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

330 ml bottle, courtesy of Cardinal pub, Stavanger. ABV is 5.4%. Crystal clear pale golden colour, fizzy, large head. Sweetish aroma with notes of grass, honey and butterscotch. The flavour has some malts and butterscotch (diacetyl), moderately sweet, and very moderate hops. Rubbery finish. Soft mouthfeel. Could have been worse.

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

330 ml clear slimline bottle with pull-off cap, courtesy of Cardinal pub, Stavanger. ABV is 4.7%. Low carb beer. Ingredients include fermentable sugar. Crystal clear very pale golden colour, large and lasting head. The "skunky" whiff when opening the bottle actually is the best thing with this beer. Grassy and artificial weak aroma. Nearly flavourless, just a faint hint of citrus. Bland and boring as hell. Watery and thin moutheel. Pass.

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

500 ml bottle, courtesy of Cardinal pub, Stavanger. ABV is 4.3%. Clear golden brown colour, moderate head. Nice flowery and hoppy aroma, hints of honey. The flavour is also hoppy and moderately fruity, on an acceptable malty base. Quite well balanced. A nice little beer this one.

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

568 ml bottle, courtesy of Cardinal pub, Stavanger. ABV is 4.5%. In addition to apple juice, ingredients include "glucose syrup, water, sugar, carbon dioxide, acid: E296, antioxidant: E224 (sulphites), colour: E120". Recommended to "serve over ice". In other words: this is an industrial cider. Pours fizzy with a large white head that actually stays around a while (probably designed to make people think you are drinking lager). Strange aroma of rotting and fermenting apples + some undefined and unpleasant chemical stuff. The flavour is fairly sweet and synthetic with very little to write home about. Pretty bad.

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

500 ml bottle, courtesy of Cardinal pub, Stavanger. ABV is 5.0%. Deep golden to amber colour, huge head. Moderate aroma with a little malts and a touch of cooked vegetables. Soft and pleasant mouthfeel, moderate malts & hops make this an easy-drinking bitter, slightly fruity but nothing really remarkable. OKish.

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

440 ml can, brought home from Cyprus by my wife. Pale golden colour, large head. Sweetish aroma with notes of candy, grass, flowers and honey. The flavour is relatively crisp with a slightly spritzy mouthfeel, somewhat better than expected. Light bodied. Could have been worse.

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

330 ml can, brought home from Cyprus by my wife. ABV is 4.5%. Very pale goldeen colour, fluffy head. Moderate citrussy and grassy aroma. Thin mouthfeel, moderate flavour with a touch of citrussy hops. Not great, but not offensive either.

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

500 ml bottle, courtesy of Cardinal pub, Stavanger. ABV is 7.5%. Deep brown colour, large to moderate tan head. Vinous aroma, sherry, oak, raisins, dark fruits. Very rich, malty, sweet, fruity and vinous flavour. Robust and far from easy drinking - still very, very good! This must be a classic old ale - one to save for Christmas (after dinner).

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

500 ml bottle, courtesy of Cardinal pub, Stavanger. Bottle conditioned. ABV is 5.3%. Golden colour, hazy. Large and lasting off-white head. Nice hoppy / citrussy aroma. The flavour is also distinctly hoppy throughout, but there is also a noticeable presence of alcohol - in a blind test I would have guessed that the beer was somewhat stronger than 5.3%. There’s a moderate sweetness in the background. Moreish.

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

500 ml bottle, from Integrated Bottling Solutions, courtesy of Cardinal pub, Stavanger. ABV is 4%. Golden brown colour, decent head. Some malt, biscuits and caramel in the moderate aroma. The flavour has moderate malts with some fruity / citrussy hops. Refreshing. No masterpiece, but definitely drinkable.

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

500 ml clear bottle, courtesy of Cardinal pub, Stavanger. ABV is 7.5%. No sediment in the bottle. The cider is clear amber coloured. Pours rather fizzy with a very short-lived head. Very nice aroma of cider apples and oak, hints of leather and spices. Very dry flavour which leads to a surprisingly "watery" mouthfeel, despite a respectable ABV of 7.5%. There is a moderate acidity in the first sip, and a moderately astringent finish. Easy drinking.

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

500 ml clear bottle, courtesy of Cardinal pub, Stavanger. ABV is 6%. The label advices me to "pour slowly to avoid disturbing the natural sediment". A rather unnecessary warning, as there is no sign whatsoever of any sediment in the bottle. The cider is clear and has a deep golden to amber colour, and pours very fizzy with a short-lived head. Quite nice aroma of English cider apples, apple vinegar, oak and some spice. The apple flavour is medium sweet with notes of wood and sulphur and a slightly tart finish.

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

500 ml bottle, bought in Scarborough. Bottle conditioned. ABV is 5.0%. Copper coloured beer with a large and lasting creamy tan head. Pleasant aroma of fruity hops and malt. Lovely malty flavour with some caramel and fruity hops. A very nice and drinkable beer indeed.

