That time of the year
Best beers of the first quarter of 2025
The best beer of the first three months, and one of the best beers I’ve ever tasted is Anchorage Brewing Company’s A Deal With the Devil – Triple Oaked. A massive and hefty barley wine that clocks in at an impressive 23ABV, without any intrusive booziness. It’s also the most expensive beer tasted so far, 4cl weighing in at 23€. My first exposure to Anchorage’s beast, at the annual Deal With the Devil day – looking forward to the next.
Domestically the top honours go to Revenant’s Archway – a fabulously fruitful IPA that truly delivered after a great meal at Teller.
FI: AAA-luokan tavaraa niin kotimaasta kuin Alaskastakin
Best beers of 2024
The best beer of the year was picked up on location, on Aker Brygge in Oslo: Lervig’s Spicy Dark Choco Mole was a culmination of mexican-flavoured beer. With chili and chocolate aplenty in the taste, the only shortcoming was that I only bought a single bottle.
The best domestic is from the newcomer built on the sadly missed Pien Brewing. Factory’s High Tide is truly an awesome hazy IPA, with juice and hops at just the appropriate mixture.
FI: kansainvälisesti mustaa ja makeaa, kotimaasta maailmanluokan IPAa.
Best beers of 2023
Despite the lack of fanfare for the past in this blog, it’s nonetheless nice to note the best beers tasted during the Years of Darkness. The rules remain the same: one beer only, and (even when there’s a tie in the ratings) and a strict preference for new entries ahead of repeats.
Mortalis Brewing Company’s Zeus takes the pole position. A full-bodied double IPA packed full of grapefruity goodness.
On the domestic side the winner is also an IPA: Olari’s Olaron Michigan Copper – their first experiment with a new hop. This was the headliner on midsummer fish table, and still remains the benchmarks for the occasion.
FI: IPAa kansalle.
Is this thing still on?
So. Returning to the scene of the crime, two years after the last post.
Many things intervened: busy with lack of and changing jobs, a health scare and all around just not getting to maintain the blog.
And many things have changed since the last. First amongst the changes is obviously the new domestic legislation that allows the sale of beers up to 8ABV in milkstores. A few favourite bars have sunk, some have risen and the times are not kind on breweries either.
However, I’m not going to delve too deep in the archæology of the early twenties beyond ultrabrief annual highlights as followups to this montage.
Some of the topics above might be revisited, but only when it makes sense in the context of something acute.
My tastes have not changed in the intervening times – still keen on hoppy pale ales, bold imperial stouts and smoky beers of all kinds.
FI: Uudestaan.
brewnardo 