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Homebrew Russian Imperial Stout Recipe

A Russian imperial stout is often full bodied, high alcohol(imperial) with heavy roast and bittersweet flavors.  Imperial stouts are often coupled with an addition of chocolate or coffee during fermentation.  This is the absolute best beer style to bourbon barrel age in my opinion.  The history is similar to the IPA, where stouts brewed in England were brewed with higher gravity and hops in order to survive the sea voyage to Russia.  To learn more about stouts and how they differ from porters check out Dark Beer Styles: Stout vs Porter.  Below is a 5 gallon All-Grain home brew Russian Imperial Stout recipe.

Grains

12 lbs. Maris Otter Pale
3 lbs. American 2-row
.5 lbs. Roasted Barley
1 lbs. American Caramel 10°L
1 lbs. American Caramel 120°L
1 lbs. Weyermann Carafa III
.5 lbs. Barley Flaked
1 lbs. Oats Flaked

Hops and Schedule

1.5 oz. Galena (Pellets, 13.00 %AA) boiled 60 min.
1 oz. Fuggles (Pellets, 4.50 %AA) boiled 15 min.
.5 oz. Fuggles (Pellets, 4.50 %AA) boiled 0 min.

Yeast

San Diego Super (White Labs #WLP090)

Mash Schedule

Strike grains at 160 degrees.
Mash grains at 150 degrees for 60 minutes.
Sparge with 160 degree water.

Boil Instructions

Bring to boil and add hops per schedule.
At end of 60 minute boil cool wort quickly, when it reaches 80 degrees pitch yeast.

Measurements (Russian Imperial Stout)

OG – 1.075 – 1.115
FG – 1.018 – 1.030
Color(SRM) – 30-70
IBUs – 50-90
ABV 8-12%

Ferment Instructions

Primary ferment between 65 – 70 degrees for 1-2 weeks, then rack to secondary for 1-2 weeks.  A long primary fermentation in the cooler range is advised to keep diacetyl levels low.  Adding chocolate or coffee to the secondary fermenter is a great way to explore different flavors.  This style also does great with bourbon barrel aging, see our article here for a HowTo.

Bottling Instructions

Prime with 3/4 cup corn sugar and bottle. Condition in bottle for at least two weeks, best after about a month.