Sunturnbrew - Nøgne Ø - Det Kompromissløse Bryggeri A/S

kawilliams81

Illinois

3.3/5  rDev -17.1%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Served in a 16 oz. snifter.

A- pours a dark amber, 1 finger white head. No lacing.

S- smoke! Peat, dark fruits, wood.

T- lots of smoke and peat, some dark fruits, wood, rye.

M- medium body and a little thin for a 11% beer.

O- just not doing it for me. The smoke and peat in this beer just don't work with this style. Just not good!

Serving type: bottle

12-28-2011 05:50:22 | More by kawilliams81

Kmat10

Alberta (Canada)

3.5/5  rDev -12.1%

05-20-2013 04:46:37 | More by Kmat10

homebrew311

Illinois

3.7/5  rDev -7%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 3.75

This beer was on close out at my local shop for 2.99, couldn't pass it up. Pours a dark amber with almost no light passage. Decent head and retention for style. The nose is intense. It starts with heavy peaty smoked malt. This is paired with a touch of oxidization, and then the barleywine character begins to seep through. Notes of caramel, raisin, and molasses come through in small waves with the smoke mostly dominating. The taste leans towards the sweet side in the world of barleywines. If I didn't know better, I would think this was an English b-wine. Heavy brown sugar and molasses provide sweetness on the palate and are backed up by a huge peat smoked malt character. The smoke gains momentum towards the finish, but never quite balances the sweetness. Mouthfeel is somewhat hefty with moderate carbonation. OVerall, this brew is definitely unique, and the smoke does provide an interesting take on the style. In this example, the malt bill leans too far to the sweet side and the smoke just doesn't help.

Serving type: bottle

04-15-2013 02:32:04 | More by homebrew311

imfrigginfly

Hawaii

4.5/5  rDev +13.1%

04-02-2013 07:18:53 | More by imfrigginfly

brewdlyhooked13

Ohio

4.46/5  rDev +12.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.25

Appearance - pours a dark, tawny brown. A thick finger of light mocha foam maintains well and has great lacing.

Aroma - distant malt and a smoky blanket. Not near as intense as the Yeastie Boys. has a nice woodsy aroma after setup

Taste - sweet malts, plenty of smokiness, and a side of licorice. Alcohol warming on the afteraste, I like the different play of flavors here. Craft and smoke together, I like it. The finish is warm and lengthy, notes of molasses and some slight drying, even some late flavors of dark chocolate as this warms up.

Mouthfeel - thick and smooth, this is pretty chewy.

Overall - one of the most interesting barleywines I've had. The only smoked barleywine I can remember, but the play and interaction of the dfifferent flavors make this one unique brew, which gets harder to do with each passing year of sampling different beers. Here's to Nogne O for a cool distinct beer.

Serving type: bottle

04-01-2013 04:06:32 | More by brewdlyhooked13

MickeyD

Kansas

4.5/5  rDev +13.1%

03-18-2013 21:36:48 | More by MickeyD

Resuin

Massachusetts

4.16/5  rDev +4.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

Poured from a 0.5 L bottle into a Westvleteren Goblet.

Appearance: Pours a deep brown with a hint of cherry color and leaves about a half finger of light tan head.

Smell: Smoked malts, caramel, salty smoked meats. Very pleasant - not overbearing smoky aromas but definitely present.

Taste: Definitely smoky malts up front, a hint of some dark fruits like plum, raisins and figs. A little bit of alcohol, but a lot less than I expected. A bit of spice as well. Very smooth and tasty.

Mouth-feel: A nice balance between too thin and overly thick - a solid, medium body. Carbonation is noticeable but light.

Overall: A very solid smoked barleywine - exactly what I would hope from such a style. This is extremely well-balanced and the alcohol is expertly hidden.

Serving type: bottle

03-17-2013 04:04:52 | More by Resuin

lordofthewiens

Maine

4.39/5  rDev +10.3%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25

In a snifter this beer was a dark garnet color; very pretty. It had a small off-white head that left a bit of lace.

Nice aroma of smoke and dark fruit. A bit of caramel.

I tasted peat and tobacco primarily.T he fruit seemed to be plum and raisin. Some toffee.

A dangerous beer to drink. So smooth and drinkable, but at 11% ABV, you have to be careful.

Serving type: on-tap

02-09-2013 14:38:36 | More by lordofthewiens

torerik

Norway

4.75/5  rDev +19.3%

02-03-2013 17:33:40 | More by torerik

RES

New York

4.25/5  rDev +6.8%

02-02-2013 22:32:11 | More by RES

Bouleboubier

Pennsylvania

4.25/5  rDev +6.8%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25

A: slow-rising, compact head sporting some big bubble...sudsy/slimy lace bloblets...good amount of a misty cap, chunky collar - moderately dark brown liquid, rather turbid (chill haze? unfiltered?)

S: obvious smoke malt right up front, roasted plum, stewed apple?

T: dark, lightly bitter chocolate - vague cinnamon spiciness, but not quite flavor - caramelized steak fat - campfire-y wood - sort of a menthol evergreen - the alcohol is present, however, it is buffered nicely by the caramel-y and roasted malt flavors - not much in the way of typical (American) barleywine flavors

M: lightly powdery - semi-hot alcohol and mellow smoky acridness, smoothed out by the medium-bodied malt foundation - weak frizzy carbonation balanced against a mildly syrupy pull across the tongue

O: this was pretty darn good - nice twist on the strong, dark, malty, boozy style - admirable balance

Serving type: bottle

01-29-2013 18:30:48 | More by Bouleboubier

jewellrunner

Missouri

4/5  rDev +0.5%

01-24-2013 23:40:28 | More by jewellrunner

schnarr84

Alberta (Canada)

4.25/5  rDev +6.8%

01-08-2013 06:54:15 | More by schnarr84

rolltide8425

Pennsylvania

4/5  rDev +0.5%

01-01-2013 02:59:42 | More by rolltide8425

Converge

Alberta (Canada)

4.18/5  rDev +5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

500ml into a tulip. Dated 12.01.12, making it one year old.

