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

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

soper2000

Texas

4.28/5  rDev +2.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

My roommate and I picked up a sixtle of this among other offerings at FFF, I decided that 2004 edition especially on-tap merited a rereview. Pulled the beer into my Sam Smith pint glass. Pours a nice black with the edges turning a beautiful ruby when held up to a light. The 2 finger head ever so gently fades into a tan lacing. Aroma is a little weaker than last years but coffee, chocolate, and "sticky" hops meld to form an intoxicating aroma. Taste has a slightly harsh finish but has the same attributes as the nose. Mouthfeel is nice and creamy. Overall this is a great beer but it could use a little time to mellow out the finish before coming something legendary.

Serving type: on-tap

12-01-2004 00:23:23 | More by soper2000

DrunkMcDermott

Illinois

4.3/5  rDev +2.9%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Enjoyed this at its “Release Party” at the Map Room, courtesy of Nick Floyd. Solid brown body, with a thin, lacy head. Very low alcohol taste, but that's only the perception. Rides the very thin line between chewy and watery mouthfeel like a porter should, but with the addition of the 3 Floyds “mouth full of hop pellets” effect. Hop effect can’t help but overrun the chocolate malt taste. Starts out somewhat grapefruitty, but then hangs around when you’ve finished to playfully bitch slap your uvula!

Serving type: on-tap

12-15-2003 14:49:06 | More by DrunkMcDermott

UncleJimbo

Massachusetts

4.28/5  rDev +2.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Sampled on tap in July 2003 at The Blind Tiger. Christmas 2002 vintage.

This porter poured jet black with creamy, tan foam that coated the glass a bit. The smell was strong, "chewy", green hops (floral) with a bit of dark malt. The taste was dominated by the hops but the malt almost balanced with flavors of chocolate, cocoa, and caramel. The mouthfeel was smooth, and relatively sweet and a bit fruity. The body was medium with medium carbonation. This was a very nice porter -- kind of a Porter meets IPA. Very enjoyable as a porter and as a highly hopped ale. This keg had apparently lost much of its spiciness after 7+ months cellaring.

Serving type: on-tap

07-18-2003 04:36:42 | More by UncleJimbo

dwarbi

New York

4.6/5  rDev +10%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

This was one of my two favorite three floyds. Fantastic beer. It's a solid black beer. Can't see it at all. Lovely tan head. Smells of cinnamon and homemade bread. It tastes malty and a little bit like chocolate. Perfect thickness -- feels very good on the palate and incredibly drinkable.
(Tasted this beer at the Blind Tiger's Three Floyds event)

Serving type: on-tap

04-24-2003 20:24:13 | More by dwarbi

Shiredave

New York

4.8/5  rDev +14.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Dark chocolate brown, thick tan head, big aroma of chocolate and flowery hop w/ some smokiness in the back. Just lucious as it enters your mouth - not a big beer but huge on flavor and drinkability. Incredible blend of flavors in a medium bodied porter. Lingering hop bitterness remains after the hop and dark grain flavors fade. No specs on alcohol content from web site or distributor but my guess is around 6.5%/ Vol.
I am surprised my numbers came out so high but when I look back, I dont want to change a thing. I just took another sip.... IMHO its nearly as good as it gets.

Serving type: on-tap

12-20-2002 21:42:52 | More by Shiredave

zerk

California

5/5  rDev +19.6%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Sampled this one on tap at the brewery, and again from my growler at home.

From a Three Floyds pamphlet: Rich and chocolatey, with English chocolate and Mexican sugar.

Just when I thought Three Floyds couldn't wow me anymore than they already had, along comes Alpha Klaus. Black with an amber tint... a persistant tan head... leaving beautiful lace all the way down the glass. Aroma of sweet chocolate and quite a bit of pine. Flavor is very bold, and somewhat sweet... pine, chocolate, toasted malt, and some noticable alcohol. The pine hop flavor is what really dominates... almost as if they had extracted the pine flavor from the hop, and left the bitterness behind. Mouthfeel is very smooth and creamy, with a delicate carbonation, and medium body. I don't know the ABV% on this, but I would imagine it's pretty high, based on the flavor and the punch that it packs.

