Nøgne Ø Dark Horizon First Edition

500th rating!!! Bottle #022390. Pours a dark inky black with a small quickly disappearing dark tan head. Aroma of alcohol, sweet roasted malt, chocolate, caramel, vanilla. Flavor of the same as above, lots of caramel, sweet roasted malt, vanilla, apple skins, with an alcohol burn in the finish. Very smooth mouthfeel. Sweet but not overly cloying. For a 16% beer, this is remarkable. Very nice.

Rating #500! Whoo! Bottle #02239, thanks to sprinkle, aka Da Man. Aroma of sweet alcohol, roasted malt, coffee, raisins, alcoholic prunes, earth, vinousness, vanilla, more stuff that is probably more interesting but which I can’t put my finger on, super complex, super good. Flavor rich in the roasted malt department, and the alcohol department as well, oh my, very warming, a very nice warming alcohol. Sweet fruits slowly wend their way in, and right behind them is a smooth coating of bitterness, both in bitter coffee and bitter fruit form. Mmm, growing bitterness to complement all the sweet flavors, growing, growing, growing. Rich, viscous, creamy mouthfeel. Last few sips. *tear*

Rating #250. Bottle no. Not much head, oily. Aroma is good, very sugary, alcohol, chocolate, and a bit smoky. Very velvety but alcohol is a bit harsh. Taste is more vinous than the aroma, but not all that much.

Thanks to BOLTZ7555 for this one! Pours pitch black with a tan finger head. Aroma is chocolate, licorice, and a touch of coffee and by far the best quality of the beer for me. Flavor is like a mellowed shot of espresso with licorice notes. The alcohol is really a kick in the mouth for me though a detracts from the overall experience of the beer. It is nice and smooth on the palate though. Quite delicious.

Pours a gooey pitch black with a dark tan head. Very hardy, but balanced aroma - toffee, brown sugar, rum, chocolate, coffee and a hint of dark fruit blend together very nicely. Similarly, the flavor is very bold, but superbly balanced. A big brown sugar sweetness hits the tongue first, followed by a slightly vinous bitterness that fades quickly into very satisfying chocolate/coffee finish. As the flavor continues to fade the rum-like alcohol notes take over, but never to an overwhelming degree. I will say however, that if you wait too long between sips, the flavor in ones mouth turns to straight alcohol - drink slowly, but not too slowly I guess. Despite that gripe at the end, this is an awesome beer.

Sampled at 3 små rum, thanks Reza. Hazy reddish black with tan head. Roasted malts and coffee aroma, some sweet chocolate. Taste is similar and very enjoyable. Very very long aftertaste, wonderfully balanced. Warming alohol tickle but no apparant alcohol taste. Smooth and thick. Oh yes.

Bottle 50cl, #00203, after about 1 year of storage. This is a spectacular beer. I am very happy to have another 18 bottles left.

(Bottle #4769 at Pikkulintu on 2008-08-22) Pitch black. Tan-coloured small quickly disappearing head. Vanilla, alcohol and roastedness in nose. Full-bodied palate with little carbonation. Vanilla, alcohol, roastedness, coffee, liquorice and chocolate in taste. Surprisingly soft.