Norwegian beer
Norwegian craft brewers combine a long farmhouse tradition with modern styles like IPA, stout and barleywine. Here you'll find the beers of LERVIG, Salikatt, RYGR Brygghús and Nøgne Ø, from hoppy pale ales to heavy, barrel-aged beers.
- In stock now13 beers
- Breweries4
Breweries from Norway 4
All beers in stock 13
From Viking brews to a young craft scene
Brewing in Norway goes back well over a thousand years. The Vikings brewed barley-based beer in the cold winter months. King Haakon the Good, who ruled from 934 to 961, even made it law to celebrate Christmas with beer: anyone who didn't was fined. A few centuries later, the Gulating required all households to brew Christmas beer.
Until about two hundred years ago, most farms south of the Arctic Circle where grain grew brewed their own beer. From around 1840, dark lager, such as dunkel and bock, dominated the Norwegian market, and it stayed that way for more than a century. In the twentieth century brewing became industrialised and only a handful of large brewers were left. Craft beer in Norway is only about twenty years old.
Farmhouse beer, American influence and strict rules
Among yeast nerds, Norway is known for farmhouse brewing and the kveik tradition. Apart from those farmhouse beers, most Norwegian beer styles go back to Central Europe. The modern craft scene looks mainly to America: breweries adopt the American craft model and its styles, such as hazy IPAs, pastry stouts and fruity kettle sours. Nøgne Ø started out as a pioneer in the early 2000s, when most Norwegians still stuck to classic lager. The name comes from a poem by Henrik Ibsen and means 'naked island'.
The rules help determine what gets brewed. Beer up to 4.7 percent can be sold in the supermarket. Stronger beer goes through the state monopoly Vinmonopolet, which puts together its range through tenders and blind tastings, so that small brewers compete on equal terms with large ones. Beer is heavily taxed and therefore expensive, and that seems to push brewers and drinkers towards stronger beers, such as double IPAs. Christmas beer is still a fixed part of the holidays, although it is no longer compulsory.
Norwegian beer at Hoptimaal
With us you'll find Norwegian beers from LERVIG, Salikatt, RYGR Brygghús and Nøgne Ø. The styles range from IPA and pale ale to stout and barleywine. Highly rated on Untappd are, among others, RYGR Valhall Hiernagla Peated Whisky Cask, RYGR Valhall Hiernagla Rum Cask, Nøgne Ø Nordic Noir 3 Brandy Barrel Ed. and LERVIG Fine Art By Rackhouse. From Salikatt, Front Runner and Second Wind stand out.
Every brewery has its own page with us, where you'll find all its beers in one place.
Frequently asked questions
What is typical Norwegian beer?
Traditionally that's farmhouse beer, which Norway is known for among yeast nerds, along with dark lager and Christmas beer. The modern craft scene is strongly influenced by America, with hazy IPAs, stouts and fruity sours.
Which Norwegian breweries are well known?
Nøgne Ø from Grimstad is one of the best-known craft breweries, and Svalbard Brewery is considered the northernmost craft brewery in the world. The market itself is dominated by Ringnes and Hansa Borg. At Hoptimaal you'll find LERVIG, Salikatt and RYGR Brygghús as well as Nøgne Ø.
Why is beer in Norway so expensive?
Beer is heavily taxed there. On top of that, only beer up to 4.7 percent can be sold in the supermarket, and stronger beer is only available through the state monopoly Vinmonopolet.
Beer from other countries
- Dutch beer 178
- American beer 83
- Belgian beer 67
- Canadian beer 106
- German beer 38
- English beer 39
- Spanish beer 21
- Romanian beer 17
- French beer 16
- Swedish beer 15
- Estonian beer 17
- Polish beer 10
- Irish beer 8
- Finnish beer 9
- Hungarian beer 7
- Latvian beer 17
- Croatian beer 8
- Danish beer 8
- Portuguese beer 4
- Welsh beer 5
- Scottish beer 4
- Brazilian beer 3
- Ukrainian beer 2
- Greek beer 3
- Slovenian beer 3
- Czech beer 3