A truely astounding brew from 3f, and *dare I say it* probably even better than Dreadnaught!

Serving type: on-tap

12-06-2002 05:48:49 | More by zerk

brewtus

Ohio

4.53/5  rDev +8.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

A- poured 22oz into tulip. Pours extremely dark brown, pretty much black. Has a health two finger (at least) tan head that laces as you drink.
S- smokey, milky chocolate, cinnamon, piney, crisp hops
T/M- follows the nose. Plenty of milky chocolate, some cinnamon, maybe some nutmeg, piney hops, perfectly smokey.
O- very unique brew. this beer drinks very easily, the hops leave your tongue bitter but the porter coats it at the same time, very interesting, very good. I prefer a happier beer, and this is a nice change from the over-spiced Christmas dark ales that tend to be the standard. This is a great holiday beer, it's just done the FFF way, lots of delicious hops!

Serving type: bottle

03-30-2013 02:36:48 | More by brewtus

superspak

Michigan

4.43/5  rDev +6%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

22 ounce bottle into signature Teku tulip; November 2012 release. Pours pitch black color with a 2 finger fairly dense dark tan head with great retention, that reduces to a nice cap that lingers. Nice soapy lacing clings on the glass. Aromas of big dark chocolate, roasted malt, grapefruit, pine, orange zest, floral, cocoa, caramel, coffee, light char, and piney spiciness. Fantastic aromas with great balance of hop and dark roasted malt notes. Taste of dark chocolate, roasted malt, grapefruit, pine, floral, char, coffee, caramel, and roasted earthiness. Good amount of roasted pine bitterness on the finish; with lingering notes of dark chocolate, roasted malt, pine, citrus, floral, char, coffee, caramel, and roasted earthiness on the finish for a while. Fantastic balance and complexity of very dark malty flavors with citrus/pine hops; with a great malt/bitterness balance; and zero cloying flavors present after the finish. Medium carbonation and body; with a very creamy, sticky, fairly crisp, and lightly chalky mouthfeel that is great. Alcohol is very well hidden with almost zero warming noticed after the finish. I know this is labeled as a porter; but in my view, this is an absolutely fantastic Black IPA! Big balance and complexity of dark malt and citrus/pine hop flavors; and extremely smooth to sip on. An extremely awesome offering!

Serving type: bottle

03-19-2013 04:20:16 | More by superspak

PorterLambic

Florida

4.11/5  rDev -1.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

Pours an extremely dark brown with little light getting in and even less getting back out. Even with a mild pour in a pint glass I got 2" of dark tan head. Settles a bit faster than I would have expected. Good lace, though.
Smell is roasted malt, cardboard, light smoke and cocoa. Well balanced.
Taste is roasted malt, toast, light smoke, coffee, light cocoa, light cardboard. Very well balanced, good complexity.
Fairly full bodied with a light but slightly sharp effervescence. Gently warming and slightly drying. Some coating on the back of the throat. A nice brew.

Serving type: bottle

03-01-2013 03:43:01 | More by PorterLambic

sbxx

Illinois

4.54/5  rDev +8.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

Appearance - Very dark with 2 fingers of cream-colored head that hung around for a bit.

Smell - Piney and malty. Very welcoming.

Taste - Fabulous piney hop presence, but not overwhelming. The blend of hops and malt was damn near perfect.

Mouthfeel - Light. Finishes very clean. Excellent.

Overall - Very drinkable! Excellent brew overall. Calling it "Alpha King's festive cousin" is spot on. Can't wait to get more of this ASAP.

Serving type: bottle

02-13-2013 07:12:17 | More by sbxx

kscaldef

Oregon

2.84/5  rDev -32.1%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 2.75

A: A dark brown ale, raises a small head with poor retention. Splotchy lacing.

S: roasty chocolate malts, mild hints of spices.

