What makes an "Imperial"

Hey guys,
Great forum here. I've been reading for a few weeks and learning a lot.

I have a question about my favorite style of beer. What turns a stout into an Imperial stout? Can any stout recipe be easily tweaked to make it Imperial? Where do the changes in the recipe or brewing steps occur?

Thanks!

According to the wiki: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/wiki/index.php/Imperial.

I was under the impression it could be attached to nearly any style, but with a higher ABV, so requires a much high OG to start.

IMperial just means BIG. Add more of everything than typical beer and make sure you give the beer more time to mature than typical as well. You can find plenty of recipes on here.

You might be confusing a couple of concepts here.

There's a grouping of beer styles called Stouts. Imperial Stout is just one specific example of this grouping (others are Sweet Stout, Dry Stout, American Stout, etc).

There's not really any difference in brewing process - just different recipes, since an Imperial Stout is a very different beer than a Dry Stout. You can't really just take one type of stout and "tweak" it into an Imperial.

That said - since Imperial Stouts tend to be bigger (contain more fermentable sugars) than other varieties of Stout, they do benefit from significanlty longer fermentation and aging periods.

Well now, there's a long answer and a short answer. Short: higher abv, more hops.

Long: On the early 1700s Peter the great came over to England and fell in love with stouts. He requested that some be sent to Russia for his Imperial court. When it arrived it had gone bad over the long journey. To save face, the Barclay brewery in London beefed up the hops and alcohol content and sent a new batch over. Everyone loved it (obviously!) and the Russian Imperial Stout was born. I believe one of the Czars loved it so much he had the English set up a brewery in Russia just for him and his court. A sort of similar story to the birth of the IPA.

OK - Bradinator and hoppymonkey are technically correct, as the "Imperial" Moniker has been seriously diluted in recent years.

But check out the BJCP guidelines, and I believe Imperial Stout is the only instance of the work "Imperial" you'll find. Long story short, the style started out as an English beer style that was brewed specifically for export to Russia - the higher alcohol levels and somewhat elevated hop presence both served to help preserve the beer for transport from England to Russia.

More recently, it's become common for commercial brewers to crank up the ABV on any style and attach the "Imperial" name to it...

EDIT: Darn you maxam!!!

The term "Imperial" has since been borrowed by other styles to basically imply higher abv and more hops.

Im·pe·ri·al Beer /imˈpi(&#601rēəl bi(&#601r/ noun: a beer that loyally serves the army under rule of Emperor Palpatine.

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Good stuff. You guys are quick.

I think I get it. Essentially, Imperial Stouts have extra Malts and fermentable sugars that also increase abv. I'm assuming the increase in hops is to balance flavors.

"A beer by any other name would taste just as good."

I say we start calling them Epic Stouts and Epic IPAs.

Oh better yet, Hella-Stouts. Uber-Stouts? Come on, who's with me!?

bradinator said:

"a beer by any other name would taste just as good."

i say we start calling them epic stouts and epic ipas.

Oh better yet, hella-stouts. Uber-stouts? Come on, who's with me!?

Click to expand...

+1!

Bradinator said:

Oh better yet, Hella-Stouts. Uber-Stouts? Come on, who's with me!?

Click to expand...

You missed the obvious one.

I've had an Imperial Pilsner (which sucked, incidentally), but never a Hella-Helles.