Three Floyds Alpha Klaus Christmas Porter

Brewed by Three Floyds Brewing Company
Style: Imperial/Strong Porter
Munster, Indiana USA

Bomber; Nose of chocolate, coffee, , and toasted rye bread; very dark brown with a huge long lasting tan head; flavor of roasted coffee, dark chocolate, and whole grains. Has a medium body and a prickly mouthfeel on the tongue and little hop bitterness in the finish.

Bomber, courtesy of Adrian910ss (thanks!), pours a very dark brown/black with an enormous foamy head and good lacing. Aroma of dark roast malts, chocolate, light espresso, and some nuttiness. Taste is heavy on the roasted malts, light chocolate and some mild espresso; slight hoppiness. Palate is predictably a bit overcarbonated based on the pour, which is distracting, lighter mouthfeel, medium body. A nice porter, but there’s better out there.

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

22oz bottle. Pours black with a medium tan head that leaves decent lacing. The aroma is dark chocolate, roasted malts, and a touch of coffee. The flavor begins with a burst of the dark chocolate and hints of roasted coffee. This gives way to a hoppy finish. All of the different sensations work weel together. It is sweet, but also bitter. It drinks creamy smooth, but finishes a bit dry. I enjoyed this quite a bit and look forward to having this with more age.

Bomber from last Christmas. Pours like black ink, with ever expanding large tan head that quickly dissipates leaving some nice lacing. Pour cautiously. Fresh bitter chocolate aroma, a bit nutty. Thin to medium feel, a bit creamy but dry bittersweet chocolate flavor. Finishes clean with roasted bitter aftertaste. Very easy drinking, very light warming feel. Love the porters.

Was a little disappointed with this. Pours a dark brown, murky color with a small tan head. Piney hops, strawberries, cherries, and some chocolate in the aroma. The mouth feel was lacking, it was way too watery/thin to my liking. Some malt and chocolate in the forefront with a decent hoppy finish. Re-rate: 07 bottle. Dark brown pour with a minimal white head. Floral and piney hops hit me right off the bat. Chocolate malt and coffee come through to round out the nose. Dark malt, chocolate, brown sugar, coffee, and resiny hops on the finish. 8,3,9,4,17

Rating #200. 22oz bottle from . . . I can’t remember. One of the biggest opening whooshes and largest heads of all time: it took me about fifteen minutes to get something drinkable into a pint glass, and that beneath a huge foam-berg. The reward is worth it, a big roasty nose and a delightfully creamy brew. Heavily carbonated and robustly hopped, this one still possesses the virtues I seek in a porter - big, malty, a bit of a dirty aftertaste (which I dig, I dig). Just nudging into my top porters, and damn enjoyable.

22oz. Bomber $7.99 Big Red Bloomington Alpha Klaus poured deep dark brown into my pint glass. When I hold it closer to the light for inspection I see mahogany highlights throughout. Formed a creamy 1 finger head upon the pour that faded to a super creamy half-finger head that lasted. Leaves faint drink history lacing with each sip. Very nice looking. The smell of this beer is so unique and wonderful it fully deserves a 5. The first whiff I take reminds me of caramel corn. Strange but nice. I then take a deeper whiff, the caramel corn leads things off again but transfers flawlessly into herbal and mildly piney hops in the middle. This is again transformed seamlessly into a bittersweet chocolate bar with mild coffee. I don’t know how the hops pair so perfectly with the other aromas but they do. This stuff smells amazing. I wasn’t sure what to expect. I’ve never really had a darker beer like this with the obvious amount of hops that this has. I couldn’t have wished for more than I got. This beer is packed full of big chocolate and coffee notes. Big roastiness and somehow the hops pair perfectly. With an herbal bite that lightens up all the dark flavors. Finishes with slight coffee ground bitterness and instantly after that a mild pine hop bite. Such a unique beer. The mouthfeel is close to perfect. It’s medium bodied yet creamy. Mild carbonation lets things work through on their own. It just slides through my mouth so easily. There’s also a nice mild lingering bitterness that is a very nice touch. Drinkability is outstanding. This one goes down so easy. It’s so creamy and flavorful you have to work to not gulp it down. Alpha Klaus is another incredible beer from Three Floyds. It amazes me how perfectly all the big flavors go together. I have never had such a unique and fun drinking porter. Definately worth seeking out. 1/6/07