T: Starts with watery chocolate milk, developing nutmeg and cinnamon on the mid-palate. Initially finishes with an unpleasant rubbing alcohol aftertaste, but as the beer warms that off-flavor seems to subside.

M: Moderate-low carbonation. Finishes with dry, slightly astringent spices.

O: A fairly run-of-the-mill porter. I don't find the spices adding much, but at least they aren't overdone. I was rather worried about the initial off-flavors, but that seems to be remedied by letting the beer warm for 15 minutes.

Serving type: bottle

01-23-2013 02:48:04 | More by kscaldef

vic21234

Illinois

3.76/5  rDev -10%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

22oz bomber poured into a snifter. No bottled on date listed.

A- Pours black with a small amount of tan head. Has a thin feel/ look to it.

S- Smells of chocolate and lots of roasty malts. Almost an aroma of chili peppers in there as well.

T- Starts off slightly bitter with some citrus hop characters. The roasted malts then come through, along with an overall sweetness coupled in with some chocolate flavors.

M- Thin to medium bodied, nicely carbonated, bitter yet roasty. An easy drinker. Has an almost spiciness in the back end of the mouth feel.

A nice offering from FFF. This is not a beer I would buy again as porters don't come high on my list but I don't regret buying it.

Serving type: bottle

01-22-2013 01:07:30 | More by vic21234

merc7186

New York

4.01/5  rDev -4.1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Bomber into snifter.

A: Dark Brown Hue, Passes Mild Light, White Head, Decent Lacing

S: Dark Chocolate Malts, Mild Cinnamon

T: Chocolate Malts, Mild Cinnamon, Mild Chili Peppers

M: Decent Carbonation, Medium Bodied, Mildly Spicy, Mildly Bitter

Overall, a pretty nice pepper, spicy porter...won't kill you but a whole bomber will cause AIDS and heart burn.

Serving type: bottle

01-17-2013 03:58:09 | More by merc7186

ruckus232

Illinois

3.96/5  rDev -5.3%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

22 Ounce brown bottle poured into a pint glass

Appearance: Dark/Black in appearance with a few fingers of light brown or tan head.

Smell: Well there is a roasted scent but there was an unexpected earthy almost hoppy/piney smell as well. There was a little bit of sweetness but not much.

Taste: Well it seems like there are a lot of things going on in this. There is a slight fruity taste at first that goes into a hoppy bitterness that then goes into a sweet maltiness that finishes off with the roasted coffee type bitterness. The hoppy bitterness does remain afterwards too.

Serving type: bottle

01-13-2013 20:42:15 | More by ruckus232

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

chanokokoro

Illinois

4/5  rDev -4.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured from a 22 oz. bottle into a Three Floyds branded imperial pint glass

Amazing that I haven't reviewed this brew yet! Pours the darkest brown possible, bordering on black, capped with a very light beige two and a half finger fluffy head. Great retention and significant lacing present. Bakers chocolate, general roastiness, burnt sugar, and grapefruit rind on the nose. This is a beer whose taste closely follows the nose: roasted malt, light espresso notes, dark/bakers chocolate, and burnt caramel and sugar. The hops make their presence well-known toward the very dry finish in the form of grapefruit rind and spruce-like bitterness. Medium bodied, well carbonated, and slick and a bit oily. A very unique porter and one that I welcome every year around the holidays.

Serving type: bottle

12-29-2012 08:27:58 | More by chanokokoro

facundoCNB

New Jersey

4.1/5  rDev -1.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

a dark brown pour with a full half inch tan head throughout the full pour. smells of grassy hops, cocoa, roasted grains. nicely hopped for a porter. the flavor is a bit smoky, with notes of coffee, chocolate. medium body, nicely carbonated with a chalky finish. overall this is a damn excellent porter. very nicely hopped making it an interesting take on the style.

Serving type: bottle

12-27-2012 01:25:55 | More by facundoCNB

mfnmbvp

Illinois

3.95/5  rDev -5.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

22 oz. bottle, no bottled on date present, which is typical of Three Floyds.

