Red Horizon - Nøgne Ø - Det Kompromissløse Bryggeri A/S

beachbum1975

Ohio

4.58/5  rDev +23.5%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Gorgeous packaging on this one. Inside the tin canister rested a cute little 8.5 oz bottle wrapped in off-white tissue paper. Served at cellar temp and shared with BA'er netwonty.

We poured this behemoth into my Lost Abbey tulip. It rested a clear amber color with sticky legs, leaving a small ring of bubbles. Moderately thick and inviting appearance.

Immediately after popping the cap on this one, I smelled the unique, Japanese-style yeast mentioned all over the canister. Rice, sake, peaches, figs, complex malts and a woodiness graced the nose on this beer. If I was blindfolded, I would have thought this was Firestone Walker XI (but a different colored beer, obviously). Sublime!

Moderately sweet flavor from all the malts at play. The booziness factor is adequete, but still shockingly well hidden under the 17% ABV beer. There's definitely alot of sweet, fruity esthers in this and a big, nasty caramel-based malt bill. The perfect sipper. The 8.5 oz bottle is the perfect size for this big of a beer.

The mouthfeel was coating and hot at times with just the right amount of carbonation.

I have another one of these chilling out in the cellar that I will definitely give a year or two to age. Hopefully some age on this one will cut the sweetness factor. Very good, highly recommended!

Serving type: bottle

12-15-2010 21:03:48 | More by beachbum1975

JohnK17

Pennsylvania

4.25/5  rDev +14.6%

03-21-2013 16:36:12 | More by JohnK17

BierVogel

Minnesota

3/5  rDev -19.1%

01-15-2013 15:12:07 | More by BierVogel

Thorpe429

Illinois

2.3/5  rDev -38%
look: 4 | smell: 2 | taste: 2 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

Bottle courtesy of ygtbsm94. Served in a sampler glass. Pours a moderate amber color with a short head. Nose carries some of the sake yeast, which isn’t terribly tasty when paired with the underlying malt character. A bit of booze, though not excessive for the alcohol level. Very strange. Not a fan at all.

Serving type: bottle

12-15-2012 18:47:14 | More by Thorpe429

girlmeetsbeer16

Massachusetts

4/5  rDev +7.8%

11-29-2012 02:08:16 | More by girlmeetsbeer16

twiggamortis420

Texas

4.28/5  rDev +15.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

250 mL bottle pours a clear-ish gold color with a small bubly white head. Not much for retention or lace.

Nose is toffee, caramel and light fruit. Nice.

Easy to drink for a 17%er. Lots of light fruit and sweet malt....runs the gamut. I like it...maybe not worth the price, but a very fun beer to have, the sake yeast was a nice touch though I probably wouldnt have been able to identify it blind.

Serving type: bottle

11-10-2012 03:43:23 | More by twiggamortis420

smcnulty1981

Rhode Island

3.15/5  rDev -15.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

A: poured very hazy little to no head with a few white bubbles floating around the color was a orange brown and there was some lacing and noticeable alcohol legs on the glass

S: although the style didn't dictate it smelled a lot like a dibble lots of dark fruit raisins with a vineous quality the sake yeast deffenitly comes through but the trac alcohol from the smell brings this beer down a bit

T: not much alcohol burn which is great for a 17% abv beer much like the nose there is a lot of dark fruit quality in the taste however the sake yeast seems to over power everything just a little bit perhaps it could have been a little more subtle

M: a medium heavy feel not the heavyist I've had but it had that very sticky syrupy feeling that some higher alcohol beers can have

O: although the alcohol is lower the taste on this is very similar to Utopias but Utopias had a smother less sticky texture to it and also the test on this is very comparable to Chimay red all together this beer was ok it was a great idea that could have been executed a little bit better

Serving type: bottle

09-02-2012 04:58:36 | More by smcnulty1981

MasterSki

Illinois

3.65/5  rDev -1.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Bottle purchased at West Lakeview Liquors.

A - A hard pour into my Darkness snifter yields a thin white foam that dissipates to a few stray bubbles. Muddy orange-amber body.

S - Fruity yeast notes with pears, peaches, red grapes, berries, lemon-scented hand lotion, and a bit of brown raisin. There's a little fusel alcohol still present after two and half years of age, resulting in some mild nostril sting.

T - Taste is more like hard fruit candies mixed with scented hand soap, but with a mild note of burnt tire and paint varnish fusels in the finish. Tangy lemon citrus flavors in the finish. The harsh alcohol notes actually dissipate a bit as the beer warms, which is the opposite of what I expected.

