Japanese Classic Ale

Bottle: Poured a light amber color ale with a large foamy head with good retention and some lacing. Aroma of light bitter notes with green hops notes. Taste is not as bitter as expected though hops are clearly noticeable with a nice caramel malt backbone and some light cedar notes rounding things out. Body is slightly below average with good carbonation. Different interpretation of the style with cedar rounding things out nicely.

Moderate black pepper aroma with harmonious wood notes. Hazy amber, headless. Woody flavor with a dusty finish. Alcohol not noticeable. Nice woodiness despite the lack of complexity. A good go-to beer, particularly with red meat that isn’t too loud.

11.2 oz. bottle, pours dark orange with a white head. Interesting aroma of cedar, wood, rice, and wheat. Flavour is similar with the cedar, spices, wood and rice being most pronounced. Not sure how this qualifies as an IPA.

Bottle, at Patricks. It’s a hazy, orange-amber beer with an off-white head of moderate size. The aroma is malty and woody, some pepper and alcohol shines through, and there’s a nice hop profile too. It’s slightly peppery in the flavor, quite low on maltyness, and with a little wood and a good dash of citrusy and piney hops leading to a bitter finish. Some alcohol too. Full body. A lovely and easy drinkable IPA. 100213

Bottle. Dark golden colour with an off-white head. Aroma is hop, herbs, peppar. Flavour is hop, herbs, spices, peppar, caramel. Nice beer.

12 oz bottle. Pours slightly hazy orange amber with an off-white head. Sweet aroma with lots of caramel and honey, some fruit aroma like raspberry. Flavor has some toasty biscuit and caramel malts leading into some restrained citrus hop flavors. The cedar seems to come through in the finish, presenting itself as some cross between pine resin, honey, and the more familiar oak. A bit low on hops for an IPA, but the cedar finish keeps it nice and interesting.

330 ml bottle. Hazy, dark golden body with a an off-white head. Aroma of caramel, fruit and some yeast. Flavor is sweet malt, caramel and bitter. Nice and balanced, but not outstanding. I did not really catch the IPA profile here, but it’s still a pleasant beer. Having this as the last beer of the evening might not be to fair.

330 ml bottle, courtesy of Cardinal Pub & Bar, Stavanger. ABV is 7.5%. Deep golden to amber colour, slightly hazy, big off-white head. Pleasant aroma of flowery and fruity hops, hints of cedar wood. The flavour has first a substantial malty sweetness with some notes of caramel and wood, followed by a distinct hoppy bitterness in the finish and a wormwoodlike bite in the aftertaste. An unusual balance of the flavour elements, but quite good.

This beer pours a deep, cloudy golden amber with yeast suspended throughout and produces an excellent, thick head, an indication of its prodigious carbonation. Unfortunately, the aroma was a bit lacking, more for its lack of presence than its specific qualities. There is a pleasant, slight cedar-scented hops scent, but it’s more sweet than strong. Fortunately, the beer has more depth of taste than smell. There are some nice hoppy notes and a unique flavor that is rather hard to place. It’s woodsy and bitter, which comes out pretty well-balanced. There’s not quite enough of the hops for me, but the flavor is definitely interesting and enjoyable. The feel is quite good as well. The beer is well-carbonated, but the bubbles don’t prick much at the tongue. It’s a a fine, calm carbonation, which adds to the flavor well.