Alpha Klaus Christmas (Xmas) Porter - Three Floyds Brewing Co. & Brewpub

mcallister

Ohio

3.33/5  rDev -20.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

So I happened across a bottle of this and figured I better pick it up considering it's 3 Floyd's and I love porter and I forgot to purchase one in the "holiday" season.

Pours a dark burnt brown with an enourmous fizzy off tan head with significant lacing. Main smells of choclate and oats with a little vanilla lingering way back in the background.

Very smooth porter with good roasted choclate malt, very oaty and grainy mouthfeel but not necessarily in a off way. I don't know this beer has left me a tad dissapointed. Not a bad brew at all but for the price many other beers are around to be taken. This beer lacks in complexity and mouthfeel. Still not bad

Serving type: bottle

04-02-2006 22:20:33 | More by mcallister

steve8robin

Massachusetts

3.33/5  rDev -20.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Got this in the 2010 Secret Santa BIF. Loved Alpha King, let's give this on a go. 22oz bottle opened on Christmas night 2010 poured into my new Pumpking tulip...

A: Super dark with no light shining through. A 1 inch mocha colored head that fades extremely slowly leaving a huge fluffy lace on the glass. Very good.

S: I get some mild roasty chocolate blended with earthy citrus hops. Some lemon quickly follows in the middle with some piney spices on the backend. Some molasses and black licorice hideout on the backend. Smells kind of like a Black IPA or a Black and Tan. Good.

T: Tastes of roasty licorice upfront with some watery vegetable dishwater in the middle. Ok.

M: Medium body with a good carbonation. A dry finish. Decent.

D: Once you get past the strange flavors, this is ok.

All in all, this is an ok brew to try around the holidays if you have access. Don't bother hunting. Many better brews in the style.

Serving type: bottle

12-26-2010 01:48:40 | More by steve8robin

Wisconsinality

Wisconsin

3.35/5  rDev -19.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Bomber poured into SA perfect pint.

A- Pours a deep brown with a khaki colored head that sinks down slowly and leaves decent lacing on the side of the glass. Pretty opaque on initial view.

S- Big roasty malts, some bitter coffee and dark chocolate. A faint amount of hops on the tail end. Maybe some dry cocoa which goes with the coffee and chocolate.

T- Like the nose, cold pressed coffee with a little bitterness, dark chocolate and good toasted malts. No real hops to speak of. The more sips I take, the more pronounced the coffee and chocolate become. Seems more like a coffee stout than anything.

M- Medium bodied that has some bitterness to go along with it. Dry on the finish and a little carbonation feel.

D- A decent porter but reminds me more of a normal stout. Good flavors but a little too dominant in the coffee, chocolate flavors.

Serving type: bottle

11-28-2010 21:30:21 | More by Wisconsinality

samie85

Illinois

3.35/5  rDev -19.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

A-Pours a deep coal color with a cappuccino foam, two fingered head.

S-The nose is led by huge amounts of grapefruit Centennial hops with some dark chocolate and roasted notes and some vanilla.

T-Bitter pine and orange with some grapefruit and some pretty deep roasted notes.

M-Seems a little thin in the mouth, although strangely creamy as well, with medium carbonation, and a lingering dryness.

D-For the reputation this beer has, I was pretty disappointed with it. The bitter/hoppy notes don't seem to meld well with the porter notes.

Serving type: bottle

11-30-2010 02:55:55 | More by samie85

scott

Ohio

3.38/5  rDev -19.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Great find for Ohio this time of year-2005 vintage, I presume.
Beautiful pour of a black bodied beer. Is this a stout in disguise? Amber rim with very little head retention.
Smell is a robust welcome from your favorite coffee shop.
Taste started off gnarly, but led the way to a disembodiment from it's 38 degree state of stasis, only to become a very watered down version of a very good stout. Very close to Guinness. You can pull it to your lips and smell huge coffee, but you end up tasting water. No shit.
Mouth of fluffy dark water that is only reminiscent of coffee, and I'm so glad to have bought a bottle instead of a case.

Serving type: bottle

10-26-2006 00:45:44 | More by scott

tjthresh

Indiana

3.38/5  rDev -19.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

This is the first pint that I enjoyed at the Three Floyds brewpub. It was presented in an English pint glass. Dark brown with a huge dense rocky head that didn’t want to go away. The nose was all hops. Amarillos if I had to guess. Some chocolate and roast flavor. A touch sweet, but the hops were the feature act here too. A bit on the thinner side. Overall, Alpha Klause did not live up to expectations.

