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

(330 ml bottle, bought in Denmark). I knew Carlsberg added pure refined sugar syrup to this beer (it’s on the label), and that made me sceptical and maybe a little prejudiced even before opening the bottle. Beautiful copper colour, moderate head. Aroma has a nice maltiness which unfortunately is overwhelmed by sugary and syrupy notes. Flavour is not quite as sweet as I feared, still something is wrong: the syrup, no doubt. To think that Carlsberg actually retired Tuborg Rød and introduced THIS in stead ..... Idiots!

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

500 ml bottle, a gift from my son Steinar (bought in Poland). Brewed by Herrnbräu in Ingolstadt, Germany. ABV is 5.2%. Extract 12,5%. Pasteurized. Beautiful deep copper to chestnut colour, big to moderate cream-coloured head. Very malty aroma, notes of caramel, rye bread and bakery. Fizzy mouthfeel. The flavour is also malty and sweet with notes of caramel and rye bread, also a slight roastiness. The hops in the finish are very moderate, but sufficient (together with the roastiness) to balance the sweetness and make the beer very drinkable.

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

500 ml bottle, at Die Kleine Bierstube, Aarhus. ABV was 4.9%. Beautiful reddish brown colour, big off-white to beige head. Nice aroma and flavour with notes of münchener malts, caramel and rye bread. Moderate bitterness.

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 6 | Mouthfeel: 4 | Flavor: 5 | Overall: 5

330 ml bottle, "Norwegian" version, 4.5% ABV. Brown colour, moderate off-white head. Moderate aroma, notes of malts, caramel and heather honey. The flavour has notes of brown bread and caramel, but is otherwise fairly bland and boring. Minimal hops

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

Rebel Černý, 500 ml bottle, bought in Denmark. ABV is 4.7%. Mahogany coloured beer, huge and lasting beige head. Pleasant aroma of caramel and bakery. Malty flavour with notes of caramel, brown bread and slightly burnt toast. A moderate but noticeable bitterness in the aftertaste.

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

500 ml can, kindly provided by yngwie for our tasting. ABV was 3.8%, EBU 18, EBC 60. Reddish brown colour, moderate head. Wort aroma. Thin mouthfeel. A little malts and a little caramel in the flavour, very boring. A slight bitterness in the aftertaste.

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

500 ml brown bottle, courtesy of Cardinal pub, Stavanger. ABV is 5.4%. Beautiful copper colour, large off-white head. Lovely and distinct aroma and flavour of caramel and treacle, also notes of butterscotch. Moderate hops. A very nice and drinkable dunkel.

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 4 | Mouthfeel: 5 | Flavor: 5 | Overall: 5

330 ml clear bottle, brought home from Turkey by my wife. ABV is 6.1%. Dark reddish brown colour, big greyish beige head. Smells "thin" and metallic, also notes of cooked vegetables and wet cardboard. The flavour is first tolerably malty with notes of brown bread and some caramel, without being very sweet. Some fruity acidity in the middle. Dull finish, minimal hops. Clearly drinkable, but boring. Don’t expect to find anything much better than this in Turkey, though.

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

On tap at the farm brewery, RBNAG 2009. Chestnut coloured beer, big off-white head. Nice aroma of butterscotch. Flavour of caramel and butterscotch.

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

330 ml bottle, thanks to OleR. Contract brewed by Krönleins Bryggeri, Sweden, for Hønefoss Brygghus, Norway. ABV is 4.7%. Mahogany coloured beer, moderate beige head. Malty aroma, like a Münchener dunkel, notes of brown bread and caramel. The flavour is also malty and bready, sweet first with distinct notes of caramel, while the finish is fairly dry but not very bitter. OKish.

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

330 ml bottle, bought at Lørenskog Brus-shop. ABV is 4.7%. Dark brown colour, big off-white to beige head. The aroma has very moderate fruity notes, followed by notes of brown bread, hints of caramel. The flavour also has a certain fruitiness, slightly acidic, followed by notes of münchener malts, bread and caramel. Moderate but noticeable hops in the finish. Dry aftertaste. No masterpiece this one, but drinkable.

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

330 ml bottle, courtesy of Cardinal pub, Stavanger. ABV is 5.5%. Beautiful chestnut to ruby colour, creamy and lasting tan head. Moderate but pleasant roasty aroma, notes of bakery, coffee and liquorice. The flavour is roasty with notes of burnt bread crust and burnt sugar. Coffee and tolerable hops in the aftertaste. Not too bad for a Spanish beer.

