To Øl Reparationsbajer

Newly crowned favourite brewers To Øl back with an interesting concept: a hangover beer.

Yes indeed, we've all been there and this beer is specifically engineered to help you out of your self-inflicted predicament. I can read a couple of words from the Danish label: 'burger' makes sense, 'pizza' yes indeed, and 'rottebazooka' just seems to sum up the situation beautifully.

The beer itself is an APA and delivers itself with poise. It's a balanced, soft complex malted nose that I'm surprised to see tips only 5.7% - though this still may be more than you are after in the circumstances I guess.  The mouthfeel on the other hand is light fruity and lovely. It's balanced and while flavoursome in both malt and hops, doesn't get all up in your face about it. This makes it comforting and compelling at the same time, and while it's billed as the hair of the dog I would happily drink it to get drunk.

I haven't yet tried this with a hangover but while it's no oily-french-toast-and-iced-coffee wonder cure breakfast in itself, I would endorse it to do the job beautifully. A true friend in times of need. 8.5

Mikkeller Dry Stout

A hitherto unencountered combination I think - Mikkeller, doing a stout, that's light and sessionable, with no chili or herbs or buffalo or anything added. Curious?

Indeed this is a 4.1% dry stout in the mould of Murphy's or similar. If you're a dark beer nut like I am you might get obsessed with the bigger ones from time to time (phwoar eh) but this style is a tool in the dark arsenal and can be a rather pleasant session drink.

Mikkeller's effort is pretty much right on target - nose of predominately chocolate malt is on the light side, but appealing. The taste too is restrained from being too sweet, speaking more of dry cocoa than melted chocolate, but with a smooth dry lasting finish. Good stuff indeed when you want something to throw back with a bit of chocolate character and no heft whatsoever. Pick it up in growler / squealer format if you can, unless the Mikkeller moniker has ruined the price out of range for the abv.

It's all very light, sure, and you might normally call foul on its watery presence. The difference - this time it's by design. Respect. 7.5

Moon Dog / Beer Here Freaks & Geeks

I've had this twice now (first review was sadly lost) and both times for some reason I expect it to come out a red sort of colour - instead it's pretty dark brown / black almost, a hue that means business at a substantial 7.6%.

Also having managed to miss the photo the first time I lined it up with the subtle backing notes of an old crappy microwave this time around. Beer photography awards here we come.

This is a mash-up brew between Moon Dog and Beer Here with all the craziness that entails. There's dark wheat, peat, rye, and oats on the label for just a start, all tied together with farmhouse yeast which makes its presence felt immediately on the aroma along with a slight berry sort of note. It's pretty funky and complex. Pleasing.

Taste wise too this is good stuff - layers of flavour, and I find the peat malt a nice accent to the other notes. I quite like the way it interacts with that funky yeasty character.. you get the feeling it's settled, deliberate and somehow balanced, in a pretty out there sort of way.

Overall not something I'd go out of my way for - but another interesting, flavoursome drop that's well worth a bash. Or two. 7.5

To Øl Goliat Imperial Coffee Stout

Back for another gunning run on the To Øl coffee cache, fresh from a pretty successful campaign debut.

It's a good looking pour again, and at a solid 10.1% these guys are serious. Big coffee again delivers beguilingly on the nose - draws you in for a taste. The body and palate both back it up beautifully but it's important to note it is not just about the coffee .. it's a beautifully rounded, heavy, satisfying cudgel of a stout this with all the creamy complexity this style deserves.

I love it when these sorts of beers have a development of flavours, and it's no wonder these guys learned the dark magics of Mister Mikkeller in sampling this one. If I had to nitpick I'd say maybe just ever so slightly too sweet - but that's really drawing flaws in what is another excellent beer. 8.5

To Øl / Mikkeller Sleep Over Coffee IIPA

A mouthwatering combination brew here between young start-up To Øl and their past master Mr Mikkeller himself.

As mentioned previously, coffee plus IPA just sounds like a brilliant combo to me, though I'm yet to be wowed by one. This of course ups the stakes - at a remarkable 10.5% it's well and truly in imperial territory.

It's good looking too, heavy amber colour and strong lasting head. Aroma is just what you'd want here, malt driven, hops not evident to allow the coffee character to shine through. It's double percolated coffee castoff style aromas here rather than fresh beans but it works in nicely with that malt backbone.

Delicious malty imperial flavours up front, which meld into a lovely coffee finish. Despite its mighty heft, there is no alcoholic bang to it - instead it is smooth as you like, and delicious. It's hard to call it a definitive IIPA as such as the hops are bit-part players, but the label does acknowledge that it is the hybrid spawn of a strong ale / barleywine / IIPA and to me, I'd prefer to see boundaries broken for the sake of the beer experience rather than slavish adherence to styles.