M - Serious warming alcohol that matches the billed 17%. Dry texture, but with the faintest bit of residual stickiness. Very low carbonation level and full-bodied.

D - Very strange stuff. I imagine I'd like it more without the alcohol flavors and burn - perhaps Nøgne could make a 10-12% version instead? I appreciate the appropriate 25cl bottle size, as I don't think I could have finished a larger bottle. I'd try this again in another year to see if it has mellowed, as there's a lot of unique flavors and plenty of depth. Better than I was expecting, in any case.

Serving type: bottle

07-20-2012 00:28:10 | More by MasterSki

Psychmusic

Rhode Island

3.5/5  rDev -5.7%

06-28-2012 00:38:08 | More by Psychmusic

raythealeman

Connecticut

3.75/5  rDev +1.1%

06-26-2012 01:47:23 | More by raythealeman

drabmuh

Maryland

3.6/5  rDev -3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Thanks Brad, another beer from Nogne with dangerously high but undetectable levels of alcohol. Beer is orangish / amber and hazy with a thin lazy white head.

Aroma is grassy, earthy, sweet mildly, a little ginger perhaps.

Beer is medium in body and the yeast character makes this beer drink like sake. It thins on the palate and finishes dry, decent but not great.

Serving type: bottle

06-18-2012 13:27:06 | More by drabmuh

Huhzubendah

District of Columbia

3.6/5  rDev -3%
look: 2.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Shared by ygtbsm94. Thanks a lot, Brad!

The beer is transparent and orange hued with no head and no lace. Mkay...

The aroma is minty, sweet, fruity, herbal, grassy.

The flavor follows suit, with a pronounced mint presence. Sweet and boozy with a throat-warming finish. That said, the beer isn't super hot or messy, just strong. At 17% abv, a couple of ounces is all you need. Worth a try.

Serving type: bottle

05-29-2012 21:26:55 | More by Huhzubendah

thecheapies

Pennsylvania

3.58/5  rDev -3.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 2 | overall: 3.5

Red Horizon, split two-ways. Mine in a Mad Elf snifter.

Hazy rosy-red orange. No head, just bubbles collected. At least they're not popping. 3.5

Picking up the rice wine from the sake yeast. Heaps of booze strength, some artificial peach, peppermint, and hard tack candy. Sweet and hot. 3.5

Sweet sake flavor. Some plum, vanilla, whitehouse cherry, oolong tea, and major-league booze. Sugary and candied. Some light caramel syrup in the flavor. Needs a woody character for balance. They should have given this some proper barrel-aging. 4.0

Candied body saturated with sugars and ethanol. Not much heft, though. Sugar water body. Relatively flat and almost spicy from the 17%. 2.0

Truly an experimental brew. Has character, flavor, and pleasant aroma while still clinging on to one or two notes of interest. Probably won't revisit. 3.5

Serving type: bottle

05-21-2012 20:15:05 | More by thecheapies

bluesplit63

Connecticut

4/5  rDev +7.8%

05-11-2012 22:35:19 | More by bluesplit63

ygtbsm94

Virginia

3.25/5  rDev -12.4%

04-24-2012 04:36:27 | More by ygtbsm94

rand

California

2.63/5  rDev -29.1%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 1.5 | overall: 2.5

8.5 oz bottle poured into pint glass

A: Red Horizon pours viscous and oily, muddy apricot in color, forming almost no head. In fact, the completely opaque brew shows little signs of carbonation.

S: Streams of alcohol volatiles propel strong notes of burnt sugar and overly ripened fruit. Toffee and a touch of drying yeast linger in the backdrop.

T: The sugar and alcohol immediately assault your palate - the aging process here accentuates the alcohol flavors, I'd have guessed this is in the low 20's. This is one sweet brew, like grainy corn syrup-alcohol. A general ripe-fruit note follows, amplifying the cloyingly sweet overtone. A touch of hop resin sits in the back, attempting to tame this saccharine wine-beer, but there's just not enough. The biting alcohol and sugars close the sip.

M: This is one of the more oily, viscous brews you'll come across. And it completely lacks carbonation, without which advances a treacly experience.

I'm always a sucker for beers that go big, especially of the experimental variety, but this is just hard to drink. It's not off-putting, I made it through the glass, but something's awry when wishing to share an 8.5 oz offering. The beer seemed to wallow somewhere in between a sugary barley wine and a liqueur, without redeeming flavors. Next time some hop freshness (or are they just getting slaughtered by the sake yeast and unique aging process?)? Definitely some carbonation.

