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

500 ml, bottle conditioned. Orange to brown colour, decent peachy to beige head. As I’ve had many British ales with excellent aroma lately, I kind of expected the 1845 to be equally good. It’s not, but that doesn’t mean the aroma is bad either. Moderate fruitcake and caramel aroma on a hoppy background. Flavour is malty with some spices and decent hops, but not VERY complex. The ABV is evident, but alcohol does not dominate the flavour. Hoppy bitterness in the aftertaste. A decent beer, but not the best I’ve had.

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

500 ml brown bottle, available in Norway (ICA Maxi). Label layout is different and reads "Brakspear Bottle Conditioned Organic Beer", but this must be the same beer. ABV is the same, 4.6%. Pours very fizzy with an enormous foamy head. Deep golden / amber colour. Pleasant hoppy aroma (Fuggles, Goldings), hints of toffee and butterscotch. Moderate malty flavour with a well balanced hoppiness, toffee sidenotes. Mouthfeel maybe a bit thin. Bitter finish.

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

500 ml bottle, bought in Denmark. Golden colour, fluffy head diminishing rapidly. Moderate but pleasant hoppy aroma with citrussy elements and some toffee. Flavour is rather lager-like, with a grapefruity bitterness with some metallic notes in the finish. I started drinking it far too cold, improves a bit as it warms up, but not much. Reasonably refreshing, but no masterpiece.

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

At last - the elusive London Porter is mine! 500 ml bottle, bought in Denmark. Very dark reddish brown colour, large tan head. Aroma is first and foremost dark chocolate, but also rye bread, leather and oak. Flavour is again chocolate on a nice roasty background, decent hops linger in the aftertaste. Clearly a first class beer - I’m sure it’s even better cask conditioned

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

500 ml bottle, bought in Denmark. Deep copper coloured, very good off-white head. Nice aroma of dark fruits, leather, oak and caramel malts. Flavour is malty sweet with a certain alcoholic burn, but not unpleasant. Some raisin notes too. Decent hops and a peppery finish. Not bad at all.

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

Bottle no. 21166, 550 ml, at Plan B, Copenhagen, august 2005. Cloudy chestnut colour, moderate head. Vinous aroma, raisins, oak. Flavour is very full and rich, old port or madeira, plenty of oak, hoppy and oaky aftertaste. Clearly a top notch beer.

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

Bottle, vintage 1990, RBESG 2005 Grand Tasting. Intensely vinous oak and sherry aroma. Flavour is also intensely oaky and old sherry-like, incredible alcoholic punch, very sweet. Mature flavour, but no sign of it being oxidised. Will probably be good for another 15 years (at least).

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

Bottle, RBESG 2005, Grand Tasting. This is an autumn seasonal from Fullers. Clear amber colour. Citrus and nuts in the aroma. Nutty flavour and aftertaste. Not bad for a pasteurised bitter.

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

Cask conditioned at Charlie’s Bar, Copenhagen. Fullers have finally "discovered" that golden ales have been in demand for a number of years. This is their attempt at this style. Golden colour, low head. Moderate hops in aroma and flavour, but nothing special here. Disappointing. Rerate, 330 ml brown bottle, from Maxi Stormarked, Sandnes. ABV is 4.2%. Golden colour, moderate head. Moderate fruity hops in the aroma, some notes of toffee and buttered toast too. The flavour has moderate malts and fruity hops (hints of oranges), with just a very moderate bitterness in the finish. Nothing wrong with it, but doesn’t blow your socks off.

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

Bottle, RBESG 2005 Grand Tasting. Dark brown colour, nearly black. Pleasant roasty aroma, notes of coffee and dark bitter chocolate. Flavour is roasty and smokey, notes of tar. A solid beer!

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

550 ml bottle, bought in Denmark. Nearly black (= very dark brown with a reddish hue) colour, thick tan head. Moderate roasty aroma, notes of coffee and chocolate. Strong roasty flavour with coffee and bitter chocolate elements, dry roasty finish. Clearly a good beer.

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

Bottle conditioned, RBESG 2005 Grand Tasting. ABV was 5.5%, apparently the b.c. version is quite a bit stronger than the cask version? Clear cognac-like colour. Fine complex hoppy aroma, some fruitiness too. Distinctly hoppy flavour with a hint of oak in the aftertaste.

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

Bottle, RBESG 2005 Grand Tasting. Dark reddish brown colour. Fine malty aroma with strong notes of oak and woodwork. Hints of tar. Oaky flavour with notes of tar and smoke. Low bitterness, fairly dry. A good strong mild!

