Alaskan Smoked Porter exists because two Juneau startups happened to share an industrial neighborhood. Alaskan Brewing Co. and Taku Smokeries would get together after work in the late 1980s for beer and smoked salmon, and co-founders Geoff and Marcy Larson eventually connected the dots: Taku had a smoking facility and plenty of local alder wood, and 19th-century Alaskan breweries had once kilned their own malt over wood fires anyway. First brewed in 1988, it is credited with introducing smoked beer, known in Germany as rauchbier, to a US audience that had barely heard of the style, and it remains one of the most award-winning beers in Great American Beer Festival history. In August 2026 the American Craft Beer Hall of Fame named it to its second class of Landmark Craft Beers, alongside Pliny the Elder, Allagash White, Goose Island Bourbon County Stout and Pete’s Wicked Ale.
At a Glance
| Style | Smoked porter (rauchbier-adjacent) |
| ABV | 6.5% |
| IBU | 45 |
| Brewery | Alaskan Brewing Co., Juneau, Alaska |
| Release | Limited annual vintage, released every fall |
| Recognition | American Craft Beer Hall of Fame, 2026 Landmark Craft Beers class; among the most decorated beers in Great American Beer Festival history |
How It Tastes
Smoked Porter pours nearly black with a thin tan head. The aroma is dominated by wood smoke, closer to standing near a beach bonfire than a barbecue, layered over dark roasted malt and a hint of resiny hop character. On the palate the smoke stays present through to a dry, ashy finish, but it does not overwhelm the beer, toffee, caramel and cocoa powder show up alongside it, and the malt bill (five types, no adjuncts) gives the beer enough backbone to carry the smoke rather than just tasting like an ashtray. It is also one of the rare beers built to age: Alaskan says it can improve in the bottle for years, much like wine, and the brewery releases it as a dated annual vintage every fall specifically so drinkers can track how it changes.
The smoke comes from malt smoked in small batches in a commercial food smoker using local alder, the same hardwood the native Tlingit people historically used to smoke salmon in Southeast Alaska, which is a big part of why the beer reads as distinctly Alaskan rather than a straight rauchbier clone. Beer writer Michael Jackson was famously photographed pairing an early bottle with boiled king crab and smoked Chinook salmon, and that food-pairing instinct still holds: it is built for smoked seafood, blue cheese and other rich, robust dishes.
“Alaskan Smoked Porter is produced in limited vintages every year and released every fall. Unlike most beers, this Smoked Porter may be aged in the bottle for years, much like fine wine.”, Alaskan Brewing Co.
- Credited with reviving smoked beer styles for an American audience starting in 1988
- One of the most decorated beers in Great American Beer Festival history, with medals dating back decades
- Genuine sense of place, made with malt smoked over local Alaskan alder wood
- Ages well in the bottle, giving drinkers a reason to cellar a few and compare vintages
- The smoke character is a lot for drinkers expecting a standard porter, it is closer to eating something off a smoker than a subtle background note
- Released as a limited annual vintage each fall, so it is not something you can grab year round
- Limited distribution outside the Pacific Northwest and West Coast compared to Alaskan’s flagship Amber
FAQs
Why does Alaskan Smoked Porter taste smoky?
The malt is smoked in small batches over local alder wood before brewing, the same hardwood historically used in Southeast Alaska to smoke salmon.
How strong is Alaskan Smoked Porter?
It’s 6.5% ABV with 45 IBU.
Can Alaskan Smoked Porter be aged?
Yes. Alaskan Brewing says it can be cellared for years like a wine, and releases it as a dated annual vintage each fall specifically so drinkers can compare how it develops.
Has Alaskan Smoked Porter won awards?
Yes, it’s one of the most decorated beers in Great American Beer Festival history, and in August 2026 it was named to the American Craft Beer Hall of Fame’s second Landmark Craft Beers class.
When did Alaskan Smoked Porter first come out?
It was first brewed in 1988 by Alaskan Brewing Co. co-founders Geoff and Marcy Larson in Juneau.
