Unspecified beer

Trondhjem Mikrobryggeri is a place I return to whenever I visit Trondheim. The brewpub in the city centre has an atmosphere that I like in the afternoons. In the evenings it gets crowded and noisy, and I do not find it very enjoyable.

I come to Trondhjem Mikrobryggeri for the beers. All of them are brewed on the premises, but not all of them are that interesting. During my recent visit I tasted myself through some of the beers on the regular beer menu, and among them the IPA and the pale ale were my favourites.

There is always a sesasonal offer on the beer menu. This time it was a beer called Global Warming. I asked the waiter which beer style Global Warming was. He did not answer my question, prefering to explain me how the beer tasted.

In the glass Global Warming was a clouded beer with some carbonation and a small head. I felt hops and citrus in the nose. In the mouth there was hops, honey, some caramel and sweetness before a finish that was more or less only toffee. This was a lovely beer that I really enjoyed. Keep up the good work, brewmaster!

Neighbourhood treat

The most interesting beer place in Trondheim is Den gode nabo, which means "the good neighbour" in English. The combined restaurant and pub has an excellent selection of draught beers, combining both the local macro lager, interesting Norwegian micro breweries and exciting import beers. In addition to these there are several offers of bottled beers.

During my short visit, I saw that Den gode nabo had a draught beer from Kinn brewery that I had not tasted before. According to the waiter, Kinn Prestesonen was a porter.

I was served the Kinn beer in a branded glass. Prestesonen (translated into English as "son of the preacher man") was a black beer without carbonation and a small head. I felt coffee in the nose, and the coffee took the lead in the mouth with some toffee. The finish was a combination of coffee, malts and a touch of vodka. This was an excellent beer, and I really enjoyed it.

I went into the Trondheim evening promising myself to be back. This is one of the better beer temples in Norway, and a short visit does not give any respect to Den gode nabo. This is a place for multiple beers!

Trondheim's lager

Sure, pale lager is Norway's favourite beer, and it is what you will get if you order "øl" at any Norwegian bar or restaurant.

While visiting Trondheim recently, I had the possibility of trying out the local pale lager fra E. C. Dahls from can. I did, and Dahls Pils was a pale beer with some carbonation and a large head. The beer had aromas of sweetness and malts. I felt it tasted of malts and yeast. This was a boring, average pale lager that is not among my favourites of it's style.

Christmas in Trondheim

There are several fine places to drink beer in Trondheim. For a beer ticker, the city's only brewpub is a must. Trondhjem Mikrobryggeri can be found at Prinsens gate street in the city centre.

Trondhjem Mikrobryggeri brews various beer styles. I have visited the pub several times, and I must confess that most beers are average. This time I was eager to try out the seasonal Christmas beer, Juleøl.

At 8% alcohol Trondhjem Mikrobryggeri's Juleøl is a strong beer. It was a cloudy copper coloured beer with nearly no carbonation nor head. In the nose I felt toffee, while the Juleøl tasted of caramel and licorace before a finish with some cold coffee. This was an enjoyable beer, and it is one of the best I have tasted at this brewpub. It is also one of the better Norwegian Christmas beers I have had so far this season.

At my other visits I have liked the brewpub's IPA the most. This time I was a little bit disappointed. The cloudy beer had a small head and as good as no carbonation. I felt some grapefruit and toffee in the nose. In the mouth I felt some grapefruit and caramel before a watery finish with a touch of hoppy bitterness. It is a fine IPA, but I expected a beer with more taste and a less watery feeling.

I know I will be back at Trondhjem Mikrobryggeri. I like the relaxed atmosphere in the afternoon, and there are several fine snacks on the menu. The brewpub has a good concept, and it would be interesting to see more places like this in other Norwegian towns.

Back at Trondhjem Mikrobryggeri

When I visited Trondheim this Summer, it was neccessary to revisit the only brewpub in town. I was at Trondhjem Mikrobryggeri in January, and my revisit in Summer did not feel any different except for the possibility to drink beer outside.


Last time around I liked Trondhjem Mikrobryggeri's IPA the best, so I started out with a pint of the very good ale. It was still an excellent IPA with nearly no nose, but with a solid punch with hops and a taste of pears in the mouth. A really good beer!

I asked the bartender to bring along a sampler tray with all beers available except for the IPA. In the following I will comment on the beers not available in January and write something about the beers I felt tasted different this Summer.

The first beer I tried, was the seasonal special, Sommerøl (Summer beer). This was a very pale beer with nearly nothing in the nose. There was little taste in the beer before it had a grainy finish. In all this was a boring beer. Nearly as boring is the brewpub's standard lager, Tromdhjemspils. It has more taste from malt, hops and grain, but that is all. More interesting is the bitter. It had more caramel and felt more bitter than last time around. A very nice beer that was much better than in January.

I did not try the pale ale at my first visit to Trondhjem Mikrobryggeri. It had a light copper colour in the glass and had little carbonation. There was little aroma, but in the mouth it had a fruity feeling while still being somewhat watery. I liked the beer, but still the IPA is the best offer at this brewpub.

