#20: Påske Bryg (Hancock)

Name: Påske Bryg

Brewery: Hancock

Style: Imperial Pilsner, 10.5%

God Påske! I saw this and was immediately reminded of the posters that used to hang in the bedroom I would stay in at my grandmother's house. It's so very cute and so very Danish and I just couldn't resist. It looks old-fashioned, so I wasn't expecting anything groundbreaking.

That turned out to be a good thing, too, because it basically just tastes like a Carlsberg but stronger—classic mass-produced pilsner that tastes like all the other mass-produced pilsners around the world. Luckily you don't have to drink as much of this to get a little buzz for the holiday.

Label: 3.5/5

Beer: 2/5

#19: Double Hop Monster IPA (Greene King)

Name: Double Hop Monster IPA

Brewery: Greene King Brewery

Style: Double IPA, 7.2%

This bottle caught my eye months ago, and I finally got to have one. Can't resist a dragon with gold wings! It's a simple label—a bit cartoony, but charming. Personally, I would love if this had some chili in it so you could feel like you were breathing fire like a dragon, but I'm not the one brewing this beer.

The label says that it is "late hopped for maximum aroma and a refreshingly bitter finish", and I'd say with that they deliver what they promise. Unfortunately this bottle wasn't the freshest, but I can imagine this would be excellent if it had been. That said, this beer didn't blow me away; the dragon merely hiccupped some sparks and smoke, a shadow of what it could be. I wouldn't buy another bottle, but if I found it fresh on tap somewhere I would definitely give it another try.

Label: 4/5

Beer: 3.5/5

#18: Janis Porter (Naparbier)

Name: Janis Porter

Brewery: Naparbier

Style: Porter, 6.2%

Just like 60s fashion, this groovy-looking brew is past its prime. If you find this somewhere, keep that in mind. Even though it's old, there are nice chocolatey notes, and it tastes more boozy than I was expecting. I also generally like a thicker mouthfeel and less carbonation in my dark brews.

I don't have much to say about this one other than I wish it hadn't been cellared quite as long, but it's still plenty drinkable in my opinion.

Label: 3.5/5

Beer: 3/5

#17: Oktoberpretzel (Mikkeller)

Name: Oktoberpretzel

Brewery: Mikkeller

Style: Oktoberfest, 5.8%

The first beer I ever liked was an Oktoberfest. It tasted like bread and it was an eye-opening breakthrough for me; I didn't know beverages could taste like that! When I saw Mikkeller start advertising their new Oktoberpretzel, I was excited. I was hoping for something yeasty and with a nice malty sweetness. The label reminded me of when my after school German class made pretzels.
I got to try it at the Mikkeller & Friends Bottle Shop, and I'm sad to say I was a bit disappointed. It wasn't bad, but it certainly didn't have any of the bready taste I was hoping for with a beer named after a German soft pretzel. Since that first Oktoberfest beer that left such an impression, I've had a couple others and they have tasted pretty boring to me. This wasn't much of an exception. It did taste a little salty, which was interesting and I guess that's where the pretzel part is supposed to come in. Without the bready flavor that I was hoping for, the saltiness seemed a bit misplaced. Oh well. Happy Oktoberfest anyway, everyone! Prost!

Label: 3.5/5

Beer:3/5

#16: Nekron (Bryggeriet Djævlebryg)

Name: Nekron

Brewery: Bryggeriet Djævlebryg

Style: Stout, 8.5%

I got to try this at a tasting at Nørrebro Bryghus among quite a few others. Most of the other bottles didn't catch my eye, but with Halloween on my brain so much lately, this one definitely did. It's a simple design, but you gotta admit there's some badassery there. The brewery name translates to "devil's brewery" with "damn good beer" written underneath it, and apparently they donate some of the proceeds from their beer sales to the Danish Atheist Society.

So what does sin taste like? My first impression was chocolate and steak. Sounds pretty accurate, if you consider decadence to be one of the perks of siding with the devil. After a couple more sips, the smooth smokiness took over the more delicate flavors, but it was still a devilishly good drinking experience.

Label: 3.5/5

Beer: 4/5

#15: Ancient Nipponia (Kiuchi Brewery)

Name: Hitachino Nest Ancient Nipponia

Brewery: Kiuchi Brewery

Style: Imperial Pilsner, 6.5%

I'd had a couple beers by this brewery before, and they were good, especially for being from Japan. With the cute Hitochino Nest owl and the fancy gold lettering (and, fine, the intriguing ingredients), I was expecting something really unique and awesome.

Unique: yes! Awesome: kinda. This is one beer that I went back and forth on with each sip. I could tell that it's not a bad beer, but I wasn't too crazy about the flavor. It grew on me, and the people I was drinking with really liked it. I say, try it. It's not going to taste like anything you've had before, and it's certainly not foul. I'd like to try it again sometime.

Label: 3.5/5

Beer: 3.5/5

#14: Moose Islay (Nómada Brewing Co.)

Name: Moose Islay

Brewery: Nómada Brewing Co.

Style: Russian Imperial Stout, 12%

A cat in a moose costume? I mean, come on now. This is actually the label that inspired the conversation that resulted in this blog's existence. It's like they made this label just to get me personally to buy it. And hey, it worked! I was surprised to see later that this is actually one of the highest rated Spanish beers on Untappd. Bonus!
Excited to try it, I didn't let it sit out of the fridge to warm up long enough at first. It smelled like soy sauce and tasted bitter and metallic. I thought my hopes had been dashed. However, after it warmed up a bit, some berry notes came out and it was much more palatable. Still not the best Russian imperial stout I've had, but I think if I was really craving one it would do the trick as long as it wasn't served too cold.

Label: 4/5

Beer: 3.5/5