Serving type: on-tap

12-10-2006 02:38:16 | More by tjthresh

corby112

Pennsylvania

3.38/5  rDev -19.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Pours pitch black and completely opaque with a thick two finger beige head that slowly fades into a lasting ring. Chunks and streaks of lace coat the glass on the way down.

Roasted malt aroma that's slightly smokey with hints of chocolate, caramel, oatmeal and toffee. Slightly balanced by earthy, piny hops.

Thinner bodied than expected with some tight carbonation, possibly the beginning sign of oxidization. The hop presence is much stronger than the aroma hinted at making it very dry and bitter, outshining the roasted malt notes. Just too hoppy for the style in my opinion. Roasted malt backbone with dark chocolate, oatmeal, toffee, caramel and dark fruit. Smoother as it warms but still too hoppy with a dry finish.

Serving type: bottle

10-28-2011 04:02:10 | More by corby112

tut2528

Illinois

3.38/5  rDev -19.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

thanks to woodjjacct for opening this one!

A: typical sout, black as night, creates slight head that is slight tan in color.

S: big tobacco, leather, roasted malt, coffee grounds, dark chocolate and oak come through along with a slight hop note.

T: basic stout with a FFF hop twist. big coffee grounds and hoppy profile, and smoke. it also has a moderate tobacco and leather character that adds a bit of complexity. i'm not picking up on any kind of creaminess.

M: medium bodied, but doesnt leave much on the palate.

O: find this one just above average, and think that the variant would be awesome... especially the Plum. there needs to be a sweetness in this to make this one more balanced

Serving type: bottle

11-25-2012 02:07:13 | More by tut2528

AwYeh

California

3.43/5  rDev -17.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

22oz bomber poured into pint glass; received in the 2011 Black Booty BIF; thanks seeswo!

A: Pours an opaque dark brown/black with two fingers of foamy, creamy light brown head.

S: Roasted, toasty malts, and lots of milk chocolate. A light earthy mustiness, and a good deal of pine and citrus hops- not sure that their combination with the chocolate malts is one of my favorite beer smells ever, but its quite enjoyable and the combination does form an interesting, Christmasy, fruity, spicy aroma.

T: Bittersweet chocolate and pine hops both really dominate the flavor here. Light roasted malts come in in the middle of the flavor and hang around on the finish, along with a good dose of pine hop bitterness- almost like a dark malt version of a West Coast IPA.

M: Medium bodied with quite a lot of carbonation for a porter, somewhat creamy.

D: A good beer but I somewhat quickly tired of the flavor on this one. One glass of this was enough for me; not particularly anxious to pick it up for a second time, but wouldn't be opposed to trying it again.

Serving type: bottle

02-19-2011 02:59:14 | More by AwYeh

ThickNStout

Georgia

3.45/5  rDev -17.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

22oz bottle from zrab11 (thank you!). 2012 release. Served in a Terrapin snifter.

Pours dark brown with about one finger of clumpy tan head. Small patches of lace.

Smells of cocoa, roasty malts and a little bit of piney hops.

Taste is a blend of dark malts, cocoa, bark and earth with a kick of hop bitterness in the finish.

Creamy medium light body with plenty of loose fizzy carbonation. Bitter roasty aftertaste.

A solid hopped-up porter that reminds a little bit of Cigar City Jose Marti. It borders American black ale territory but that roastyness dominates first and foremost. Not the strongest entry I've had from Three Floyds but worth a go if you have the chance.

Serving type: bottle

01-08-2013 05:05:28 | More by ThickNStout

triplecoil

Massachusetts

3.48/5  rDev -16.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

Poured from a bomber into a snifter.

Poured a very deep black with some dark brown highlights and a very thin head that stayed around to the edges. Nose is hops with a little bit of coffee. Taste is roasted malts with a heavy hand of hops, some coffee. Mouthfeel is the highlight for me on this one--viscous with a moderate amount of carbonation.

Wasn't really a huge fan of this one...too much hop for me sullying up the big maltiness. There's a fine line between balanced and lopsided and I think this one leans too much on the hops.

