Nøgne Ø Dark Horizon First Edition

Bottle #4085 from BeerandBlues2. Shared with csbosox. Pours pure black with brown head. All kinds of stuff going on in the aroma. Chocolate covered coffee beans, salty soy sauce, and hard wood smoke. Fantastic flavor. Bitter dark chocolate fudge mocha. Throw a shot of some sort of dark fruit liquor it there. Full body. High carbonation. Silky. Warm finish. Amazingly drinkable, not that I’d try to drink a whole bottle by myself.

#4085. Thanks to tjthresh for this bottle. Pours very dark with a khaki head. Aroma is dark roast, tons of dark fruit, soy sauce, hints of oak and milk chocolate. Mouthfeel is big and slick with plenty of roast, bitterness, and alcohol at the end to keep it from being cloying. Taste is dates, prunes, dark fruits galore along with dark rum, light roast, espresso, omni-present, but not harsh, alcohol, and Pauillac bordeaux. A very interesting addition to the high alcohol, nearly over the top, imperial stout category. This more than holds it own with the WWS’s of the world.

Multiple samples from multiple trades and tastings. Thanks everyone for a chance at this beer! I’ve personally never rated it just so I can sit down some day with a bottle to myself and go nuts. That is where this rating came from. Black pour with a thin tan head. Strong hop and coffee aroma. Flavor has tons of hops, coffee, roasted malts, raisin, brown sugar, chocolate, and alcohol. Finishes bitter, alight alcohol burn but I’d never guess 16%. Very creamy. I love this beer.

Sampled the most recent time at DLD 2008. Tasted at two other get-togethers since its release. I really tried to give this a fair shake. Giant aroma of burnt dates and toffee brought to the point of charring. Burnt malt with an intense booze character. Upong further inspection, molasses with candied fruit is found deep within. Flavour is grainy in texture with massive alcohol beating the crap out of my palate. Fusel and a mess. Seems like they were trying to impersonate a "big American Imperial stout" by trying to go over-the-top in every aspect. Unfortunately, they completely missed the mark here. Completely unrefined and a mess.

First
(Shared with a friend
Black color, brown head. Raissin, alcohol, solvents, roasted, coffee, sweet scent. Licorice, sweet, prunes, raissins, alcohol taste. Clear warm alcohol burning feeling. Smooth mouthfeel, medium bitterness. I did expect much from this, though I think it is very much dominated by alcohol, not really a good beer for me.
6/4/6/4/13=3.3

Rerate
(Sampled from bottle at Bishops Arms Järntorget, Göteborg)
On October 19, 2008 - Porterfestivalen
Pitch black color, dark brown to black head. Raissin, acidic, vinous, alcohol scent. Sweet, vinous, alcohol, malty taste. Alcohol aftertaste. Big smooth mouthfeel, medium bitterness.
4/4/7/4/12=3.1

WOW! Poured black as night with no head. Aroma is of lots of chocolate, coffee, soem fruits and alcohol. Flavor is very sweet and chocolate, with a nice coffee undertone and a nice dry burning alcohol finish. Excellent.

Courtesy of maniac at the 6th Richmond Gathering. Black with a bit of brown at the edges. Slight tan head. Big, big aroma of chocolate, coffee, and spruce. Huge flavor matches the nose. There is a bit of heat here that always reminds you that this is in fact a big beer. Nice stuff, definitely a sipper. Nice way to finish off a great evening of tasting.

1st ed. #02965 -- Perfect dark body with a nice head. "Ooooohh Shit!" - aroma. Perfect ataste, hot and spicey with nice malts and a hint of dark fruit. Hot ending but not hot... spicey wiht a nice coffee chocolate balance.