Nøgne Ø Dark Horizon First Edition

Formerly brewed at Nøgne Ø
Style: Imperial Stout
Grimstad, Norway

About two years old bottle # 04684 that has been storaged about 16 celcius degrees. Beer is black with very small, dark brown head. Aroma is very strong, full and intense, but still very balanced and temptating. Lot of liquirice, quite strong alcohol nuancee, roasted malts and piny hops. Flavour is practically perfect: soft liquirice, strong coffee, lot of sweetness and hops and this beer warmer you nicely in the end. And unbelievable but true, alcohol is gone even that was quite strongly present in the aroma. Wine-like, sweet, flexible and very nice to drink. Strong, dominating and overall beer with admirable balance, just unbelievable...

I stopped by the Loins Pride on the way through for vacation and I happen to have my bottle in my cooler to drink this week. I showed my teen-agers the price on the bottle list they were charging for this bottle $85.00 and then later I showed them my bottle. They thought Dad was living large LOL I poured my numbered bottle into my snifter and it produced a wonderful two-finger tan colored head that went to a thick lace. The body color was a nice typical black colored stout with tan colored highlights I must say that this brew smelled fantastic the fresh coffee and chocolate aroma was over the top. All of the big ass boozyness that I had gotten from a sample some years ago was gone. This brew surely has come into it’s own. When the teens saw me crack this one they asked for a sip. They wanted to live life large too. My youngest summed up the flavor profile by saying it reminded her of a mocha frapachino. It really had some nice sweet chocolate notes with the coffee coming up in the finish. Again it had no alcohol hotness at all as I sipped away at this. It had a full feel to in my mouth with some great carbonation for such a big brew with some age on it. Let me now to sum up the drikability on this fantastic brew. I poured the rest of the bomber into an insulated coffee mug and proceeded to make my way to the beach (there was a no glass rule) I sat in my lounge chair and kept sipping away at this till it was gone. It was one of the best beer drinking experiences I have ever had. Would I pay $85 to do it again? I don’t think so, but I did gab another second edition while they were fresh. Here’s to hoping for the best. Oh yea I did have one hell of a buzz as the night went on, after finishing the bomber myself. Don’t plan on doing much but chilling if you are going to tackle one of these alone.

Bottle thanks to Rciesla for opening a bottle of this at his 3000th rating celebration. Black pour with slight head. Aroma is of malt and alcohol, after seeing the abv i can’t believe it didn’t dominate this brew. Flavor follows aroma is is quite delicious for 16%. Overall really nice. #400 rater nice.

Inky black pour. Thin tan head and sticky lace. Vanilla, toffee, alcohol and espresso on the nose. Sticky mouth-feel. Really sweet up front with a big espresso finish. Far from a gentle alcoholic finish. All in all this was just a little too sweet and burnt tasting

Too many amazing stouts at the PIB this year. This was one. It drinks you back, or bites your ass with ABV. You can taste that too. Otherwise its another amazing chocolate, but bitter stout. I could drown myself and die happy in this beer. Or at least make some bad decisions.

16oz bottle courtesy of Corby112. I’m glad to finally get a chance to try this rare gem. Nose is massive bourbon. Some serious chocolate and tofee with dominating alcohol. Some dark fruits and raisins. A complex port-like nose. Flavor is very much like a port as well. Super rich dark malts, tons of bourbon and cherry. Caramel, light smoke, and quite a bit of alcohol burn make up the taste. Not as balanced as the Edition 2 but this edition is more complex. Both are outstanding beers. The super high abv makes this one a tough one to drink though and you can definitely feel the burn if you drink it at near room temp.

Bottle sample at Muckfest 2009 Day 2. Black pour with a thin brown head. Boozy aroma with oaky vanilla and chocolate. Chocolate and vanilla flavor giving way to a whiskey finish. Very good, but could probably sit a bit longer. Makes me wonder when the 2nd edition will be in its prime.

500mL Bottle. Thanks iowaherkeye. Smoky dark barbeque sauce, with some molasses and a touch of dark roast. Tangy and fresh. Nice. Pours a dark, oily pitch black, with a creamy coffee head. Wow. Wicked hot fresh and prickly alcohol, followed by some intense sweet brown sugar. Wow. Just a lot of rich, refined porty licorice characters. Spicy. This has a long, long, long spicy, hot licoricey finish. Nice. Tastes far from 16%. Balanced. Nice nutty c-hops type finish. Rich, brandy-like and delicious. A wonderful full, strong Imperial stout.