Nøgne Ø Dark Horizon First Edition

Rating #1350. Holy balls, Batman, serious booze warning. Flavor is an absolute kick to the face of mega-malt syrup. Am I drinking wort here? A totally monster. Kind of gross... not too crazy about this.

What is interesting is that, towards the end of the bottle, when no one wanted to drink it any more, I decided to do a little blending. Mike had brought out a 4 year old Lindemans Cassis, which was overwhelmingly fruity, I thought the two might go well together. I started with 1 to 1, but it still tasted like pure Lindemans. Now 2:1, 3:1 Dark Horizon to Lindemans and there was still no stout. It ended up some 5 or 6:1 before they became at all balanced. This monster 16% stout was dominated by the paltry syrup brew. Ah well.

Pours almost black with a thin tan head that quickly is gone. Aroma of coffee. A roasty touch. Taste has a hint dark fruit, coffee,a little alcoholy......the flavor lingers on the palate for a while. The alcohol is a little much and not well hid. Bottle #02863

sampled at the San Diego Strong Ale Festival Nov 2008, an event shared with what seemed liked hundreds of ratebeerians and enjoyed mostly through a straw, since my face was a bloody mess of scabs and stitches. this came from the RB table full of bottles. Super dark without much head on my small pour. great coffee, dark fruit and alchol aroma. The flavor was slightly sweet with great chocolate and coffee notes, but just a little bit to much alcohol in my opinion. A strange complaint for being at a strong ale fest I know. but if they could get the same complexity and take it back down to 10% i think this beer would be a 4.6.

500 ml. bottle shared by and with Gregis. Bottle #01714. Pour is all black with a 1/2 inch deep tan head that fades almost immediately. Aroma begins faint, though as it warmed revealed some red wine, roasting coffee, and cooking/roasting meat. Also some alcohol heat present in the nose. Taste is very winey (Merlot / Cabernet), also a bunch of raisin fruity-malt. Big heat in the finish. Palate is medium, very flat and slick. Big wine flavors are present throughout. Very interesting effort, truly nothing like anything I have had before. Thanks for sharing this one Greg!

From a 500mL Bottle. Dark black, opaque, oily pour with a syrupy texture and a thin ring of wispy tan head. Intoxicating aroma of prunes, figs, espresso, and chocolate liquor creating a dripping alcoholic nose. Notes of molasses, smoke, and rummy raisins. Thick, rich, and heavy bouquet with a gently alcohol warming the nostrils. Full bodied, lightly carbonated mouthfeel with a moderately syrupy texture. Lots of sweet dark chocolate syrup up front on the palate with edges of charred brown sugar. A rich tobacco-like, toasted biscuit, smokey malt flavor develops mid-palate, along with more raisin and plum. Develops a bourbony-caramel hotness toward the finish as the alcohols warm; I’m finding them to be a bit hot for my liking. Definitely a solid "high gravity" imperial stout, but the drinkability and overall enjoyment of the beer still suffers from the over-indulgence and booziness, even when treated as a slow-sipping treat.

Bottle. Very dark brown with a small beige head. Aromas are caramel and earthy coffee malts. Some burnt notes with green pine. Some whisky malt character. Flavours are caramel and spices with smoky notes and rich coffee. Lots of warming alcohol. Smooth on the palate. Powerful without being overpowering.

Bottle. Black beer with a malty aroma and a malty and rich flavour. Overall a very nice beer.

Bottle #02099. Appearance: Pours an opaque black body. As for the head, no dice! Smell: Fragrant aroma of heavily roasted malts, coffee liqueur, acrid smoke, molasses, blackberry preserves, along with some sweetish wafts of alcohol. Taste: Dark, roasty malts with a sharp hit of coffee and a bit of molasses. Smokey tobacco hints. A touch of vinous blackberry based fruitiness. As it warms, you gain a dash of low-sodium soy sauce. Earthy, roasty bitterness on the finish. Distinct alcohol presence on that finish too, btw. Mouthfeel: Medium-full body. Mild carbonation. As warming as you’d imagine. Drinkability: Pretty decent for a high-octane stout, but it’s still pretty green and could only benefit from some age.