Nøgne Ø God Jul

Brewed by Nøgne Ø
Style: American Strong Ale
Grimstad, Norway

Serve in Snifter, Trappist glass

From Superbrugsen, Aarhus, DK. Bottled, Dec. 2007. Malty caramel and a touch of alcohol. Raisins and x-mas spices

UPDATED: DEC 25, 2008 <i>Bottle (50 cl) from Systembolaget</i>. Dark brown, opaque, with a thick beige head. Roasted dark malt aroma with notes of chocolate, and a little spicy. Velvetly smooth mouthfeel, quite well balanced.

Very dark red, kind of burgundy pour, with large, fairly well-sustained tan head - very doughy, biscuit-like malt aroma, with hints of roasted nuts, light spice presence, chocolate pudding, and a touch of brown sugar - smells very much like an english strong ale - fairly soft carbonation, with a medium body - nice balance between sweet, bitter and roasty - lots of nutty flavors, with touches of dark chocolate and mild background spices - the pudding-like quality from the aroma comes out in the finish - everything about this beer seems like an english strong to me, so much so that’s I’d call for a reclassification of this one.

Bottle. Hazy brownish colour with a nice mostly lasting creamy head. Rich aroma and taste of malts and fruits. Nice beer.

In the bottle at the 2007 Crescent Moon Holiday Beer Tasting. Mostly black in color with a suggestion of sepia brown. Has a quickly disappearing dark beige head. The aroma of PDQ chocolate mix in milk. A very silky palate. The texture rings the tongue. Slightly smoked, but a BIG chocolate bolus throughout. This is like a southern chocolate pie!

Bottle, probably approaching 5 or 6 months of age, drunk on 7/18/07
Not quite as prominent a head as you usually get with Nogne O’s beers, but still nothing to scoff at and moderate retention as well. Head is a drab, olivine-brown with a dark brown body, tinted with deep magenta/violet. Lacing is moderate, clarity medium-high.
Smells sweet. Yep. Caramel and toffee and brown sugar all mix about, while a strong nuttiness and dense, moist, bready sweetness, akin to fruitcake, takes hold as well. An odd peppery/spicy finish that I suppose may be hops, though it could be any spice/herb for all I know. It hits on the back, but is mostly muted from all of the sticky, thick sweetness of the malt. Warming/breathing do little to alleviate the fat malts in your face and the complexity never really improves. Just seems like a whole ton of caramel malt to me. Roasted/toasted notes are present, but, as in the spicy note, are just beaten back by the sweetness. Medium strength of aroma. A little limpid. No alcohol noted in the nose.
Huge nutty-sweet caramel and brown sugar. Lower than necessary carbonation levels really concentrate the sweetness, but even with more/tighter carbonation, the stuff just seems way too underattenuated. Even what’s there isn’t very complex. Just variations on caramel/brown sugar. Some odd spicing/bitterness as an afterthought, and a sharp alcohol bite on the very tip of the finish. Syrupy, cloying, not complex. Even some oiliness comes through from the, assumed, dark malts, yet I find little roasted notes in the flavor.
Poured it out. Will try again this winter. I guess I’m way off-base here, looking at the other scores.

bottle thanks to mora2000 on ba. deep chocolate with a cream head. smoke, nuts, caramel and sweet malts on the nose. nice thickness with a spicy malt flavor as well as caramel and dried fruits.

Bottle. Thanks for sharing heemer. Poured and opaque black color. Head was tan. Smelled of chocolate, alcohol, and dried fruits. Slightly sweet on the tongue up front with roasty bitterness at the end. Chocolate and alcohol flavors, occasionally tasting like vodka.