All in all great beer: a concept proven. Any beer that has me looking forward to trying it again like this one has to be highly recommended. 9.0

Mikkeller Spontanredcurrant

What do we have here - a strong 7.7% lambic from the gypsy himself.

Pours a guava sort of colour out of the bottle and produces a very tart impression of berries and sour green apple aroma. That's pretty much what's delivered on the palate for you also - big crisp sourness along with astringent unripe berries, and a wheat backing note. Sort of reminds me of an alter ego to Feral's Watermelon Warhead but a bit more pronounced and intense of course at nearly three times the alcohol content. Crisp finish, tart throughout, consistently makes you pucker through the glass.

It's like an abusive master this, smashes your lips in with the acidic astringency but once it's done you find yourself heading back for more. Morally questionable perhaps but satisfying all the same. 8.0

Beer Here Hopfix

Have to say first up, what a great label. He's just saying what we're all thinking..

Aaaaaaaah..

Where were we? Ah yes, hops. Our gentle lords and saviours. This beer delivers them in a format that speaks immediately of rye additions alongside the inevitable US hop aromas. Quite noticeable sediment, though it is not intrusive.

Taste-wise this fits in with the 'pleasant' rather than 'destructive' school of hop-bombing, easing 6.5% of Sunday morning come down juices into you without ever getting all up in your face about it. It's a pretty chilled dude, very green, more about the herbs than the abrasive bitterness y'know, why can't we all just get along?

Which could all get a bit boring if it were underspecced, but I feel the rye just gives it enough character to be that bit more than alleyway hop water. Well thought out and yet cruisy at the same time. 7.5

Amager Sundby Stout

A solid 6.2% stout here, marketing itself as both a traditional brew and one that challenges convention by dry hopping with floral US hops.

As with all of these beers it’s possible, nay likely this has spent some time in travel and storage so it may not be the freshest, but I did not find the hops all that evident on the nose. This should have given it some time to think about life however and it’s often not bad to let a stout ponder a while before consumption.

The pour is a little lighter than expected, several EBC down on the norm I feel. It’s by no means unattractive though and carries a cappuccino bonce with some aplomb. Flavour is very much ‘extra stout’, dark choc, liquorice and coffee notes evident up front, bit of carbonation present in the midsection before a nice lingering coffee finish.

Rather pleasant overall, but drinking through the bottle I couldn’t shake the image of it being in a way just like Coopers Extra Stout in a suit. No bad thing. 7.5

Nørrebro North Bridge Extreme

Is this a saison? Nørre bro, it's a Imperial IPA.

What is it with the horrendous jokes of late?

This beer pours brown but comes up a dark amber in the light, with a beautiful cream head. This is one of those beers that's listed at turns as a Double IPA or an Imperial IPA and in some cases it's more or less interchangeable. In this case I feel it's an IIPA right off the bat - dark fruits and malts come to the fore in the aroma and it's clear you're in for a treat.

Taste-wise this beer delivers the same imperial flavours but without too much fruit. Instead, there's a truly delicious edge of toasty coffee that comes through in its place and smooths this out beautifully. Lovely fluid mouthfeel to this beer gives it a really refined character despite its 9.5% punch. Even puts me in mind of cigars in places.

I found this really rather excellent and recommend you try it post-haste. Pay whatever is required my good man, money is no object. 9.0

Nørrebro La Granja Stout

The first challenger from Nørrebro, and a coffee stout at that.

This indeed smells of coffee, but interestingly more of cast off coffee grounds than a full blown cup of espresso.

The pour is really quite amazingly watery, with little to no head. At this stage I'm gearing up for another euro blasting. But the taste is in fact rather pleasant. It's not a long lasting or incredibly involved progression but there are notes of milk chocolate, coffee, chicory and roasty flavours that carry you through. Easy drinking due to the light mouthfeel.

Not my favourite stout but a fine effort in its own way and very approachable. 7.5

Beer Here Lupulus APA

From the growler no less!

Like the rest of the world (seemingly) I've been on a bit of an IPA bender of late and as such have lost a bit of enthusiasm for the world of 'normal' pale ales. Wasn't really looking forward to this one that much to be honest, at just 4.7% it all pointed toward a very bland experience. But then..

Biscuity sort of nose on this, then a bit of fruit / stone fruit hops - very nice indeed, and indeed that same profile comes through on the taste. It's pretty much all you want in an APA for me - mouthfeel nice and fresh out of the growler and a well balanced progression of flavours that renders it highly drinkable through the pint and indeed beyond.

A malt driven beer, this is not explosive but it is a fine, fine beer and a paragon of the style. I'm starting to wish I went to the event while the brewer from Beer Here was in town.. 8.5