A - Pours dark as the night. No light shows through. Tiny 1 finger chocolate cream colored head that goes down quick.

S - Surprising hop potency jumps out initially. A bitter boozy chocolate smell creeps out as the beer warms a bit.

T - Hoppy, chocolatey taste. Kind of a strange combination. Nice bitter hops, but I am not a big fan of porters really. I am a big fan of IPA's so the hop forward aspect makes this porter unique and tolerable to me.

M - Sticky, bitter, buttery aftertaste.

Overall, one of the better porters that I've had, but slightly confusing. Why wouldn't they just make this beer an amped up, spiced pale ale of some kind instead of a hop-heavy porter? Still a delicious beer, and I'd be interested to see one of the many other incantations of the Three Floyds Alpha Klaus, one of the barrel aged versions and see how that tastes. Merry f**king Christmas.

Three Floyds Alpha Klaus ---4/5.

Serving type: bottle

12-26-2012 01:59:21 | More by mfnmbvp

DocJitsu

California

4.4/5  rDev +5.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Pours an opaque black color with a caramelized creme brûlée colored foamy head. The head forms quickly and largely. Some semblance of head lingers throughout the beer. Lacing and spider webbing coat the glass from top to bottom. Late summer mown grass, coffee, and roastiness on the nose. Moutfheel is thick and slick, but dries out a little at the finish. Perfectly balanced roasted malt and resinous hops. It fills the mouth with flavor. Grassy hop flavor blending well with large roasted malt. This is a magnificent beer with a lot of balance. I've missed it so much.

Serving type: bottle

12-26-2012 01:45:04 | More by DocJitsu

Docrock

Illinois

4.1/5  rDev -1.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured from a 22 oz bomber into FFF .5l glass:

A - dark brown with a healthy tan to light brown frothy head that slowly dissipates leaving nice lacework.

S - nice roasted malt with a bit of christmas tree pine scent. A bit of dark chocolate and burnt malt.

T - nice roasted malt up front with a touch of hops on the end, the chocolate and burnt malt aroma carry through nicely as the beer warms a bit.

M - solid carbonation, medium body.

O - a treat for a Holiday beer. have had it fresh and aged, prefer it on the fresher side. nice bottle to share over the Holidays!

Serving type: bottle

12-23-2012 16:58:55 | More by Docrock

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

falloutsnow

Illinois

3.9/5  rDev -6.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

From: Binny's, Schaumburg, IL
Date: None
Glass: Tulip

Three Floyd's Alpha Klaus is a hop-forward American porter, with focus on the hops growing as the beer warms. Charred or roasted malt mixed with pine (primary) and grapefruit (secondary) hop characters are the dominant characters of this beer. The feel of the Klaus is somewhat thin, appropriate for a porter, but perhaps too much so for a 6% ABV beer. Ultimately similar to their Black Sun Stout in many ways, for ample pine-like hop flavors mixed with chocolate malts, I'd choose the brewery's Black Sun Stout over this in general, I think.

Pours a tall, 2.5cm head of dark tan to light brown bubbles, small in size, very dense in appearance. Retention is average, lasting a bit over a minute, as the head settles to a thin cap atop the body, thicker around the sides. Lacing is slightly above average, the head leaving many small dots, and a few larger clumps, of foam along the perimeter of the glass. The body is dark brown to black, opaque, with carbonation not being visible through the void of color.

Aroma is of some papery ash with fainter roasted malt and chocolate notes, which are mixed with mild pine and grapefruit-like hops. The result is a bit like inhaling the smoke from a pine-scented cigarette, not altogether pleasant, though not too unpleasant, either. In general, I'd say that the beer has a bold aroma, which I'd expect from Three Floyds, but it is not one of their better-smelling creations.

