If I had to choose just one style to perfect, it would be the Russian Imperial Stout. Capitalization required. I love stouts in general, but this is the biggest and baddest of the bunch. They are so big--often with an OG in excess of 1.100--that despite the high degree of attenuation and intensely bitter roasted malt and hop flavors, they are still balanced with residual sweetness and a thick, viscous body.
I tried an extract imperial stout last spring--a clone of Old Rasputin from North Coast--but that turned into a rubbery mess. A clogged counter-flow chiller sent boiling wort flying, and we twice lost rubber tubing through the neck of the fermenter. I still have more than a case "conditioning" in my closet, but really I'm afraid to touch it.
This time I'm aiming to tackle another of my favorites: Stone Imperial Russian Stout. Not only is it one of the best, but it is a seasonal beer released mid April, usually within days of my birthday. But a big reason I chose to brew this is that there was a great article in BYO Magazine on Stone that included clone recipes for several of their beers including this one.
The recipe I plan on using is a partial mash adapted from the one in the article. I've been getting terrible efficiency (around 55%) doing brew-in-a-bag, so I doubt the grain bag could hold all the malt I would need, especially when I scale it up to 8 gal. The plan is to mash the specialty grains and as much base malt as I can (about 15 lbs. total) like normal, then make up the rest of the base malt with dry light malt extract. On a side note, this recipe looks similar to the historic Courage Russian Imperial Stout recipe as reported by Ron Pattinson with the high percentage of brown/amber malt.
Stone IRS Clone -------------------------- Batch Size (fermenter): 8.00 gal Estimated ABV: 9.2 % Estimated OG: 1.087 SG Estimated FG: 1.018 SG Estimated Color: 38.7 SRM Estimated IBU: 92.8 IBUs Brewhouse Efficiency: 55.00 % Est Mash Efficiency: 71.3 % Boil Time: 90 Minutes Ingredients: ------------ Amt Name %/IBU 9 lbs Pale Malt, Maris Otter (3.0 SRM) 36.7 % 3 lbs 12.0 oz Amber Malt (22.0 SRM) 15.3 % 1 lbs 12.0 oz Roasted Barley (300.0 SRM) 7.1 % 12.0 oz Black (Patent) Malt (500.0 SRM) 3.1 % 4.0 oz Corn Sugar (Dextrose) (0.0 SRM) 1.0 % 9 lbs Extra Light Dry Extract [Boil 90 min] 36.7 % 3.80 oz Columbus (Tomahawk) [14.60 %] - Boil 90 92.8 IBU 1.00 tsp Irish Moss (Boil 15.0 mins) - 1.0 pkg British Ale Yeast (Wyeast Labs #1098) - 1.0 pkg London Ale Yeast (Wyeast Labs #1028) - Mash Schedule: BIAB, 150F Total Grain Weight: 24 lbs 8.0 oz Estimated Cost: $63.25
As I mentioned in the ESB brewday notes, I have two English yeasts from that beer that are now built up to sufficient quantities for the stout. The recipe from BYO calls for WLP 002 which is the Fuller's strain, but it tends to leave residual sweetness while Stone's beers tend to be pretty dry. The two strains I chose are much more attenuative and should do a better job thinning the morass that is high gravity wort.
Russian Imperial Stout Links:
BYO Style Profile
Brewers Association Style Spotlight
All About Beer Magazine
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