A - Pours a deep garnet hue with a bubbly tan head. The dense head slowly dissipates, settling to a thin skiff of foam and a ring that leaves sticky sheets of lace. Nice looking brew, and extra points for presentation.

S - Intense smoke aroma! Toasty caramel malt, with molasses slight salty notes. Huge resinous earthiness, with dank earthy hops, spices, old wood, and a dominant smokey character that I really enjoy. Mild notes of citric rind, leather, and English tobacco. I'm loving the nose on this one. Some distant sweetness, with crystal malt and toffee poking through the salvo of smoke. Complex, unique, and inviting.

T - Tons of intensely smoked malt on the palate, with old wood, peat, resinous earth, and English tobacco. Hops are reserved for an American barleywine, but still evident with dank forest, and slight pine notes. Some spice from the rye malt, as well as some sweet malty notes of toffee, deeply caramelized malt, and molasses. Mild fruitiness, with both slight citric notes as well as dark fruits; dates and raisins. Thoroughly complex, with a damn sizable profile.

M - Thick and creamy, with smooth carbonation and mild boozy warmth. Definitely fits the profile.

D - A unique offering from Nøgne Ø that seriously delivers on big, bold flavors. Certainly not for just any palate, this beer is intense and the full force smoked malt assault isn't going to appeal to everyone. Luckily for me I'm not one of these people, and I enjoyed this brew a lot. It does become somewhat tedious, and I definitely get the medicinal/band-aid/chemical qualities some other reviews talked about, but the positives far outweigh the negatives for me. Props to Nøgne Ø for brewing something intriguing, unique, and most importantly, flavorful.

Serving type: bottle

12-29-2012 23:47:01 | More by Converge

kirkse

Massachusetts

4/5  rDev +0.5%

12-21-2012 10:02:09 | More by kirkse

superspak

Michigan

4.1/5  rDev +3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

500 ml bottle into snifter; no bottle dating, but should be at least a year old. Pours hazy very dark reddish brown with a thin light khaki head with decent retention, that reduces to a thin film that lingers. Minimal spotty lacing on the glass. Aromas of caramel, molasses, toast, pine, citrus rind, raisin, smoke, wood, spicy rye, bread, earth, tobacco, herbal spiciness, and light alcohol esters. Very nice aromas with good balance and complexity. Taste of molasses, caramel, fig, toast, pine, citrus rind, floral, biscuit, raisin, prune, smoke, spicy rye, earth, tobacco, wood, and herbal spiciness. Light earthy bitterness on the finish; with lingering notes of caramel, molasses, dark fruits, tobacco, toast, earth, spicy rye, light smoke, wood, light pine, and herbal spiciness on the finish for a good bit. Great flavor balance and complexity; zero cloying flavors after the finish. Light carbonation and fairly full bodied; with a creamy and slick mouthfeel that is nice. The minimal carbonation definitely works well here. Alcohol is well hidden with only a slight warming noticed after the finish. Overall this is an excellent smoked rye barleywine. Great flavor complexity, depth, and balance; very smooth to sip on. A very enjoyable offering.

Serving type: bottle

12-09-2012 05:57:02 | More by superspak

tuckerlikesbeer

Minnesota

4.25/5  rDev +6.8%

12-03-2012 17:04:12 | More by tuckerlikesbeer

t0rin0

California

4.25/5  rDev +6.8%

11-28-2012 05:40:12 | More by t0rin0

asigler

4.75/5  rDev +19.3%

11-26-2012 03:15:21 | More by asigler

Googs

New York

4/5  rDev +0.5%

11-23-2012 18:46:30 | More by Googs

Chrily

Norway

4.5/5  rDev +13.1%

11-05-2012 11:47:57 | More by Chrily

zaphodchak

Virginia

4.08/5  rDev +2.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Dark cloudy brown body and a nice fluffy tan head. Bottle had no dates, but I think it's 6mo old-ish (I bought it about 3 months ago). Laces a treat.

Smells big-- smokey, but the sort of tangy, barbecue kind of smoke. Not like rich and oaky. If that makes sense.

Dang. This is pretty nice. Tastes like barbecued plums spiced with some bittering hops. I can get the rye in there as well (reminds me in that way of New Holland Charkoota Rye) which is a fantastic bold complement to support the smokiness, and wheat to give it body; otherwise it would be too tangy/thin/oily. This worked really well. Great proof that 'barleywine' means whatever you want it to mean.

Rich, thick, and luscious. Strong point of this beer.

If I'd known this was to be an American Barleywine, I might've passed. Not that the style description is inaccurate, though the beer defies pigeonholing. Darn well-crafted.

Serving type: bottle

10-29-2012 02:50:20 | More by zaphodchak

donactive

Sweden

2.5/5  rDev -37.2%

09-22-2012 10:44:00 | More by donactive

ReeseMax3

Alaska

4.5/5  rDev +13.1%

09-14-2012 04:56:03 | More by ReeseMax3