Hesjeøl
HaandBryggeriet

HesjeølHesjeøl
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From:
HaandBryggeriet
 
Norway
Style:
Smoked Beer
ABV:
6.5%
Score:
87
Avg:
3.9 | pDev: 8.72%
Reviews:
62
Ratings:
101
Status:
Retired
Rated:
May 20, 2022
Added:
Feb 03, 2010
Wants:
  9
Gots:
  10
The name translates to "Hay Pile Beer".

Made from 3 grains, barley, oats and rye and fermented with our special wild house yeast.

28 ibu. 21 ebc colour
Serving temperature 8 - 10 C or 46-50 F
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Ratings by SuperMario:
Photo of SuperMario
Rated by SuperMario from California

4.25/5  rDev +9%

Jul 12, 2014
More User Ratings:
Photo of Sigmund
Reviewed by Sigmund from Norway

3.81/5  rDev -2.3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
500 ml bottle, batch #240, from Vinmonopolet. ABV is 6.5%. Light brown hazy colour, big off-white head. Lovely aroma of fruity hops and orange peel, also notes of Belgian ale yeast and mild spices. The flavour is a bit too sweet for a beer for sweaty farm workers, but still good - also fruity, yeasty and spicy notes, hints of caramel, with a distinct hoppy bitterness and a hint of smoke in the finish.
May 20, 2022
 
Rated: 4.1 by SSGCujo from Wisconsin

Jun 12, 2018
Photo of i4ourgot
Reviewed by i4ourgot from California

4/5  rDev +2.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Nice auburn red in color. Little head but off white in color. Nice malt profile, wiTh some pepper to it. Not to sweet with some smoke as well. A little bit on the drier side for such a malt forward beer but it’s really nice.
Mar 09, 2018
Photo of Dentist666
Reviewed by Dentist666 from Russian Federation

4.29/5  rDev +10%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25
Briskly gushed out of a bottle. Extremely hard to pour.
Pours only off-white head, ah, ok there's some beer down, hazy copper/amber, long retention.
Smell - smoked, honey, cereals.
Taste - smoked, orange hues, oats, moderate hops in the finish.
Creamy, queerly silky, medium body, medium to high carbonation.
Nov 05, 2016
 
Rated: 4 by WastingFreetime from Wisconsin

Jun 12, 2016
Photo of Mitchster
Reviewed by Mitchster from Michigan

4.28/5  rDev +9.7%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
Many thanks to Ani and Erland for bringing this back from Norway. Per the Shelton brothers website:
"The brewers at Haandbryggeriet are proud to offer beer that’s very Norwegian and the Hesjeøl is no exception. It’s a recreation of a traditional Norwegian farmhouse harvest ale. Just like the saisons and biere de gardes of Belgium and France, farmers always served up refreshing harvest ale’s for thirsty workers. Hesjeøl is a refreshing fruity and floral ale with a slight smoky and spicy flavor."

Made from 3 grains, barley, oats and rye and fermented with a special wild house yeast.
Style: Farmhouse Ale
ABV: 7.0%

However, at the breweries website they state the specs as being ABV: 6%
IBU: 25-30.

At any rate, pours out to a crystal clear light copper, forming a creamy light yellow head with beautiful retention and solid sheets of lacing, owing in part to it's brisk carbonation, ~3.0 carbs or so. The nose is akin to a saison, with some belgian esters, spice, phenols, tropical fruit and pepper. The mouthfeel is crisp, spritzy, medium bodied. The taste is quite unique...it opens with lots of tropical fruit...I get papaya, mango and pineapple, followed by a very nice soft smoke note, then some pepper, a mild but well balanced bitterness, and ending bone dry with lingering hop bitterness.

