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

12 fl. oz. bottle, bought at Vinens Verden, Odense, Denmark. Very dark reddish brown colour, nearly black. Greyish brown foamy head. Very nice roasty aroma, notes of chocolate, liquorice, leather and oak. Roasty flavour with notes of strong coffee and dark bitter chocolate. Long bitter aftertaste from the roastiness and hops. Not bad at all.

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

12 fl. oz. bottle, bought at Vinens Verden, Odense, Denmark. Copper coloured, good light tan head. Very nice strong aroma of flowery hops, notes of honey and fruits too, hints of oak and caramel. Full and rich mouthfeel. Initially sweet and oaky flavour of dried fruits, then a massive hoppy bitterness takes over and lasts through the aftertaste. Not very well balanced IMO, the very bitter finish kind of kills all other qualities this beer has.

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

(Bought in Sweden - not in Systembolaget's ordinary selection, listed as "coincidentally in store"). This beer has a deep golden colour and pours with a good head. It has a lovely fruity aroma - there is some oak and spices too. Flavour is malty and rounded, still with a great bitterness. This is quite simply a good beer - wish it were imported to Norway!

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

Amber/deep golden colour, good head. Smells and tastes like a cross-breed between an ale and a lager. Flowery perfumed aroma (not unpleasant), malty flavour (a tad too sweet), plenty of bitterness in the aftertaste - but COMPLEX is not the word I would use. Decent (and of course infinitely better than the BMC stuff), but I'm sure there are better American beers out there.

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

330 ml clear bottle, ABV 5%, bought at Vinmonopolet, Norway. Surprisingly strong aroma of yeast and artificial candy. Light golden colour, moderate head - and then: nothing. Blurk! As if the ordinary Bud wasn't tasteless enough...

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

It IS better than water - but not much.

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

Marginally better than Budweiser. And that says the rest.

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 9 | Mouthfeel: 5 | Flavor: 6 | Overall: 7

(355 ml bottle). This was my first American IPA, now available in Norway! Deep golden colour, good head. Lovely hoppy citrussy aroma. I got more pleasure sniffing this beer than I got from drinking it. Flavour is all hops (where are the malts?), dominant initial grapefruity bitterness like I expected (not unpleasant), quite drinkable, but the one-dimensional, medicinal and wormwoodlike bitterness that remains in the aftertaste is not to my liking.

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

(355 ml bottle, bought in London). Pours with a large tan head, colour is very dark, nearly black (= very, very dark ruby when held to the light). Lovely complex aroma where coffee, dark chocolate, prunes, oak and sandalwood shine through. Flavour is initially sweet and mellow, then a distinct bitterness comes through. Coffee notes are dominant. There's something undefined strange in the aftertaste that keeps me from giving it a straight "10". Still, this is a top class porter!

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

Bottle, at Plain Kitchen, Göteborg. Black colour, moderate creamy tan head. Overwhelming malty sweet aroma, roastiness, molasses and bakery / Danish pastry. Flavour is VERY sweet (too sweet) - molasses, sweetened coffee, sweet pastry, chocolate. There’s just too much of the good stuff. Unbalanced.

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

355 ml bottle, at The Rover, Göteborg. Amber colour, large to moderate creamy head. Hoppy sweetish aroma, strong notes of blackcurrants / blackcurrant leaves. Flavour is sweetish and reasonably malty, some blackcurrant notes, but far too little bitterness for an ESB.

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

Bottle, at The Rover, Göteborg. Amber colour, hazy. Sweet and alcoholic aroma and flavour, but also plenty of hops, as expected from a "double IPA". A bit overdone on both sweetness and hops in my book, but still a good beer.

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

RBESG 2006 Grand Tasting. 750 ml bottle. Dark brown colour, low head. Sickening chocolate aroma, like chocolate sauce. Very sweet chocolate flavour, too sweet for me, but probably nice if you "simply LOVE" chocolate.

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

RBESG 2006 Grand Tasting. Pitch black colour, low tan head. Very nice roasty and hoppy aroma, some sweetish bakery notes in the background. Nice roasty flavour, not overdone, notes of good coffee, hints of dark chocolate. A very good stout in my book.

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

Sampled RBESG 2006 Grand Tasting. Dark brown colour. Malty sweet aroma with notes of vomit. Unpleasant. Sweetish moderately malty flavour with nothing to delight you. Pass.

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

12 fl. oz. bottle, UK import. Pours very foamy and fizzy, with a decent lingering head. Deep amber colour, hazy. Sweet yeasty aroma with elements of oak, molasses, butter and hayloft. Flavour has some molasses sweetness, butter, butterscotch, some spices and decent hops, but lacks a fresh and spritzy "bite". Too much butter elements, I guess. Still a beer well above average, but I’m not ecstatic.

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

650 ml bottle, UK import. ABV is 5.3%. Very dark opaque brown colour, nearly black. Pours with a large and thick tan head. Pleasant roasty aroma with strong coffee notes, also cigarbox, chocolate and leather. Flavour has strong coffee notes too, some tar and a slight smokiness. Roasty and hoppy bitterness in the long aftertaste. Maybe not the most complex beer in the world, but a very good one all the same!

Aroma: 10 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 4 | Flavor: 3 | Overall: 4

12 fl. oz. bottle, UK import. Bottled in 2003. ABV is 11.6%. Opaque pitch black, moderate brown head. Pleasant roasty aroma, hints of dark fruits, chocolate and liquorice. Flavour, on the other hand, is not particularly pleasant. From start to finish it is dominated by a one-dimensional intense bitterness of extremely strong and poorly made coffee, masks any other flavour (including the alcohol) which otherwise might be present. Want a definition of "over-kill"? Here it is! As Queen Victoria would have said: "We are not amused!" Apart from the looks and the aroma: Very disappointing.

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

Bottle, labelled "Imperial Porter". Is this really the same beer? RBESG 2005, Grand Tasting. Pleasant sweet malty and roasty aroma with notes of chocolate and molasses. Flavour is malty sweet with chocolatey and oaky notes. Aftertaste is malty sweet and fairly unremarkable. Strangely sweet for a porter, but no doubt a craft beer.

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

Bottle, RBESG 2005 Grand Tasting. Very dark brown colour. Malty and roasty aroma. Very roasty flavour, a bit too sweet. Really not that much above average.

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

Bottle, RBESG 2005 Grand Tasting. Strong aroma, verging on the unpleasant, with notes of oak, brown sugar, lime and molasses. Flavour is oaky, alcoholic and too sweet, with notes of lime and lemongrass in the background. Not a love affair for me this one.

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

350 ml bottle, bought in Denmark. Deep golden / amber colour, slightly hazy, large head. Pleasant hoppy aroma with strong fruity notes (citrus, raisins, prunes). Hoppy flavour on a decent malty base, notes of fruits (grapefruit, raisins) and spices. It’s easy to understand why this beer has become part of the staple diet of many American beer afficionados.

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

355 ml bottle, Cardinal Pub & Bar, Stavanger. ABV is 11%, 25 IBU. Hazy and very dark reddish brown colour, moderate off-white to beige head. Aroma of malts, caramel, raisins and other dark dried fruits, bourbon, oak and vanilla. Rich and warming mouthfeel. The flavour has distinct notes of oak, brandy, bourbon whiskey, dark dried fruits, hints of mild spices, caramelized British orange marmalade and vanilla. A very fine beer!

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

440 ml can, from Kiwi, Tau. ABV is 4.6%. Hazy IPA. Brewed and canned for the Brooklyn Brewery by Brooklyn Stockholm Opco. Distributed by Ringnes AS, Oslo. Hazy yellow colour, small and shortlived white head. Aroma of pineapple, papaya, crushed gooseberries and spruce. The flavour is first citric, followed by said fruits, with a moderate resinous and medicinal bitterness in the finish.

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

355 ml bottle, from Vinmonopolet, Nettbutikken. ABV is 6%. Very dark ruby to mahogany colour, nearly black. Small and shortlived beige head. Weak and uninteresting aroma, a little malts, a hint of chocolate and dust. The dry flavour is not very exciting either, but fairly refreshing. Moderate malts, a hint of chocolate again, also a hint of prunes and liquorice, very mild spices.