Serving type: bottle

03-02-2008 20:42:37 | More by triplecoil

mdwalsh

Iowa

3.48/5  rDev -16.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

A: Black as Black can be. Head is tannish, less than one finger and goes away pretty quick

S: Very little malt/roast smell. very very citrusy hoppy. Maybe a little sweet

T: Very hoppy, but after a bit the grain comes through. Slightly warm on the way down. A light hoppy burp comes back after a little bit of drinking.

M: Thinning, but pleasing. Ok porter for a hot day, but not for a cold one.

D: I don't think I'd get this one again.

Serving type: bottle

05-20-2009 19:28:07 | More by mdwalsh

RedwoodGeorge

California

3.5/5  rDev -16.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

The pour starts with a "wow" - heaps and heaps of sticky mocha colored foam towering over the brew even with a relatively gentle pour. The foam eventually collapses leaving gobs of lacing on the glass.

The smell is all malt and roast - notes of molasses and coffee abound in the aroma.

The flavor is surprisingly toasted for a porter. There's a reasonable body of caramel and molasses underlying the brew but the predominant experience is bitterness - not of hops but of toasted grain. Flavors of coffee (expresso) dominate over any more subtle notes that may be present. There's a mild amount of hopping at the end but it doesn't compete with or compliment the bitter dark malt.

Mouthfeel is surprisingly thin for a malty brew with lots of carbonation leaving a clean palate after each sip. There's a strong bitter aftertaste of black coffee as a finish with no real hop dryness.

Good but not great. It's a bad sign when a beer reminds you of another beer and you wish you were drinking the other brew instead. In this case it's one of my favorite dry stouts: North Coast Black Hart which has similar roasted malt characteristics but a serious hop finish that leaves no doubt it's a *dry* stout. Too bad the Alpha Klaus wasn't equally interesting. Mind you, it's a good beer but not one I'd spend all year looking forward to...

Serving type: bottle

04-06-2006 03:51:41 | More by RedwoodGeorge

brdc

Wisconsin

3.5/5  rDev -16.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Thanks bgramer for this large capped bottle, poured into a snifter.

It is quite dark, one shade below pitch black, with a minimal head that disappears in seconds.
Aroma is mostly coffee, with some roasted malts that are a bit understated, and citrusy hops. I also thought it is a bit thin on the palate, particularly considering the high ABV.
Taste is as expected, with less roasted malts than I like, and more hops than I expect for a porter.
Ok, but I was expecting more from Three Floyds. The hops do not really blend that well here.

Serving type: bottle

05-30-2008 23:40:48 | More by brdc

KickInTheChalice

Illinois

3.5/5  rDev -16.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

Poured from a 22 oz. bottle into a pint glass.

Appearance: Pours a very dark brown color with a speck of ruby, with a fuller spectrum of cherry red colors in the edges of the glass. A fluffy, creamy beige head forms on the pour and lingers for a while, leaving lacing to cling to the glass.

Smell: Chocolate malt, lots of pine hops and some light earthy and grassy hop aroma.

Taste: This is sort of a simple porter. It starts off with some chocolate malt, but the pine hops are the focus. Some earthy and grassy hops are present as well, mimicking the aroma. Lingering hop bitterness. It seems like I do not agree with their recipe, but as usual, the execution was skillful.

Mouthfeel: Moderately full, with medium creamy carbonation. The hops pull at my taste buds a little bit and leave the tongue dry, with some residue behind my lips.

Drinkability: Heavily hopping this beer just was not a decision that coalesces with what I am looking for in a Christmas Porter. This is quite possibly the first time I will want a less-hopped beer and most likely the last.

Serving type: bottle

01-17-2011 01:38:02 | More by KickInTheChalice

quirkzoo

Colorado

3.5/5  rDev -16.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Got this one a while back from Chadquest, I believe.

Pours a very dark black body with a small tan head. Straight up porter aroma, lots of roasted grains with a hint of vanilla sweetness behind it and a slight smell of alcohol. Very balanced on the palate. A little bit of burnt bitterness, good dark roasted malt, not too complex but enjoyable. Mouthfeel was a touch thin but not watery, very drinkable. Overall this is a solid porter, I didn't pick up on anything exotic that made this a "Christmas" porter but it was still very good.

Serving type: bottle

05-03-2012 16:20:48 | More by quirkzoo

JohnnyMc

Ohio

3.5/5  rDev -16.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A Christmas seasonal!!

Pours out black with a nice 3 fingers of mocha/tan head.

The aroma is extremely hoppy, there is a ton of burnt sugar (probably the Mexican sugar) and some subtle chocolate notes.