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

500 ml bottle, bought in Riga , as "Lacplesis Tumsais Dzivs Alus - No Lielvardes". This beer operates on the borderline betweeen dunkel, schwarzbier, dunkler bock and Baltic porter - but it sure as hell is no Vienna!!! ABV is now 5.8%. Very dark reddish brown colour, nearly black. Creamy and lasting large head. Lovely malty sweet aroma, strong notes of Danish pastry, chocolate and marzipan. The flavour is also malty with a pronounced roastiness, fairly sweet, but not as sweet as the aroma made me expect. Hoppy finish. Not bad!

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

500 ml bottle, bought in Riga, as "Bauskas Alus Tumsais Specialais". ABV is 5.5%. Copper coloured beer, large and lasting tan head. Malty sweet aroma, notes of caramel and bakery. The flavour is also malty sweet with notes of caramel, but is not cloying. Moderate hops in the finish. Not bad.

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

500 ml bottle, bought in Riga. ABV is 5.4%. Filtered but not pasteurised dunkel with ginger. Copper coloured beer, large off-white head. Malty sweet aroma, notes of brown bread, caramel, molasses and cooked vegetables. Malty and fairly sweet flavour with some roasty and caramel notes, just a hint of ginger. Moderate hops in the finish. Drinkable, but not my favourite Latvian dunkel.

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

On tap at the brewpub. Served ice cold. Very dark ruby colour, nearly black. Low off-white head. Moderate and slightly roasty aroma. Moderately roasty flavour, notes of brown bread, not sweet, low bitterness. OKish, but not very exciting at all.

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

Bottle, at RBESG 2007 in Glasgow, Grand Tasting. Hazy deep amber colour. Nice aroma with vinous notes: malts, fruit and liquorice. The flavour has malts, caramel and LOADS of liquorice, not unpleasant.

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

330 ml slimline can. ABV is 4.7%. Brewed with ecological (organic) ingredients. Pale brown colour, more like a Vienna than a dunkel ("bayer" in Norwegian) which it claims to be. Decent white (okay, maybe off-white) head. Moderate aroma with some fruity notes, also weak notes of caramel and malts. Moderate carbonation in the glass, soft and thin mouthfeel. Bland flavour, some caramel and malts, minimal hops. Easy drinking, but certainly no masterpiece.

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

Sampled bottle, RBNAG 2007 in Grimstad. Copper coloured beer, slightly hazy. Sweetish malty aroma. Sweetish malty flavour too, some caramel. Not that special.

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

500 ml bottle, courtesy of Cardinal pub, Stavanger, as (Marke) Weltenburger Hefe-Weissbier Dunkel. ABV is 5.3%. Despite using the "Marke Weltenburger" label of the Bischofshof-brewed beers, and not the "Weltenburger Kloster" label of the original monastery brewery, the rear label claims that this bottle has actually been brewed and bottled in the Klosterbrauerei. BB date 21.02.08. Hazy brown beer, huge off-white head. The moderate aroma has a strange combination of brown bread / bakery and citrussy notes, hints of cloves. The flavour has malty and bready notes, again combined with citrussy / lemony notes. Relatively light bodied and easy drinking. I had it on its own, probably nice with a light meal.

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

500 ml bottle, courtesy of Cardinal pub, Stavanger. Brewed in Denmark while Dalane Brygghus are setting up their own facilities. Chestnut coloured beer, moderate tan head. Despite being "inspired by German bocks", it has the strength and flavour of a Münchener dunkel, with Christmas spices added. Nice aroma of caramel malts and Christmas spices. The mouthfeel is somewhat "flat" or even "dead". The flavour is malty with very modest hops, and rather moderate spices. Okay, but lacks the full and rich flavour of the stronger Juleøl that we REALLY want for the Yuletide.

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

Brownish golden colour, moderate head, modest aroma. Light bodied, some spices and corn sweetness in the flavour. Easily drinkable, but I expect more from a Christmas beer.

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

500 ml bottle, courtesy of Cardinal Pub & Bar, Stavanger. ABV is 5.6%. Copper coloured beer with a decent beige head. Interesting aroma of lightly roasted malts, caramel and fruit. The flavour is very malty and sweet (the maltose syrup shows its presence), but there is also some fruitiness. Plenty of caramel, hints of rye bread. Low bitterness. A bit too much sweetness for me, but definitely drinkable.

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

Cask conditioned at the GBBF 2008. Deep golden colour. Strong aroma of fruity American hops, some oaky and winey notes too. Reasonably hoppy flavour, nice beer.

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

12 fl. oz. bottle, in the Houston tent at the ONS 2008, Stavanger. Brown colour, moderate creamy head. Moderate but pleasant aroma of malts, hints of caramel. Fizzy mouthfeel. The flavour is moderately malty and bready without any offensive sidenotes, but not exciting either.