, lacks "bite". Not a favourite of mine this one. Trio Bryggeri are struggling hard to brew a decent beer - this one is not one to remember.

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

500 ml can. Contract brewed by Trio Bryggeri for Libo Trading (trade mark owner). I wouldn’t bet that this isn’t a re-label of Trio’s ordinary pilsner, but I can’t do a side-by-side comparison, so I can’t really tell. Like Trio Pilsner: Pale golden colour, moderate head. Run of the mill pils, "neutral" flavour, thin mouthfeel. Nothing to write home about.

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

(330 ml bottle). This beer is intended as an accompaniment with "rakfisk" (="rakaure", half-fermented trout) - I had it on its own. Golden to amber colour, good to moderate head. Aroma of hops and caramel. Flavour is well balanced, juniper contributes, together with the hops, to a nicely rounded bitterness. Not a bad lager this one. Would profit on a slightly higher ABV, though.

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

This beer was originally brewed by Nordmørsbrygg in Kristiansund (Norway's "bacalao capital"), but they had problems keeping a consistent quality, and the beer is now contract brewed by Trio Bryggeri in Skien. Colour is deep golden, good head. Sweet fruity (pear-like) aroma. Flavour is quite malty for a pale lager, unfortunately with some of the "boiledness" which seems to be a trademark of Trio Bryggeri. Drinkable, but not much more.

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

330 ml brown bottle. Locally brewed by Lervig in Stavanger. Gone are the clear bottles and pilseners contract brewed by Mack and Trio. This one is very pale straw coloured, decent lingering head. Pleasant fruity aroma, notes of honey and grass too. Very light bodied, tolerable hoppy character, some bitterness in the aftertaste. No offensive sidenotes. Better than the contract brewed (now retired) Lervig Pilsner.