The taste is pretty bitter with a bunch of grassy, piney hops followed by a bitter burnt sugar (again, probably the Mexican sugar) and finishes with subtle chocolate and coffee notes. There is really no sweetness to balance the beer and it finishes pretty dry.

The mouthfeel is creamy and it has a medium body.

This is not your typical Porter (which Three Floyds points out on the bottle), but I'm not a huge fan of it. I would like a little sweetness to balance out all the bitter notes and the coffee and chocolate notes could be more pronounced. It's an interesting beer, but not great.

Serving type: bottle

12-19-2012 23:58:44 | More by JohnnyMc

Dantes

New Jersey

3.53/5  rDev -15.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Package: 22oz. crowned brown bottle. Typically ornate 3F label depicting a green elf-like creature maniacally dropping hops into a full pint of beer. Blurb describes beer as an American version of a London Ale made with English malts, Mexican sugar, and unique hops; and having chocolate and floral flavors and aromas. Additional Christmas-y pictures. No ABV or date information listed, but believed to be this year’s.

Cost: Acquired via trade

Presentation: I figured an Anglo-American ale needed an Imperial pint. ~50º

Appearance: Fairly typical for a porter. Not quite black, with a nice, medium-gauge, light-brown head at first. Unfortunately, the head didn’t last very long, resolving to a thin but intact ½" layer. Bubbles percolating through the beer seemed somewhat large.

Smell: Nice, but somewhat underwhelming. The piney hops were definitely there, along with some coffee notes; but little in the way of the thick maltiness I expect in a porter, much less one modeled on an English ale. Not much in the way of floral notes either. Primarily pellet hops and pine.

Taste: Hops make the first impression, with a sharp, citrus-pine tingle. The next impression is of a very nice bittersweet coffee flavor, which turns out to be the highlight on the palate. There were some faint cocoa notes, but they may have been part of the deep, multilayered coffee flavors. There was no hint of alcohol (too little, really) and not much follow through. The finish was fairly short and dry, leaving mostly a preponderance of hops and some of that delicious coffee.

Mouthfeel: Surprisingly thin and austere. The malts were underplayed, and the very low alcohol sensation robbed this of some of its impact. The flavors were all too fleeting in the mouth, with little finish. I also thought that this was a touch overcarbonated, more like an IPA in texture than a traditional porter.

Drinkability: While not unpleasant, nothing really stands out about this beer for me. Because I can think of several well-hopped and traditional porters I prefer, this ranks fairly low on the drinkability scale. Furthermore, the high cost and limited availability make searching this out a somewhat dubious proposition.

Backwash: To be fair, this was based on only two bottles from the same source, but I feel they were somewhat representative. I hope that the draught version is much better and I get to try it. Still, this is the first Three Floyds beer that I’ve found to be disappointing, especially after being so eager to try it. Aside from some nice coffee flavors, this wasn’t very flavorful in a multi-dimensional way and not much akin to any English ales or porters I can think of. Sure, the hops are there; but the malts were weak and the body and mouthfeel were thin. Especially after drinking some other porters recently, I found this a bit wanting. Not anything like a Fuller’s London Porter and a classy Imperial Stout. I’d take either of those (esp. the Fullers) over this in a heartbeat.

Serving type: bottle

02-14-2005 21:44:43 | More by Dantes

taez555

Massachusetts

3.53/5  rDev -15.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Thanks to David from the Publick House Brookline for hooking us up with this beer which you can't get in MA.

This beer poured a brownish/black body with a huge pillowy tan/off-white head. There's some serious carbonation in this puppy.

Nose is an interesting mix of dark cocoa powder, mellow wood, olive juice, fresh toasted malt, toffee and coffee.

Medium bodied with a mild grain touch from start to finish. Dark roasted malt and very dark espresso beans dominate this beer. Very astringent with a sharp roasted malt bitterness. Has a slightly grainy and very bitter base. Citrus and Earth hops are over the top and surprisingly big for a porter, but never overtake the malt bitterness giving it an almost deceptive hop taste.

Quite a porter. Tastes sort of like someone crushed a butt load of espresso beans into a dark malt based beer, but beyond that... good beer.

Serving type: bottle

08-11-2006 00:46:38 | More by taez555

Jesse13713

Ohio

3.53/5  rDev -15.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 2

Thanks to AwYeh for splitting this beer with me.