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

500 ml bottle, bought in Scarborough. Bottle conditioned. ABV is 10%. Pitch black colour, moderate tan head. Unusual perfumed aroma, dark fruits, liqueur, some oak, chocolate and liquorice. Very intense perfumed and sweet flavour, surprisingly moderate roastiness, notes of liquorice, hints of tar. Moderate hops in the finish. Not an easy drinking beer, but definitely something out of the ordinary.

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

500 ml bottle, bought in Scarborough. ABV is 4.5%. Bottle conditioned. Deep golden colour, huge white head. Lovely hoppy aroma with notes of citrus / grapefruit and pineapple. The flavour is also distinctly hoppy throughout, with grapefruity notes, but there is also a tolerable malty base. Refreshing, even though I drank it a bit too warm. The excellent Durham Brewery proves they can brew good beers with a moderate ABV too.

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

500 ml bottle, bought in Scarborough. Full name is "Isle of Skye Hebridean Gold Porridge Oat Ale". ABV is 4.3%. Deep golden colour, creamy and lasting off-white head. Pleasant fruity hops in the aroma. Smooth mouthfeel. The flavour has moderate malts and acceptable hops, hints of nuts and maybe some toffee. The porridge oat is just there as an airy notion in the background. Dry hoppy finish. Easy drinking, nice enough.

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

500 ml bottle, bought in Scarborough. ABV is 4.4%. Very dark reddish brown colour, nearly black. Moderate creamy tan head. Aroma of dark malts and something undefinable strange which I guess is the seaweed. Moderate carbonation, smooth mouthfeel. The flavour has moderate roasted malts and very moderate hops - and again (but this time very moderate) "strange" sidenotes which must be the seaweed. The beer is definitely drinkable, but I’m still not convinced that adding seaweed as an ingredient in beer is a particularly brilliant idea.

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

500 ml bottle, bought in Scarborough. Possibly filtered, but probably not pasteurised. ABV is 5.3%. As a cask ale it was voted "Champion Winter Beer of Britain 1998". Chestnut coloured beer, rich off-white to beige head. Very nice malty aroma with oaky and vinous notes, also caramel and dark fruits. Malty flavour with caramel, some raisiny and vinous notes, moderate hops. Moderate carbonation, soft mouthfeel. A pleasant beer to drink.

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

500 ml bottle, bought in Scarborough. ABV is 5.0%. Bottle conditioned. Pitch black colour, large tan head. Lovely aroma of bramble (blackberries) with vinous notes, also notes of chocolate and a mild roastiness. The flavour has a roasty and hoppy (Challenger) bitterness throughout, notes of coffee and berries (the latter are fairly subdued). Bitter aftertaste. Good beer!

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

500 ml bottle, bought in Scarborough. Dent t'Owd Tup was voted Champion Winter Beer of Britain in 1999, a fact that is still proudly displayed on the label. Black colour, reddish brown in the highlights. Decent creamy tan head, does not last forever. Moderate but very nice roasty aroma, notes of coffee, hints of chocolate, leather and plums. Concerning the flavour, for once I find it appropriate to quote the commercial description / tasting notes: "The dominant roast character is balanced by a warming sweetness and a raisiny, fruit-cake taste which lingers on into the long aftertaste, making this a very satisfying drink." Pretty much spot on, if you ask me. A combination of maltiness and fruitiness carries the beer through, and Northdown hops are used for both aroma and flavour. Good stuff!

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

330 ml green bottle. Very dark reddish brown colour (not entirely black), fine tan head. Moderate but pleasant aroma of roasted malts, chocolate and wood. Soft and smooth mouthfeel. The roastiness in the flavour is very moderate for a stout, some coffee notes, there is also a noticeable fruitiness with a light acidity. Easy drinking. Not the greatest stout in the world, but a nice try from Aass.

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

330 ml green bottle. Copper coloured beer, large off-white head with an orange hue. Moderate aroma of malts, caramel and some "dusty" hops. Hints of artificial candy and cooked vegetables. Moderate carbonation, soft mouthfeel. The flavour has some fruitiness and a considerable sweetness, notes of caramel, grit and cooked vegetables. Very moderate hops in the finish. Nice try, but not impressive.

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

330 ml green bottle. Clear golden colour, large white head. Grainy aroma with notes of over-boiled vegetables, nearly like a n/a beer. The flavour is somewhat better, some wheaty and lemony notes. Very moderate hops. Drinkable, but not impressive at all - a "gourmet" would ask for something better than this.

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

330 ml slimline can. "To be served at 0 degrees C" = on the verge of freezing, which says a lot about Hansa’s ambitions with this beer. Defiantly I drank the beer at normal fridge temperature - and it was somewhat better than I feared! Pale golden colour, head goes from huge to none. Moderate fruity aroma. Fairly clean pilsener flavour, slightly lemony, hints of alcohol, very moderate hops. Moderate carbonation, soft mouthfeel. I’ve had worse beers - at least this one is drinkable.

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

330 ml bottle. Very pale golden colour, decent head. Relatively strong sweetish aroma of wort with some of the "boiled" notes of your typical n/a beer (over-boiled vegetables, grit), but I’ve smelled them worse - there are also some fruity notes. The flavour is slightly wheaty, light bodied of course, but there are also some hops in the finish. Not good, but I’ve had worse.