Nøgne Ø Dark Horizon Fourth Edition

Brewed By: Nøgne Ø in Grimstad, Norway

Purchased: 8.5oz/250ml bottle bought at Binny's in IL; 2013 (2013 Vintage)

Style/ABV: Imperial Stout, 16.0%

Reported IBUs: 100

Nøgne Ø means "naked island," and isn't some cool drone metal band from some frozen European country. Nevertheless, I have been meaning to put them on the radar, and I am doing so tonight in pretty epic fashion. Or so I hope. About Nøgne Ø:

Nøgne Ø is a brewery based out of Grimstad, Norway. The brewery was founded in 2002 by homebrewers Gunnar Wiig and Kjetil Jikiun. The name Nøgne Ø, which translates to "naked island," is a poetic term used by the poet Henrik Ibsen to describe the stark, barren landscapes visible in the rough sea off Norway's coast. The founders co-opted the term, because they felt it was symbolic for their passion to share their beer. Sort of like a flasher, only with beer and not balls. This "uncompromising brewery" loves Marris Otter malt and American hops. With a passion to show you their goods and brew bold beer, what could you complain about?  

The Dark Horizon is a highly sought after, limited-release beer. The first Dark Horizon was released back in 2007, and won a Gold at the World Beer Cup 2008 in San Diego, California. The Dark Horizon Fourth Edition is a one-off brewed with Grimstad water, malted barley, Muscovado sugars, coffee, hops, and yeast. Punching in at an impressive 16% and 100 IBUs, this is a big big beer. The best before date is: "22.08.22." 

Nøgne Ø Dark Horizon Fourth Edition

The beer pours into a dark black, opaque body, and struggles to produce a finger of dark brown/tan head. It looks like an Imperial Stout that is punching in at 16%. You catch some brown on the edges in bright light, and beer has glossy alcohol legs and mocha-brown residual that coats the glass when you swirl the beer. Head retention is surprisingly okay, with some sea foam coating that keeps popping back up.

The aroma on this is huge...I would expect nothing less for such a strong beer. I'm getting lots of dark fruits, raisins, berries, and that meaty-raspberry aroma you get on these amped up beers that push the 15% envelope. I'm getting big cherries in here, and big berry-coffee aromas. The aroma is surprisingly smooth, with hints of coffee and chocolate, woody mocha and creamer, Frappuccino, dark grain, and espresso acidity. There's also some brown sugar on the nose as well.

So this is how I imagine Avery's The Beast would taste, if it was a Stout and was brewed with coffee. This starts out with dark fruits, Muscovado sugars, brown sugar, raisins and cherry sweetness. Mid palate dials up big coffee with mocha, wood, alcohol soaked raisins and cherries, HUGE HOPS that are nondescript, burgeoning chocolate-dipped peanuts, nutty notes; the back end punches in more nutty, chocolate-dipped peanuts, with lingering dark fruits and brown sugars, light soy sauce, and a huge boozy punch that warms you up. I don't know where the 100 IBUs went, but you don't get any of that here. In fact, the hops are entirely lost among the dark sugars, coffee, and giant malt bill. And that's how it should be.

I feel like I just drank this beer a few days ago. I'm referring to the Dogfish Head Worldwide Stout, which this reminds me very much of. That's fantastic company to be grouped with. Both beers are huge and malty and feature boozy fruits, and they both feature that chocolate-dipped peanut thing that is fantastic. This one is a little more fruity and has much less dark grain, and the coffee in here really pops. The coffee is a little more subtle in my opinion, with that coffee-mocha, coffee-chocolate, and chocolate dipped peanuts character. You do get some soy sauce and brown sugar as well. The mouthfeel is full-bodied but nicely carbonated. Honestly, this drinks super smooth for 16.0%, even with the noticeable boozy warming and light alcohol burn. This is a 32 proof beer. Palate depth is outstanding, as is complexity. There's a lot going on here: brown sugar, raspberry, meaty dark fruits, berries, and chocolate giving way to coffee up front; the mids dial up huge coffee, mocha, creamer, wood, alcohol soaked cherries and raisins, hop character without the hop flavor, burgeoning chocolate and chocolate-dipped peanuts; the back end drops a nutty, chocolate-peanut on you, with some lingering boozy dark fruits and growing alcohol. The finish is sticky, boozy, and dry.

Rating: Divine Brew (5.0/5.0 Untappd)

I'm going to go with a Decent Divine Brew for this. The coffee is what makes this beer work, I think. It's just fantastically layered, with tons of complexity and big flavors that work well together. So yeah, big thumbs up. It's worth the price tag, even if it's a tiny bottle. Would I age this? Honestly, I don't know. This is drinking pretty good right now, and you know that coffee is going to drop off. If you do age it, make sure you try it fresh. Food pairings here would be dry chocolate cake or bust. Don't pair this with food...this is a beer meant to be sipped on. Just enjoy this. I mean, you paid for it.

Random Thought: I need to figure out what to do with all my beer glasses...