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

12 fl. oz. bottle, courtesy of Cardinal Pub & Bar, Stavanger. ABV is not mentioned on the label. Murky brownish colour, moderate to low white head. Strong sweetish aroma with notes of white candi sugar; Belgian ale yeast and various spices. Moderate carbonation in the glass, but enough to make the beer fresh and pleasant to drink. The flavour is not as sweet as the aroma made me fear, the sweetness is actually well balanced with a fine spiciness and distinct hops in the finish. Nice one!

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

1 pt. 6 fl. oz. bottle, as Port Brewing Shark Attack Double Red Ale, courtesy of Cardinal Pub & Bar, Stavanger. ABV is 9.0%. Hazy reddish brown colour, moderate off-white head with an orangey hue. Lovely and complex aroma of fruity and piney American hops, on a sweetish background of crystal malts. The flavour is medium sweet with plenty of crystal malts, and loads of resinous and grapefruity hops. The bitterness in the finish is substantial, but not too extreme. Good stuff.

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

750 ml bottle, courtesy of Cardinal Pub & Bar, Stavanger. Batch 573. ABV is not mentioned on the label. Cloudy pale yellow colour, huge to big white head. Attractive aroma of citrus, banana, cloves, nutmeg and wild yeast with "farmhouse" notes. The flavour is lemony and acidic with notes of cloves and a hint of oak. Very refreshing and drinkable, but I’d like some more hops.

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

650 ml bottle, courtesy of Cardinal Pub & Bar, Stavanger. ABV is 9.0%. 19 degrees Plato. Malts are 2-row pale malt, European pilsner malt and white wheat. Kettle hops are Magnum and Mount Hood, dry hops are Santium, Sterling and Mount Hood. Golden colour, big white head. Strong and delightful aroma of American hops, also notes of orange marmalade. The flavour is very hoppy but not extreme, with hints of pine needles, on a background of sweet malts with hints of orange marmalade and some caramel. Alcohol is noticeable, but not dominant. A good lager, but I can’t help thinking that it would taste even better if it were an ale ...

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

650 ml bottle, courtesy of Cardinal Pub & Bar, Stavanger. ABV is 11.0%, 23 degrees Plato. Made with 2-row pale malt, cara-pils malt and red wheat. Kettle hops are Chinook and Cascade, dry hopped with Cascade, Centennial and Chinook. Orange to amber colour, big off-white head. Aroma of resinous American hops, also hints of stale orange marmalade. The medium sweet flavour is intensely hoppy throughout, bordering on "too much", piney and resinous notes. Some notes of old orange marmalade and caramel too. Not for the faint of heart.

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

Corked bottle, at "Onsdag i Annen", Cardinal Pub & Bar, Stavanger. ABV is 11%. Pitch black colour, moderate to low tan head. Intense sweetish malty aroma, vinous and roasty notes, oak, caramel, coffee and chocolate. Rich mouthfeel. The flavour has much the same elements as the aroma. Sweeter and less intense bitterness than in some other imperial stouts. A real treat!

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

330 ml bottle, now available in Norway. Hurrah. ABV here is 4.5%. Crystal clear pale yellow colour, big to moderate white head. Weak grassy aroma, not unpleasant though. The beer is wet and cold, with minimal flavour, just a little sweetness. No aftertaste. The good thing is that there are no offensive off-flavours - just plenty of Rocky Mountain water ...

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

22 fl. oz. bottle, as Left Coast’s Black Magic Stout, courtesy of Cardinal Pub & Bar, Stavanger. ABV is 6.7%. Pitch black colour, big to moderate brown head. The aroma has the expected notes of coffee and dark chocolate, but also fruity and vinous notes. The flavour has strong roasty notes, coffee and dark chocolate again, but also some fruity notes in the background. Nice one.

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

750 ml corked cottled, as North Coast Le Merle Saison (Belgian Style Farmhouse Ale), courtesy of Cardinal Pub & Bar, Stavanger. ABV is 7.9%. Slightly hazy golden colour, huge white head. Sweetish aroma of syrup, farmhouse yeast and rotting fruits / stale berries. High level of carbonation in the mouth. The flavour is better than the aroma, medium sweet and moderately spicy, decent hops in the finish. Quite nice to drink, should also go well with many foods.

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

355 ml can, courtesy of Cardinal Pub & Bar, Stavanger. ABV is 8.0%. Very dark brown to mahogany colour, thick beige head. Sweetish aroma of brown malts and caramel. Very sweet and malty flavour, notes of caramel, chocolate and some smoke. Should be drunk fairly cool, else the sweetness will feel cloying.

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

12 fl. oz. bottle, courtesy of Cardinal Pub & Bar, Stavanger. ABV not declared on the bottle. Hazy pale golden colour, big white head. Sweetish aroma of pale malts with strong notes of honey, some fruity hops too. The juniper berries are not dominant. Fairly refreshing flavour, medium sweet, well hopped, the juniper berries are there but not dominant. They should have crushed the juniper berries instead of adding them whole. Okay, but not brilliant.