Serving type: bottle

04-12-2012 08:23:09 | More by rand

Bonko_the_sane

North Carolina

1/5  rDev -73%

04-05-2012 03:24:32 | More by Bonko_the_sane

MSandahl23

Indiana

4/5  rDev +7.8%

03-29-2012 16:03:37 | More by MSandahl23

kayrex

Pennsylvania

3/5  rDev -19.1%

02-28-2012 21:57:25 | More by kayrex

superspak

Michigan

4.18/5  rDev +12.7%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

8.5 ounce bottle into tulip glass, no bottle dating anywhere. Pours very hazy reddish orange color with a small off white head that recedes almost instantly as expected. No lacing on the glass; with some carbonation streaming up from the bottom. Aromas of big raisin, prune, fig, caramel, molasses, bread, tobacco, oak, toasted malt, and other light fruitiness. Nice and well balanced aromas; and not boozy at all like I was expecting. Taste of big caramel, toffee, molasses, raisin, apricot, prune, biscuit, herbal spiciness, tobacco, earthiness, and light fruitiness. No bitterness on the finish; with lingering notes of dark fruit, caramel, and light spices on the finish for a while. Very malty flavor profile, but is not cloying at all. Light-medium carbonation and very full bodied; with a very creamy, slick, and thick mouthfeel. This is definitely a sipper, but it goes down quite smooth for the ABV. Alcohol is insanely well hidden with only a warming after the finish. Overall this is a highly excellent beer brewed with sake yeast. Tons of well balanced flavor and complexity; with nice smoothness for the level of alcohol.

Serving type: bottle

02-06-2012 06:01:27 | More by superspak

capra12

New York

3.85/5  rDev +3.8%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Reviewed out of a small snifter glass. Served chilled as instructed on the tin.

Appearance: poured minimal head, almost murky golden orange.

Smell: This is quite interesting, I get sweet candied green and red raisins. A hint of booze on the nose.

Taste: Opens with sweet malts and a mute hop profile I attribute to the temperature. Ha. cold like the Rockies proves I can't taste much. The booze is barely noticeable on the palate but on the back end, just like sake there is a warmth that builds with each sip.
I let this sit for a while to warm and open up.
Totally different beer as this warms up. The nose is really accentuated by the warmth. The sweet raisins are coming through and the hop profile is more evident now as is the ethanol is.

Mouthfeel: This was more viscous chilled but is starting to thin out as it warms.

Drinkability: I would have this again but I would definitely share that bottle. At 17% try it chilled and let it warm to open up and show you the fruity profiles the sake yeast provides. I would recommend this to those seeking a unique brew with a different yeast.

Serving type: bottle

01-12-2012 00:38:27 | More by capra12

N8DAGR8

Maine

4/5  rDev +7.8%

01-09-2012 14:21:15 | More by N8DAGR8

WankelEngine

Illinois

3.65/5  rDev -1.6%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Poured from a 250ml bottle into a wine glass

A: Appears a ruddy burnt orange with no head and no lacing.

S: The smell is deeply fruity, reminiscent of raisin and prune. There is also a large dose of alcohol.

T: This is very sweet and reminds me a bit of a quad. Ester-y alcohol, fruits like plum and raisin, and bready malt. I also get a note of banana with the alcohol.

M: Virtually uncarbonated and somewhat sticky.

O: An interesting beer. The alcohol can be a bit overwhelming. Definitely a sipper.

Serving type: bottle

01-05-2012 21:22:17 | More by WankelEngine

Faina

Massachusetts

4/5  rDev +7.8%

01-05-2012 03:41:38 | More by Faina

kawilliams81

Illinois

2.6/5  rDev -29.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 2 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Served in a Half Acre tulip.

A- cloudy dark orange, 1 finger white head. Some clumps on the glass.

S- booze, I want to say rice bit that could just be because of the sake yeast. Dark fruits, candi sugar.

T- Phew! Not sure what to make out of this one? Sweet, cloying malt, dark fruits, almost a peat flavor in there, and a lot of alcohol.

M- medium body but thinner. Slightly syrupy but not much. Alcohol burn at finish.

O- don't know what to say? Not the worst beer but a very hard to drink one.

Serving type: bottle

01-01-2012 02:29:54 | More by kawilliams81