A celebration of Nøgne Ø achieving batch #100. We do this by brewing a particularly uncompromising double IPA. With Columbus hops and 80 IBU we can guarantee that this is a beer for connoisseurs!
Beer Ratings and Reviews:
[1] Review by Suds McDuff from Suds City, AleTown, USA who has tried this beer once. (7/20/2008 4:36:56 PM)
"Biggest head ever ever in the category for barleywine ... i heard rose neihland had a hand in this ... leaves a nice sticky hoppy sweet-bitter smack ... no abv detected ... a great no holds bar barleywine (american or IIPA?) ... LS "
Aroma:
8/10
Appearance:
10/10
Mouthfeel:
10/10
Flavor:
8/10
Overall:
8/10
Final Rating, by Style:
(4.4)
Sampled: Bottle Sample Size: 500ml @ $12 Unit Cost: $11.36 per Pint
[2] Review by Sap from Tucson, AZ, USA who has tried this beer once. (5/17/2008 1:27:16 AM)
"A reasonably vigorous pour produces a four-finger thick, darkish tinged, tan colored head in my Tripel Karmeliet tulip. The beer is a deeply concentrated, burnt amber color that just shows a deep, clear, concentrated ruby hue if held up to the light. This smells of sticky hop character even as I am pouring this beer. A closer inspection confirms this with notes of candied citrus peel, sweetened berry notes, sweet pine sap, orange blossom honey, a soft herbal reek that can lean towards garlic chive at times as well as a touch of menthol aromatics. As is typical with my experience of the new breed, hoppy northern European beers there is still a substantial malt backbone here that contributes a deep toasty grain character, and nice whole grain bread aromatics.
Hoppy from the first taste, this has a bracing bitterness that becomes more astringent and aggressive through to the lingering, bitingly hoppy finish. Lingering herbal notes, menthol, concentrated pine sap, bright bergamot, ruby-red grapefruit, tangerine, ample lychee form the biggest part of the flavor profile, but supporting hop-derived notes of light cured leather, some tobacco flavors, garlic chives and milkweed are also noticeable at a much more subtle level. The malt contributes lots of chewy, viscous body to this brew as well as some light toasted-almost-roasted touches in the finish, hop supporting caramel character, and some malty crushed cracker flavors in the middle that get drowned out by the caramelized malt sweetness by the finish. As the beer warms up in my glass it smoothes out just a bit with some of the harsher hop notes and the bitterness becoming a bit softer and a touch more integrated.
Definitely on the thick side of a double IPA, indeed more in line on this front with a Barley wine, but it certainly plays the hop card in spades as this is clearly the dominant character, even despite the interesting malt depth. This is one of those beers that really needs to warm up (even though it only started at 50°F / 10°C, it was still a bit too cool) and perhaps even breath a bit in order to lose a bit of the sharp, astringent hop edge. This really is just insanely hopped, though I find it quite enjoyable. I definitely am enjoying the depth the mares otter malt adds and even the slight roasted note from the chocolate malt is a nice addition.
Purchased: Plaza Liquors, Tucson AZ"
Aroma:
7/10
Appearance:
7/10
Mouthfeel:
7/10
Flavor:
8/10
Overall:
7/10
Final Rating, by Style:
(3.6)
Sampled: Bottle Sample Size: 500ml @ $9.35 Unit Cost: $8.85 per Pint
[3] Review by beerguy101 from Newark, CA, USA who has tried this beer once. (5/4/2008 12:35:31 AM)
"Tasted at the April Northern California Beer Tasting. This Imperial IPA pours a deep amber brown color from a 22oz bottle. Medium sized white foamy head. The aroma is caramel and malt, with a fairly pronounced citrusy hop finish. A medium bodied 2xIPA. The malts are caramel and sweet. The hops are grapefruity and citrusy. Hey, it’s a west coast IPA… what do you mean its from Norway? Well, it’s not quite that hoppy, but you get the idea. Mouthfeel is full. Finish is clean and crisp. Aftertaste is slightly bitter."
Aroma:
7/10
Appearance:
8/10
Mouthfeel:
8/10
Flavor:
7/10
Overall:
8/10
Final Rating, by Style:
(3.8)
Sampled: Bottle
Value of this beer for its style: Not Sure
[4] Review by Vac from San Diego, California, USA who has tried this beer once. (2/28/2008 3:37:26 PM)
"Bottle from Pizza Port Bottle Shop ( I think). Pours with a dark brown body topped by a thin to medium thick head with some lacing. It’s slightly sweet and malty with a grassy yet piney hope note and a little pepper with a bitter finish. Full bodied and warming."
Aroma:
8/10
Appearance:
8/10
Mouthfeel:
8/10
Flavor:
7/10
Overall:
8/10
Final Rating, by Style:
(3.9)
Sampled: Bottle
Value of this beer for its style: Not Sure
[5] Review by staleyiv from Newnan, GA, USA who has tried this beer once. (2/27/2008 12:14:50 PM)
"(Green's Trip: 08') Yet another Nogne O brew I picked up because I like the Imperial stout so much and I like barleywines, especially when it is cold outside. Aroma on this brew is very interesting and offers some toffee as well as some sweet maltiness and maybe some anise with some dried-floral overtones and bitterness. Appearance looks nothing like a barleywine at all or an Imperial ipa for that matter and is more like a Baltic porter and is a deep, rich black in color but a very deep brown when held to the light with a well-carbonated head on top that is full-bodied and frothy and creamy and barely diminishes and is a light-tan in color and leaves very thick lacing behind. Mouthfeel is full-bodied and very thick and robust with massive malty complexity as well as some less than expected hoppy balance with a palate that is thick and chewy and very well-rounded and different. Flavor is of some leather and spice like anise with some oily overtones with strong caramelization and has an aftertaste that offers some chocolate bitter and burnt malt and I am still trying to find the 80 IBU's of hops and has a finish that is hearty, robust, thick, and creamy with some faint bitter hops on the very back end of this creation. Overall, this is a strange brew, BP labels it a imperial ipa and that can't be right at all stylistically speaking; the bottle itself labels it a barleywine, again, stylistically speaking it doesn't cut it. So, in my opinion, I have to say this is more of a Baltic or Imperial porter judging by all categories and in the end, regardless of what it is considered, is a very enjoyable and unique brew for the cold months of Scandinavian countries...Recommended!!! "
Aroma:
9/10
Appearance:
9/10
Mouthfeel:
9/10
Flavor:
10/10
Overall:
9/10
Final Rating, by Style:
(4.6)
Sampled: Bottle Sample Size: 500ml @ $5.99 Unit Cost: $5.67 per Pint
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(4.4)