This is an interesting brew. I've never had a farmhouse ale with a smoky note, but it works, and is a testament to the craft of the brewers. These guys make good stuff.Definitely worth trying for fans of saisons.
Aug 24, 2015
 
Rated: 4.42 by Samboyer2 from California

Jul 25, 2015
 
Rated: 3.75 by IckyT2012 from Florida

Jul 13, 2015
Photo of pat61
Reviewed by pat61 from Minnesota

4.44/5  rDev +13.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
A: Pours copper gold with a slight haze under a dense rocky cream colored foam collar. S: Light fruit, grains, malt, and a light smoke aroma and a slight funk.
T: Big malt flavors carry an assertive hop emphasis with citrus, grainy spice, lemon, and smoke in the background.
F: Very smooth creamy texture with a slight oat slickness housed in a medium body and average to slightly above carbonation.
O: An interesting and very drinkable beer with a light touch on the smoke and a creamy wild yeast texture.
May 01, 2015
 
Rated: 3.5 by epyon396 from Pennsylvania

Nov 19, 2014
 
Rated: 3.75 by zestar from California

Oct 19, 2014
 
Rated: 3.5 by kuishinbo_tantei from New York

Oct 06, 2014
 
Rated: 3.75 by KAF from Iowa

Jul 07, 2014
Photo of micromaniac129
Reviewed by micromaniac129 from Pennsylvania

3.96/5  rDev +1.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
Had at the lost abbey down in Horsham along side some wound up Brazilians.
A highly drinkable and quite flavorful brew.
The appearance was kinda lacking in that there was very little head, but did have a nice brownish amber color.
Aroma was sour dry and smokey. And that"s just what the taste was. Dry malty with some smokey hightlights.
I like it, it was very good even if there was nothing but soccer on the tele.
Jun 28, 2014
Photo of Bouleboubier
Reviewed by Bouleboubier from New Jersey

3.73/5  rDev -4.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 3.75
(at Khyber Pass Pub - served in a fluted goblet)

burnt amber color, mildly hazy in appearance... bit of a gummy lace

flavors and aromas of bubblegum, phenolic smoke, vague honey, bitter wood ash... pretty dry and bitter... thin, barnyardy-grainy malt foundation

fairly light-bodied, moderately frothy

I don't know if I would sit on this one... I'd try to drink it as fresh as possible... this seemed to have a little age on it, however, I suppose that's to be expected as this was a tap takeover of Norwegian beers - probably had to sit on a few kegs while building stock for this.
Jun 09, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by SkinniePost from Wisconsin

Apr 11, 2014
 
Rated: 4.25 by afsdan from Colorado

Mar 21, 2014
Photo of Luk13
Reviewed by Luk13 from Canada (QC)

4.09/5  rDev +4.9%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
Bottle 500ml shared two ways. Amber pour with a nice thick white head. Aroma is smoky and meaty with some spices (cloves?). Very tasty and powerful smoke grain and yet very light bodied. As close to Schlenkerla as it can get, very surprises by this one.
Mar 17, 2014
Photo of Chico1985
Reviewed by Chico1985 from Massachusetts

3.86/5  rDev -1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75
500ml bottle, Batch 363/6. Updated from a 3.75 'Had' score.

A - Gusher!! Beer has some haze to it and is a light brownish-orange color. An off-white head stays alive at about a finger, continuous bubblin'.

S - Good amount of smokiness here, not overpowering at all, melds well with grain, bread and spicy tones, along with some light orange fruitiness.

T - More well-rounded and complex. Grains, rye bread, spice, brown sugar, light pepper, coriander, apple, grassy hops. Smoke/ham is definitely on the lighter side here appearing mostly in the finish.

M - High carbonation and kind of a thin feel. No real alcohol presence, light for 7%, other than the carbonation level it's pretty drinkable and enjoyable.

O - Pretty good, smoke is definitely on the tame side for a 'smoked beer', but it mixes well a nice array of flavors. Think rye beer/lightly smoked German lager/saison, if that makes any sense.
Feb 19, 2014
Hesjeøl from HaandBryggeriet
Beer rating: 87 out of 100 with 101 ratings