Beer Review: Nøgne Sweet Horizon

Well, hello.

My buddy Greg was generous enough to share this bottle of Sweet Horizon with me last weekend. This was my first experience with any brews from Nøgne. I don't know much about their beer or their brewery, so naturally I went in to this tasting not knowing what to expect.

Sweet Horizon pours dark, dark brown, with a thin tan-ish head and no lacing to speak of. The aroma just about knocked me out of my chair. And that's not because we'd had several craft goodies prior to this one. No, really. It smells divine. The aromas include waffle syrup, some oak notes, smoky and roasty notes and strong alcohol. There's a lot going on here.

After we finished staring at this one and smelling it for several minutes I took my first taste. It's malty sweet and tart like cherries up front. As it settles in some coffee roast notes with a smoky and savory feel. The beer finish tastes of sweet cocoa covered cherries. Throughout the sipping you are totally aware of it's 14% alcohol content.

This beer is an excellent sipper. A 2-3 oz. pour is perfect, so this bottle can be comfortably shared with 3-4 craft beer fans. I found Sweet Horizon to be wonderfully complex and very enjoyable. As the canister says, this beer isn't to be served with dessert. It IS dessert.

Here are some close up shots of the bottle and tin: