Hannu Nikulainen Awards 4.5 Stars to Several Tampere-Area Beers
Beer reviewer Hannu Nikulainen has awarded 4.5-star ratings to several Tampere-area beers and gave top five-star marks to Olarin Panimo’s IBUDrama 800, Paihalas Brewery’s Loue and the Varikko/Hagström Maibock.
Several Tampere-region beers earned 4.5-star ratings in a recent round of evaluations. Veteran reviewer Hannu Nikulainen gave the scores in his latest tasting notes for Tamperelainen, and he has recorded every beer he samples by hand since 1994.
Nikulainen, a longtime contributor to Juomaposti media, gave top five-star marks to Olarin Panimo’s IBUDrama 800, his personal pick, Paihalas Brewery’s Loue, and the Maibock from Varikko Panimo and Hagström. Local products that reached 4.5 stars included Panimo Himo’s Kateus from Pirkkala and Plevna’s Halla from Tampere.
As of 23 May 2026, he had logged 40,318 beers across 618 A5 notebooks. He writes his notes on-site at restaurants, breweries and festivals, producing a rare handwritten archive in Finnish beer culture.
Catch the full story over at Tamperelainen