In taste, Alpha Klaus is not so much about alpha acids as it is about fairly balanced chocolate malt with pine-like hops. The front of palate is fairly generic sweetness, perhaps from the Mexican sugar, with hints of roasted malt. Mid-palate of pine and grapefruit-like hops welded to a solid backdrop of charred and chocolate malts, not particularly bitter, but with detectable bitterness. Back of palate with obvious charred malt and chocolate flavors, with a slight increase of pine and grapefruit-like hops and a touch of ethanol. Lingering aftertaste of pine resin-like hops that coat the mouth fairly well, with moderate-to-mild bitterness and a bit of roasted malt sweetness and flavor.

Beer is medium to medium-light in body, with carbonation of medium intensity. This leads to a slightly prickly, fizzy mouthfeel at first, which then fades to a marginally foamy, generally smooth mouthfeel for the remainder of the sip. Ethanol can be felt flashing across the throat, or upon the tongue (if held there). Closes dry, with fairly substantial stickiness across the palate.

Serving type: bottle

12-19-2012 06:51:08 | More by falloutsnow

BradtheGreat7

Ohio

4.33/5  rDev +3.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Review taken from my notes, "my personal 12 beers of Christmas"

1 pint 6 oz brown bomber style bottle. Alpha King's festive cousin Alpha Klaus on a Christmas red and green label. This is one of my favorite labels every single year. It is perfect fit for Christmas at FFF. Poured this into a nonic style pint glass.

A - dark chocolate black color with ruby red to brown bursting through the bottom corners of the glass. Light tan head sits atop the black body like a big fluffy pillow before leaving a nice ring of lace. Off white cobweb stickiness clings in splotches to the walls of this nonic.

S - anything but normal citrusy hops Get the aroma started. Some grapefruit, lemon and orange notes with some coriander and a touch of pine. Seasonal spices are a great addition with small touches of cinnamon and maybe nutmeg down deep. Chocolate malt and expresso sits the back bone in this aroma with small notes of sugar cookie.

T - Freakishly hopped and setup to be a flavor giant. Citrusy and pine like hops up front Followed by semi sweet chocolate And semi roasted malt. A quick and mild blast of vanilla paired with some fine winter spices along with a dry hoppy spice. Very faint smokiness given the candied sugar. Mexican sugar adds to the lovely dryness and balances everything very well.

M - Medium bodied and thick. Very creamy and smooth almost being chewy while coating every inch of the mouth. This one can be enjoyed glass after glass.

O - the thing with FFF is you know when you have one of their brews. Idk if it's their yeast strain or the water they use, but every one of their brews has that 3 Floyds flavor character to it. This is not only one of the best Porters you'll ever have its also one of the best Christmas seasonal beers you'll ever have. Putting 2 n 2 together make for the worlds finest Christmas porter. Period. This will never leave my 12 beers of Christmas list. It's just a thoroughbred porter. I'm a huge fan of holiday brews and of American porters, so this one is just a winner all the way around this time of year. It's a must try for porter and holiday beer fans alike. I am starting to sit and think of what brewery does absolutely everything right in terms of the family of beers they happen to offer, and the crew at FFF are at the forefront of that topic every single time. It's remarkable and so is Alpha Klaus.

Serving type: bottle

12-18-2012 15:02:05 | More by BradtheGreat7

davey101

Connecticut

4.08/5  rDev -2.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

22 oz bomber into a FFF .5L glass.

A - Pours a black body that exposes some dark brown tints around the corners of the glass. Nice and fluffy khaki three finger head forms, settles into a thin but lasting cap. Great lacing and retention. Super sticky and clinging.

S - The aroma starts off with sweet milk chocolate, burnt coffee, and roasted malts. A huge blast of piney and grapefruit hops then sends you into confusion.

T - Sweet bakers chocolate, espresso, and char collide with the piney and citric hops. The flavors wash away quickly leaving behind the bitterness typical of an IPA.

M - On the thin to medium side with plenty of carbonation. Works well with the style and flavors and makes for an easy drinking beer. In the span of this review I've already downed a glass...

O - Apparently a porter really works well when its hopped up. Light enough to be drinkable with plenty of chocolaty coffee goodness to balance out that distinctive FFF hop profile.

Serving type: bottle

12-18-2012 02:53:21 | More by davey101