The best place in Trondheim for beer tourists, is Den gode nabo. Trondhjem Mikrobryggeri is not a must, but it is a nice place to visit if you want to try a local brewpub.

A good neighbour in Trondheim

There are some beer bars in Norway that are really worth visiting. Some have the ambience, while others have the beers. In the last category you can find Den gode nabo in Trondheim.

Den gode nabo (English: The good neighbour) is situated in the Bakklandet neighbourhood of Trondheim. It is a great setting with outdoor tables next to the Nidelven river and a great view to the river from the bar itself. It is not that difficult for a bar to make a good beer selection in bottled brews. Den gode nabo has a lot of bottled beers, but what makes this restaurant special in Norway is its great variety in draught beers.

Sure, Norwegian beers like the local Dahls pale lager and Frydenlund bayer is available on tap. In addition to this there is an international representation on the taps with Pilsner Urquell and Carlsberg.

But there are more draughted beers than this. You can find San Miguel, Paulaner hefeweizen, Newcastle Brown Ale, Oyster Stout and Samuel Adams Boston Lager together with a beer of the month that was not available the day I visited.

The Norwegian Kinn brewery started up last year in Florø. Their beers are available in a few selected bars across Norway, and Den gode nabo is one of them. I usually drink Kinn beers at Naboen in Bergen, so I chose to not have any Norwegian beers during my visit.

At Den gode nabo I first tried out Samuel Adams' Boston Lager. It was a nice lager with a golden coolour and a large head. There was also a lot of carbonation. I felt yeast in the nose, and in the mouth the yeast was supplemented by some malts and tasty, bitter lemons. The finish was rather bitter, but in all I liked the beer very much.

At home I usually have bottled Paulaner when I want a wheat beer. Den gode nabo had Paulaner's hefeweizen, and I wanted to have a go at this weissbier from tap for the first time. That was a wise choice, as the wheat beer was excellent. In the glass it had a large head and some carbonation. The aroma had cloves and yeast. In the mouth I felt bananas, more cloves, some yeast and a touch of bread. Lovely!

Den gode nabo is a must for beer visitors to Trondheim. I know I will return the next time I am in the town.

UK in Trondheim

British pubs can be found all over Norway. Some feel authentic, while others are of the constructed kind without any atmosphere. Usually you will find some taps with a Norwegian pale lager, some ales (often Kilkenny) and Guinness stout.

While visiting Trondheim I wanted to check out some of the British pubs. The first I entered, was Three Lions Pub in the city centre. My visit was during the world cup, so most guests were watching football on the screens. This is probably one of the better places to watch sports in Trondheim, as the atmosphere was great.

Beerwise Three Lions Pubs are among the better ones in Norway. In addition to bottles, you can find several draught beers. The local Dahls pale lager is supplemented by other pale lagers like Carlsberg, Tuborg, Carling and Stella Artois. Ale drinkers can enjoy Old Speckeled Hen, Newcastle Brown Ale, Guinness and Greene King IPA. I was ready for an IPA that day, but unfortunately the tank was empty. Instead I ended up with a forgettable pale lager that took away my thirst.

Not far from Three Lions, you can find a Scottish pub. Macbeth was a calmer place than the English pub, and I felt it had no atmosphere.

On tap there was Heineken pale lager, Newcastle Brown Ale, Murphy's Red and Guinness. I was not tempted by any of the beers, so I asked the bartender if they had any Scottish beers. After all, they call themselves a Scottish pub.

He had one Scottish beer, Belhaven Twisted Thistle IPA in bottles. I had not tried that beer before, so I ordered a bottle. In the glass, this was a copper coloured beer with little carbonation. In the nose I found malts and citrus. The citrus was also present in the mouth with a nice bitterness. I liked this beer a lot, and I hope this so called Scottish pub can offer a Scottish beer like this also as a draught beer.

I will probably not be back at Three Lions or Macbeth on my next visit to Trondheim. There are better places for beer lovers in Norway's third largest city.

Three beers in Trondheim

There are many interesting places to visit in Norway. The third largest city in the country, Trondheim, is one of them. Compared to Bergen and Oslo there are not that many tourist sights, but there are some. One of them is the fabulous Nidarosdomen, Trondheim's medieval cathedral.

But this is a beer blog, so I will write about some of the bars and restaurants in Trondheim. Not far from the cathedral you can find Tulla Fischer. This is a cafe selling among others cakes, sandwiches and pizzas. Once upon a time this was the telegraph building in Trondheim, and the ceiling still has the look of an official building combined with fancy lamps.

The beer menu at Tulla Fischer was not something to be happy about. The local Dahls pale lager was available on tap together with Carlsberg Extra Cold and some bottled import beers in a fridge. The Carlsberg was cold and without any aroma or taste to talk about. Next time around I should order water. But Tulla Fischer was a nice place, and perhaps somewhere to take a date?

In the city centre of Trondheim Nattergalen can be found. Nattergalen calls itself a bar with a kitchen. As a bar, the place is interesting with many interesting wines and drinks on the menu.