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

355 ml bottle, courtesy of Cardinal Pub & Bar, Stavanger. ABV is 4.9%. Not entirely black colour, rather very dark brown. Thick beige head. Moderate but nice aroma of dark bread, roasted malts and herbal German hops. The flavour is moderately roasty with just a modest sweetness, could be called medium dry. A slight acidity in the finish, more bittering hops would be desirable. Decent enough to drink, but not very exciting.

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

355 ml bottle, from Voldby Købmandsgård, Denmark. ABV is 8.3%, IBU 60. Clear orange colour, big off-white head. Lovely strong aroma of fruity and piney American hops, notes of oranges and slightly caramellized orange marmalade. The flavour is a hoppy explosion from start to finish, fruity (orange marmalade) first, very bitter in the end. There is a considerable malty sweetness that stands up to the bitterness. I don’t get many "Belgian" notes out of this "Belgian IPA", it is all very American to me.

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

355 ml bottle, courtesy of Cardinal Pub & Bar, Stavanger. ABV is 6.9%. Deep golden colour, big white head. Very nice aroma of fruity hops, hints of spruce. The flavour is definitely hoppy, but less so than most American IPAs. Some sweetness, the alcohol is noticeable. Notes of spruce again, moderate bitterness in the aftertaste.

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

Bottle, courtesy of Cardinal Pub & Bar, Stavanger. ABV is 6.5%, 45 IBUs. Pitch black colour, big and lasting brown head. Moderate roasty aroma, notes of dark chocolate and coffee. The flavour is roasty and quite dry, with a hint of acidity. Notes of coffee and ashes. Roasty and hoppy bitterness in the afteraste.

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

Bottle, courtesy of Cardinal Pub & Bar, Stavanger. ABV is 8.5%, 50 IBUs. Dark reddish brown colour, big to moderate beige head. Aroma of sweet malts, caramel, peat smoke and over-ripe red berries, also vinous notes with hints of oak. The flavour has loads of malty sweetness and caramel, peat and oak, with a distinct hoppy bitterness in the finish and aftertaste.

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

355 ml bottle, courtesy of Cardinal Pub & Bar, Stavanger. ABV is 6.6%, 70 IBUs. Reddish brown colour, big and lasting off-white head. Nice aroma of floral and citrussy hops (dry hopped with Amarillo), also sweetish notes of caramel and orange marmalade. The flavour has also notes of orange marmalade and caramel malts, but is not extremely sweet. There is a distinct hoppy bitterness towards the end, with grapefruity and resinous notes, lasting through the long aftertaste. Good stuff.

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

355 ml bottle, courtesy of Cardinal Pub & Bar, Stavanger. ABV is 9.4%, 86 IBUs. Surprisingly pale golden colour, probably the palest American double IPA I’ve seen. Big to moderate white head. Distinct but still relatively moderate aroma of citrussy and piney American hops, also notes of caramel and orange marmalade. The flavour is of course very hoppy from start to finish, but not really extreme. The grapefruity bitterness is partly balanced by a pronounced malty sweetness. Notes of caramel and orange marmalade again. Very bitter aftertaste.

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

Bottle, kindly shared by gunnar. Deep golden colour, moderate white head. Interesting fruity and hoppy aroma, hints of marmalade and oak, some vinous notes too. Hoppy flavour, good bitterness, moderate malty sweetness, hints of oak.

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

Bottle, kindly shared by gunnar. Amber colour, big to moderate off-white head. Hoppy aroma and flavour (Columbus hops), the flavour also has spicy notes with hints of Belgian ale yeast, otherwise this is a fairly standard American IPA (which is not a bad thing).

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

Bottle, kindly shared by gunnar. Deep golden to orange colour, moderate white head. Very nice hoppy aroma, fruity and herbal notes. Intense hoppy flavour, but not too bitter. Fruity and spicy notes, well balanced.

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

Bottle, kindly shared by gunnar. Brown colour, big off-white head. Aroma of Belgian ale yeast, brown sugar and spices, hints of camphorwood. The flavour has more fruity acidity than I expect from a dubbel, some spicy and woody notes too.

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

Bottle, kindly shared by gunnar. Dark brown colour, nearly black. Low beige head. Nice aroma of moderately roasted malts, tobacco and some citrus. Flavour also of moderately roasted malts, and fruity and slightly resinous hops. The alcohol is well hidden. Good, but does not blow my socks off.

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

Bottled, as Deschutes The Abyss Reserve 2009, kindly shared by gunnar. Pitch black colour, excellent brown head. Lovely and complex aroma of dark malts, chocolate, coffee, tobacco, liquorice and leather, also some oaky and vinous notes. The flavour has notes of heavily roasted malts, balanced by a suitable sweetness, coffee and liquorice, hints of sandalwood. Superb!

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

Bottle, vintage 2009, kindly shared by gunnar. Amber to orange colour, low head. Nice aroma of sultanas and dark dried fruits. The flavour has also notes of raisins, sweet malts, alcohol and decent hops.