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

Bottle conditioned, a dusty 500 ml bottle at Plan B, Copenhagen, august 2005 - "best before" date was Oct. 2004! Tasted definitely a bit "off". Black colour, low head. Weak roasty aroma and flavour. Sourish and thin. Very disappointing, as my expectations were high. Will need to rerate a fresh bottle or cask.

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

750 ml bottle, bought in Denmark. I had to try this one, despite being sceptical to the gimmicky name: IMO, most good beers are worth "to dine for" (with a possible exception of the very sweetest ones), so why should this one be different? It isn’t - it’s basically a decent standard golden ale, where the Tettnang hops (more commonly found in German lagers) shine through nicely. Citrussy aroma, notes of flowers and honey. Pleasant lightbodied flavour with a moderate but decent hoppiness throughout, nice but nothing spectacular. No doubt good with food (I must admit that my "dining" was limited to a couple slices of pizza), but again: so are many other beers.

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

Cask conditioned at Charlie’s Bar, Copenhagen. Golden / amber colour, low head. Moderate malty aroma with fruity hops. A moderate but nice and crisp hoppiness in the flavour, well balanced with the malts. Easy drinking. A nice little beer this one!

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

750 ml "champagne" bottle, RBESG 2005, Grand Tasting. Dark brown colour. Aroma of roast malts, oak and spices. Surprisingly moderate roasty flavour. Not bad, but I expected more.

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

Bottle, RBESG 2005 Grand Tasting. Deep golden colour. Pleasant hoppy aroma (my wild guess would have been Cascade and Chinook, but apparently it’s just "pound upon pound of Fuggles & Goldings", so what do I know - it smells good anyway). Refreshing hoppy flavour, reasonably well balanced. Not the most bitter IPA around, but bitter enough for me. Nice.

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

500 ml, bottle conditioned. Dark brown colour, no head, minimal carbonation. Delightful, intense and complex aroma with strong fruity and roasty notes - plums, prunes, coffee, chocolate, leather. Also hints of oak and spices. Nutty and roasty flavour with a pronounced bitterness from the roastiness and the hops. Hoppy bitter finish / aftertaste. Interesting beer, even historically.

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

Cask conditioned at Mannings, Ipswich. Deep amber colour, pleasant aroma of red fruits. Flavour is malty and fruity with pronounced blackcurrants and blackberries. Dusty finish. Interesting beer!

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

(500 ml bottle, in Sweden). Ruby (rather: reddish brown) colour, very low head. Vinous aroma, full malty flavour, slightly alcoholic, good bitterness. Despite it being called a "table beer" (with robust foods) by the brewers, I would rather call it a typical "sipping beer". Recommended.

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

330 ml clear bottle, at Cardinal, Stavanger. Beautiful golden brown colour. Large and creamy off-white head, long lasting, decent lacing. Unusual aroma and flavour, very woody, Scotch whisky elements, but also notes of toffee, vanilla, cinnamon - and even shrimp and the dark meat of crabs(!). Relatively sweet, but the finish and aftertaste are woody, dry and hoppy. Something out of the ordinary, and I have trouble deciding how well I really like this beer. Definitely worth a try!

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

500 ml bottle, courtesy of Cardinal, Stavanger. ABV on the label is 4.2%, also confirmed by the brewery website. (ABV of the cask version is also the same.) Clear amber colour, large off-white lasting head. Moderate carbonation. Moderate but pleasant hoppy aroma, hints of fruits, oak and leather. Flavour is mildly spicy and fruity, slightly acidic. Tolerable hops in the finish. Refreshing and easy drinking. Not too bad for a pasteurised moderate-ABV bitter.

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

Sample from 500 ml bottle, Shepherd Neame Whitstable Bay Organic Ale, ABV 4.5%. Courtesy of Cardinal, Stavanger. Beautiful deep amber colour, low head (the bottle had been open a while, though). Malty aroma with toffee and caramel notes. Mouthfeel has a bit too much carbonation for my taste. Flavour has fairly bitter hops throughout, which dominate whatever maltiness there might be. Fairly dry and "dusty" finish.

Aroma: 10 | Appearance: 9 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 8

355 ml bottle, bought in Frederikshavn, Denmark. A British spontaneously fermented cherry "lambic", hmm? Pours with a beautiful cherry red colour and a large and lasting pink head. Intense and beguiling aroma of sweet and sour cherries. Tastes like, duh ..., beer with cherry juice added, maybe because that’s what it actually is? Fairly sweet, reminds me of Lindemans Kriek, but also with a distinct cherry sourness. Low bitterness. Once you get used to the thought of beers tasting more or less like (first class) cherry sodas, this one (like most kriek lambics) actually taste GOOD! No, I wouldn’t want every beer to taste like this one. But it is a nice change of pace, and certainly worth a try!