For beer lovers, Nattergalen is not an important bar to visit in Trondheim. From tap you can drink Heineken and Hansa pale lager together with Newcastle Brown Ale. I had a brown ale and enjoyed it while thinking I really liked this beer much better years ago. I also had a great omelette at Nattergalen. It was absolutely to be recommended.

Across the Old town bridge (Gamle Bybro) you can find the neighbourhood of Bakklandet. Bakklandet has its share of nice cafes, and one of them is Rabarbra.

I did not plan to visit Rabarbra at all during my last visit to Trondheim. A special restaurant I wanted to check out was not open yet, so I decided to stroll around Bakklandet to see if I could find a nice place to read my newspaper.

Rabarbra is a place with a good atmosphere. It is located in a rustic setting, and the wooden walls and old furniture give the visitors a nice feeling. I enjoyed being there, and the smiling and cute waitresses did a good job.

In addition to this, Rabarbra can also offer an excellent amount of used books. It was interesting taking a look at all the shelves, taking out an old book and looking through it.

To drink I could choose between two kinds of draught beer at Rabarbra: Frydenlund's bayer and Trondheim's own Dahls lager. I chose the local beer, and was given a half litre of a pale lager with a medium sized head and nearly no carbonation. In the nose there was flowers and some sweetness. In the mouth malts danced along with the sweetness and a hint of bitterness before the hops took over in the finish. Unfortunately the beer had a metallic taste as well, but perhaps the lines at Rabarbra were not clean enough? Dahls is an average lager that does its job nicely as a thirst quencher. It is not a beer I will actively seek out. But I would like to go back to Rabarbra.

A Norwegian brewpub

Although the Bryggerikaia brewpub in Bodø is not brewing beers at the moment, there are other brewpubs in Norway. Not too many, but if you visit the biggest cities you should have a chance to find one. Oslo has Oslo Mikrobryggeri and Bergen has Kalfaret brygghus. There are among others also brewpubs at Lillehammer and in the little village Flåm in the fjord district.

This month I visited Trondheim, and in the city centre Trondhjem Mikrobryggeri can be found. Trondhjem Mikrobryggeri has the same owners as Oslo Mikrobryggeri. Outside there are possibilities for outdoors seating, but the freezing Norwegian Winter temperatures makes this not tempting. Inside, Trondhjem Mikrobryggeri has a large room on the ground floor with a large bar in the middle of the room.

Nearly all beers sold at Trondhjem Mikrobryggeri are brewed at the premises. The day I visited the most popular beer was the brewery's pale lager, Trondhjemspils, which is unfortunately a quite ordinary beer. In addition to this the brewpub also sold a porter, a bitter, a stout, an amber, a bayer and an IPA. Beers are sold in several measures, but they are also available in taster glasses which cost 15 NOK for 0.1 litre.

I decided to take a taster glass of all available beers, and after five minutes I was served seven glasses of beers in several colours. The first beer I tasted was the porter. It was upper fermented and black in colour. In the nose there were hints of coffee, and in the mouth the coffee was still there. The beer was thin bodied and felt watery. It had some caramel in the aftertaste. The beer had 4.5% alcohol and all in all I felt it was somewhat boring.


Next beer out was the bitter. It had very little aroma, but I liked the consistence of the beer. Tastewise it did not impress me. There was not much flavour except for some hops in the aftertaste. Another boring beer, unfortunately.

I then tried the stout, It was black with a small head. The nose had some coffee and roastedness. In the mouth the coffee was to the fore, but it felt somewhat watery. A good beer, but at 5.5% alcohol I had hoped for more taste in it.

Then it was time for the amber. It had a great, amber (sic!) colour and nice aromas of fruit. In the mouth the fruit was kicking with tastes of apples and peaches dominating. The aftertaste was somewhat bitter, but in all a balanced beer that I liked a lot. This beer had 5.5% alcohol.

Trondhjem Mikrobryggeri's Baviarian style beer, Bayer, had a nice copper colour. In the glass there was nearly no head, but a lot of carbonation. I felt the beer was watery and with little taste. Another boring beer.

The last beer I tried was the IPA. It was a pale beer with little aroma. In the mouth it was something else. Hops and bitterness gave it a nice bite, but an exciting feeling of pears followed by more hops in the aftertaste made this IPA a nice experience. I liked this beer best of all the beers I had at Trondhjem Mikrobryggeri, so I enjoyed an American pint of it afterwards. The 0.45 litre of IPA was priced at 57 NOK, which is nearly 7 EUR or slightly more than 6 GBP.

It liked being able to visit Trondhjem Mikrobryggeri, and I will be back if I return to Trondheim. The beers were nice, but I felt that other Norwegian breweries have better beers to offer. The IPA is beaten by the IPAs from both Haandbryggeriet and Ægir, and Hansa and Aass make better bayers than Trondhjem Mikrobryggeri. But the beers here are better than most of what is brewed at the local macro brewery in Trondheim, E. C. Dahl.