Once, every farm in Norway was required by law to brew its own ale. All of that ale had a natural smoky taste because the malt was kilned by fire, and most of it was spiced with juniper beeries. Norwegian Wood, a recreation of that traditional style, is made by the "Hand Brewery" - four guys brewing in their spare time, on an absurdly small scale.
Beer Ratings and Reviews:
[1] Review by Beav from Fort Collins, CO, USA who has tried this beer once. (6/20/2008 7:20:59 PM)
"16.9 oz bottle. Batch 100, brewed 10/07, best by 10/09. Pours a murky light brown with a huge big bubbled rocky fizzy light tan head that retains well and leaves a little lacing.
The aroma is complex - toasted chocolate malts, dark fruits, smoke, wood and a little alcohol.
The flavor is bready chocolate malts, dark fruits, fruitcake and spices with a decent bitter finish. The mouthfeel is medium with lots of sharp carbonation.
Overall, an interesting and fun beer. It tastes interesting, but doesn't quite align with my tastes."
Aroma:
9/10
Appearance:
8/10
Mouthfeel:
5/10
Flavor:
7/10
Overall:
8/10
Final Rating, by Style:
(3.7)
Sampled: Bottle Sample Size: 16.9oz @ $9 Unit Cost: $8.52 per Pint
[2] Review by Sap from Tucson, AZ, USA who has tried this beer once. (1/24/2008 9:48:40 PM)
"Batch 70, brewed March 2007; Sampled January 2008
Smokey aromatics greet my nose as I pour this brew into my glass. It is very well carbonated and easily produces a tan crown of froth that is a full five fingers in height (including almost two-finger above the rim of my glass. The smoke is definitely the dominant characteristic of the aroma; the smoke is a mix of salt, meaty umami, smoked cherry, smooth phenolics and perhaps a hint of plastic. The aroma is pretty appetizing, but it is very hard to smell anything other than the smoke.
Still well carbonated the beer foams just a bit as it hits my mouth. It smoothes out considerably as the beer flows across my tongue and even picks up some chewy texture and almost creamy quality to it by the finish. The beer has a smooth, hearty smokiness to it up front, but picks up a touch of sharp esters and phenolics towards the finish. Up front the smoke character melds in with the malt sweetness so well that the sweetness is not overly noticed, but instead makes the smoke seem quite appetizing. Somehow the smoke balances this up front note in the finish with a bit of sharper phenolics, but there are also some dry, lingering, toasty grain notes in the finish as well. Touches of berry notes seem to be in the flavor as well, though it seems very hard to pick them out underneath the smokiness. The smoke combines quite well with the heft of this brew; it is just enough to be chewy, but not so much as to make this anything near a sipping brew.
An interesting idea, but it seems somehow not all that well executed. The flavor is wonderful if you like smoked beers (which I do), but I really wish more of the juniper could have come through. In the end it is a bit one dimension, especially considering I was hoping for a smoked beer with something else going on. Still this is a tasty brew and one that I am certainly enjoying."
Aroma:
7/10
Appearance:
8/10
Mouthfeel:
8/10
Flavor:
6/10
Overall:
7/10
Final Rating, by Style:
(3.6)
Sampled: Bottle Sample Size: 500ml @ $0 Unit Cost: $0 per Pint
[3] Review by aracauna from Adairsville, GA, USA who has tried this beer once. (10/14/2007 9:53:23 PM)
"This is a little on the overcarbonated side. It’s really not as bad as thebeercellar made it out to be, but I’m not a huge fan of when the smoke is this strong. It kind of covers up the rest of the beer. I really prefer the smoke in my beers to be a little more balanced with the rest of my beers."
Aroma:
8/10
Appearance:
8/10
Mouthfeel:
6/10
Flavor:
6/10
Overall:
6/10
Final Rating, by Style:
(3.4)
Value of this beer for its style: Not Sure Compared to this brewer's other beers: Not Sure
[4] Review by eaglefan538 from DE, USA who has tried this beer once. (9/6/2007 9:33:09 PM)
"Bottle from SL. Poured a murky brown with some ruby hues, very generous off-white to tan colored head (multiple fingers), very solid retention all the way down, lacing that was decent, but normally slid down to the head between sips. Aroma was heavily smoked malts, yet not with strong meaty elements typical of a fine rauch. The flavor was less than one dimensional (like the aroma was), yet not much more than that. Besides significant smoking, scottish ale peaty-like, tobacco, some caramel, some brown ale faint chocolate type nuances, finishes with a hop bite, although this thing left me wanting more when all was said and done, just a tad harsh on the smoke, seemingly somewhat astringent even. After reading the bottle, the junipers seemed to appear in the finish. The mouthfeel is grainy, hearty, lots of fullness to the liquid."
Aroma:
7/10
Appearance:
8/10
Mouthfeel:
8/10
Flavor:
7/10
Overall:
7/10
Final Rating, by Style:
(3.7)
Sampled: Bottle Sample Size: 500ml @ $8.99 Unit Cost: $8.51 per Pint
[5] Review by ante from Stockholm, Sweden who has tried this beer once. (5/22/2007 4:23:03 PM)
"Hazy amber with a low white foam. Smokey, grassy and a bit nutty aroma with touches of licorice and alcohol. Smokey and salty flavour with notes of toffee and grass. Medium, spritsy body. Toasted bread, grass and peer in the flat aftertaste."
Aroma:
7/10
Appearance:
6/10
Mouthfeel:
5/10
Flavor:
6/10
Overall:
6/10
Final Rating, by Style:
(3)
Sampled: Bottle
Value of this beer for its style: Not Sure
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(3.7)
