Viking Garn Alpaca Bris Yarn Review

Before I even started my sweater, I knew I wanted to work with a blown yarn again. I’d just finished a project using Lang Cloud, and something about that soft, puffy texture had me hooked. I was scrolling through PetiteKnit patterns and came across the Aros Sweater, which is written with a closer fit than a lot of her oversized patterns. Since I tend to like my sweaters bigger and cozier, I figured knitting it with a loftier yarn at a larger gauge could help me get the silhouette I wanted.

I’m also sensitive to regular wool and especially mohair, and while merino is usually okay, alpaca is by far the most comfortable for my skin. So I started looking for alpaca blown yarns that came in a good range of colors—the Aros Sweater is striped and uses seven different shades, so I needed a palette that felt cohesive and fun but still wearable.

That’s how I landed on Alpaca Bris.

Why I Picked This Yarn

I’d been eyeing Drops Air too, which is very similar and more affordable. Both are blown yarns made with baby alpaca. (Drops Air is 65% baby alpaca, 28% polyamide, 7% wool; Bris is 60% baby alpaca, 11% merino, 29% nylon.) But for this project, it came down to color.

I was building a 7-color palette and wanted something that felt cool but cozy—dusty purples, turquoise, charcoal. Alpaca Bris had the colors I needed, especially a deeper, muted purple (369) and a deep teal (329) that’s saturated yet still moody and wearable. 

Drops Air technically has two purple shades—Sweet Orchid and Purple Haze—but they’re both very light and pretty similar. Its teal is more of a bright peacock blue. the colors are bright and beautiful overall, but I just didn’t feel like there was a full palette there for what I had in mind.

While Bris normally retails for around $8.95 (vs. ~$5.75 for Drops Air), I grabbed it on sale from LindeHobby for $5.65 a skein. I spent about $50 total including shipping and may even have one skein left over. Honestly, not bad at all for a whole sweater made with baby alpaca. So while Drops Air is still on my list to try, Alpaca Bris just had the colors I needed for this project, and catching it on sale made the choice even easier.

First Impressions + Knitting Experience

Right out of the gate, this is some of the softest yarn I’ve ever felt. It has a really lovely halo and a plush compact texture—not overly fuzzy, but not too dense either. Compared to other blown yarns I’ve used: Lang Cloud is more compact and dense, Pearly Haze is more hollow and fuzzy. Alpaca Bris is somewhere in between; you get the best of both worlds and it feels luxurious.

There’s a little shedding, but it’s more like those coarse white fibers you sometimes get in wool blends—not the kind that sticks to your pants for days. Really not bad.

The recommended needle size is 6-7mm, but I’ve been knitting my Aros Sweater on 4-4.5mm needles and it’s worked up beautifully. It glides easily but still has some resistance—the perfect amount of drag on the needles. It’s soft and a little slippery but somehow still very controlled. 

What really stood out to me about Alpaca Bris is how surprisingly easy it is to knit without looking. I can clearly feel exactly where I am in the stitches, and if I’ve caught anything wrong. It feels intuitive, with just the right amount of tension and feedback on the needles. That made knitting with it smooth, really satisfying, and perfect for binge-watching The Mentalist.

I also found it frogs more smoothly than Lang Cloud—still requires a little patience, but not a nightmare.

Color, Stitch Definition & Fabric

The colors are stunning. Alpaca Bris offers a wide range of shades—from soft neutrals to rich jewel tones and vibrant brights—so it was easy to find shades that worked together. My final palette:

• Deep muted purple (369, Purple)

• Saturated teal (329, Turquoise)

• Moody green-slate (338, Petrol)

• Soft, dusty lilac (367, Light purple)

• Heathered gray (313, Light grey)

• Charcoal black (317, Coke)

• Off white (302, Off white)

The lighter shades have better stitch definition—especially the white and lilac. The others mostly blur into a soft, fuzzy fabric, which I actually really like. It gives the sweater a store-bought look, where you see the colors more than the individual stitches. I think that contributes a lot to how clean and professional the finished piece looks already, even before blocking.

The fabric so far is even, soft, and incredibly warm. It drapes nicely while still holding its shape, giving it a balanced feel between coziness and structure. It already feels like something I’d be fine wearing directly against my skin, and I have pretty sensitive skin and sensory issues. I haven’t blocked it yet, so I can’t speak to how it changes post-wash or over time, but the high nylon content (29%) gives me hope—it should add strength and durability to what might otherwise be a delicate fiber.

Final Thoughts 

I’m still working on my Aros Sweater, but it’s almost done and I love how it’s turning out so far. Even without seeing the finished piece, I can already say: this yarn elevates a project. It looks and feels high-end, and the color options really brought my vision to life. 

If you’re sensitive to texture and want something soft, cozy, and polished—Alpaca Bris is worth keeping on your radar, especially if you catch it on sale. I still plan to try Drops Air eventually but for this one, I really don’t think I could’ve picked better.