Appearance - Pours a dark brownish black with a well carbonated vanilla froth on top. Less than half a finger of head on this one. It has impressive lacing that hugs onto the glass tightly.

Smell - A hoppy chocolaty smell. I get slight hints of vanilla along with oak. Smells like some slightly different hops I'm not quite used to.

Taste - A hoppy and fruity porter. Very consistent in its hop profile all throughout. A slight hint of dark cherry with citrus notes. Slight spices are prevalent as well. I also get slight hints of cocoa, that add to the hoppy bitterness. The 'Porter taste' comes in the aftertaste. Further along in the drink, I noticed it became a little more watered down.

Mouthfeel / Drinkability - Fairly drinkable and radically different. It just got old pretty quickly. I was completely happy splitting this with a friend and not drinking the entire 22oz.

Serving type: bottle

02-19-2011 03:08:41 | More by Jesse13713

rmcnealy

Illinois

3.53/5  rDev -15.6%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Served chilled in a traditional pint glass.

Poured an extremely dark, non-translucent brown that created a large tannish mocha colored head. The dense consistent foam left a respectable, even head that stuck with the beer. The immediate aromas of robust floral hops are very welcoming followed with hints of caramel, roast and chocolate. The overwhelming onset of hops is great. Generally I find porters to have a less potent hop note that is drowned out by the darker smells. The taste mirrors the smell with immediate hops trailed by the coffee tastes. The mouthfeel is great with slight bitterness, slight maltiness and a tingling sensation. The taste fleets leaving a chocolate mint end. A cool beer with very differing yet complimentary elements.

Enjoy and Happy Holidays!

Serving type: bottle

11-19-2011 05:55:50 | More by rmcnealy

ehammond1

California

3.53/5  rDev -15.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Bottle (2011)

Acquired via trade
Thanks, dannyfrost!

Dark brown body with ruby highlights. The head is light brown, moderately sized, and eventually leaves spots of stick down the glass.

A fine aroma consisting of roasted malt, earthy and somewhat piney hops, a bit of smoke, and a small amount of licorice.

The flavor is dominated by the roasted malts complemented by dark fruits, earthy hops, and some licorice.

Medium bodied with moderate carbonation.

An above average example of the style, but after having this multiple times now, it always leaves something to be desired.

Serving type: bottle

03-12-2012 02:23:52 | More by ehammond1

Heatwave33

Florida

3.53/5  rDev -15.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Poured from a 22oz bottle to a Dogfish Head Signature Glass.

Color: Black with a light brown head.

Smell: Chocolate and earthy hops up front. Followed by sugar and slight smoke.

Taste: Same as the aroma.

Mouthfeel: Creamy, slight coarse, good carbonation with a dry finish.

Overall: A well rounded porter with a good balance. Medium bodied and a nice Winter brew. Cheers.

Serving type: bottle

04-18-2012 03:25:17 | More by Heatwave33

oracle

Indiana

3.58/5  rDev -14.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

After hearing months of talk, all anxiously awaiting this particular brew, I waited breathlessly for Roger to bring me my 20 oz imperial pint (serverd in a traditional english pint glass). Maybe I need to drink more porters to compare, because this was just not quite as good as I was led to believe it was, although it is quite good. It's just not one of the all time greats.

This was a deep dark black hole of a beer, from which no light could escape. It had a 1/2 inch head of dense creamy tan foam that left slightly less lacing than I expected it to, based on the way it looked.

Smell was pleasant. Lots of sweet malt, with mild toffee and carmel notes.

Tasting this beer was a very very slight let down. I guess that based on all the comments I had been hearing, in my mind I had built this up to be the be-all and end-all of all porters. Now don't get me wrong. This is one darn fine porter. I'm just not sure it's worth getting as worked up over as some people I have seen do.

It's rich, smooth and delicious. Lots of mild sweet malt, small coffee flavor in the finish.

Overall, it's a very good beer.

Serving type: on-tap

12-21-2004 17:34:18 | More by oracle

waltonc

Colorado

3.58/5  rDev -14.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Dark brown color, with a fair amount of carbonation. This is a hop bomb with dark roasted malts. Hops overpower everything else here, which seem (though tough to tell through the hop smoke screen) to be the usual coffee and chocolate notes you'd except from a deep roasted porter. Medium/thick body and medium carbonation.

Serving type: bottle

12-18-2008 04:38:34 | More by waltonc