What’s up guys?  Thanks for checking back in on another craft beer review.  For today’s review I’m going to be trying the Kreklingøl produced by the Haand Bryggeriet Brewery located in Drammen, Norway.

If you guys have followed my reviews for a while you’ll know that I, for the most part, have really enjoyed the beers I’ve tried from Haand Bryggeriet, so if all holds true, this should be a very pleasing brew.

From the website, haanbryggeriet.net, I couldn’t find any info about the Kreklingøl, therefore, I checked on ratebeer.com and found this.

This is a collaborate brew with Erlann Eldorsen based on his recipe. Kreklingøl is made with crowbrerries, a very special berry that is picked in Finnmark, the part of Norway north of the Polar circle. The beer is very refreshing with a reddish hue from the berries.

Hmm.  Never had a beer with crowberries before.  Let’s give it a try.

This beverage came in a 16.9 oz. bottle with an ABV of 7.1%.

It poured a cloudy/muddy, deep burgundy to brown color with some ruby outlines around the curves of the snifter.  A smooth, creamy, tan head with a very light purple tint was formed from a relatively easy discharge.  It was sized well and the retention time was rather good.  The lacing was consistent, but a bit thin.

The nose presented some tones of red apple skins.  Almost an an apple juice kind of fragrance.  It also had a cranberry and grape type of aroma too.  That must have been the crowberries.  It seemed a touch sour with just a smidgen of tartness as well.  A little bit of woodiness was accounted for also.  This brew smelled pretty good I thought.

The flavor also released those tones of apple, grape and cranberry   A nice relish of oak and wood helped to add some earth and it also seemed to weaken the sourness and tartness a touch.  Toward the very end I began to discern a taste of chocolate malt.  Very nice.  Overall, it was complex and rather harmonious.

The mouthfeel was medium bodied.  Smooth, slick and dry.  The carbonation was medium to medium/low.  Not really any warmth to speak of, but a decent shot of flavor was left behind for me to enjoy between sips.

All in all, I found this to be a very solid beer.  In my opinion, Haand Bryggeriet is a really unique brewery that really pushes the limits and likes to try odd and off the wall recipes.  They are not quite in the league of Dogfish Head or Short’s in terms of getting too crazy, but they seem more contemporary if that makes sense. The Kreklingøl is a very nice brew that I would suggest trying if you have the opportunity.  The drinkability is decent and the style is a bit different, however it would most definitely warrant some conversation if shared with a friend.  Be sure to let me know what you think if you get the chance to taste it.

Thanks for reading and commenting everyone.  I really appreciate it.

Until next time.  Cheers.

Score:  3.8 out of 5

Grade:  B+