Imperial Stout Dark Night of the Soul Russian Imperial Stout

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No hijack intended, but I brewed a 5-gal Brewer's Best RIS kit last April. I had sworn off kits, but it was a gift, so naturally I brewed it. Pre-top off was 4.5 gal and for whatever reason, I decided not to top it off, let it ride and 6-7 weeks later bottled. To this day (even at a mere 9%) it is seriously the tastiest, chewiest imp. stout I have ever had (a couple of local craft brew offerings notwithstanding). I didn't really expect great things from it, nor can I say for sure that the extra 1/2 gal of "concentration" made the difference. Either way, I love seeing people's eyes light up and hearing the "Wow!" when they take that first sip!
 
Beer update: I have 6 bottles left from a 2014 (I think) batch that I bottled from a keg to make room for something else. Poured nearly flat into a brandy snifter.

Aroma: Huge, rich roast malt, figs; low vinous notes. Whiff of alcohol is light and perfumy.

Appearance: Black as night with a low ring of dark brown foam. Legs for miles!

Flavor: Roast, dark fruits, and a big hit of black licorice. Since I'm (apparently) one of the few people in the world who love the taste of black licorice, I'm pretty happy with that. No hops to speak of. Due to the hop degradation, acidity from the roast, and (positive, delicious) oxidation notes, there's a slightly cloying sensation in the finish, but it disappears after a few sips.

Mouthfeel: Chewy full body, but not terribly creamy. Low carbonation. Moderate alcohol warmth is smooth. No astringency.

Overall: I think I might have to kill these off this winter. I always end up aging at least a few bottles of this beer, and they never fail me! A nice solitary sipper, but could also pair nicely with roasted meats (lamb, venison, duck!) or maybe a fruity or creamy dessert. Chocolate could work, but the intensity of chocolate paired with the intensity of this beer would kill your palate quickly. Cherry cheesecake or creme brulee(!!!) would be awesome!
 
Here is my somewhat highly modified version of this recipe.

ABV (%): 16+
Recipe Type: All Grain
Style: Russian Imperial Stout
Yeast: WLP090 then WLP099 after 1 week
Yeast Starter: 2 vials into 1 gallon, then step up an additional 2 gallons (1.5 Trillion cells) (Do the same for both Yeast strains)
Batch Size (Gallons): 18
Pre-boil (Gallons): 25
Pre-boil Gravity: 1.100 (Brix 23.8)
Target Original Gravity: 1.132 (Brix 30.6)
Target Final Gravity: 1.020 (hard to hit, you'll usually reach around 1.025)
Target Refractometer Corrected Final Brix: *15.5 (1.063 SG)
Boiling Time: 2 hours
Primary Fermentation (Time & Temp): 2-3 weeks @ 62-64*
Secondary Fermentation (Time & Temp): 3-4 weeks @ 62-64*
Tertiary Fermentation (Time & Temp): Minimum 18 Months @ 62-64*

I use a 42 gallon conical for primary and secondary, and then 6 gallon carboys for the tertiary. You could use carboys for all 3, but it's just more work to transfer that many times.

Total Grain: 90.5 pounds + 4 pounds of Brown Sugar
Total Hops: 1 lb 2 oz Columbus
70 lbs Maris Otter
6 lbs Roasted Rye France (or substitute Chocolate Rye)
6 lbs Chocolate Malt Belgium
5 lbs Crystal 150L Great Britain (or substitute English Dark)
3.5 lbs Special B Malt Belgian
4 lbs Brown Sugar @ 10 mins
20 tsp Diammonium Phosphate Yeast Nutrient @ 10 mins
18oz Columbus @ 60 mins

Tertiary:
3lbs Starbucks Sumatra coffee (don't buy until you're ready to use)
3lbs cacao nibs (don't buy until you're ready to use)

Strike Water Temp: 160* (varies depending on grain temperature)
Initial Strike Water Volume: 28 Gallons
Total Mash Water Volume: 37 Gallons

Mash for 90 minutes @ 146* before beginning lautering – no change in mash out temperature

36 drops Fermcap-S after pitching (Optional to prevent blow off)
Pitch the WLP099 after the WLP090 stops activity (roughly 1 week)
9 tsp of yeast energizer 1 week after pitching WLP099 depending on gravity and activity (usually not needed)

About a 2-3 weeks after secondary, transfer to 3 carboys and put into dark cool corner of your basement and then forget about it for 18 months (occasionally check to see that there's sanitizer in the air locks since that will dry up over time).
2 weeks before kegging add 1 lb per carboy of cacao nibs
1-2 days before kegging, cold press 16oz of coffee per carboy and dump into carboy with beer (have Starbucks grind it for cold press, which is more coarsely ground)
(I've also tried bourbon soaked oak spirals. It's very good, but not as good as the coffee version). (I've also tried a dry hopped version, yeah...don't do that it isn't good). (I've also tried a "normal version", and that's good, but not as good as the bourbon or coffee version.)

If you do the bourbon soaked oak chips, I recommend two full spirals per carboy, and dump the bourbon in with the chips.
edit: Soak the spirals by completely submersing them in bourbon for 3-4 days. Try to find as small of a container as you can to fit the spirals and bourbon into. you may want to break your spirals in half to accomplish this.

Whether you do the bourbon or coffee method, the beer will lose that flavor over time. That's why it's important to age the beer in carboys before adding that flavor. So if you want the beer to be aged longer, age it in the carboys before adding either the bourbon oak spirals or the coffee.

:D :ban: :mug: :ban: :D
 

Thank's my friend really nice tips you have shared here i'll consider this recipe better for my daugther's sweet sixteen in about 3 years than for 2018 christmas:rockin:
 
Hello guys,
I intend to brew this recipe and age it as long as I can in champagne bottles. I'v see that some of you aged it for a couples of years, so my questions are: you aged it the classic way with a crown cap? What method should I go with, a simple 29mm crown cap will be enough or should I go with a synthetic cork and then a crown cap ? I would want to have some carbonation in it after a couple of years :D
Thank you !
 
Hello guys,
I intend to brew this recipe and age it as long as I can in champagne bottles. I'v see that some of you aged it for a couples of years, so my questions are: you aged it the classic way with a crown cap? What method should I go with, a simple 29mm crown cap will be enough or should I go with a synthetic cork and then a crown cap ? I would want to have some carbonation in it after a couple of years :D
Thank you !
I have a few bottles that are about 4 years old that have held up very well with a crown cap, no cork, no wax. Well-aged character, a little vinous, big fig/raisin notes. I guess that's oxidation, but the good oxidation. It's nice.
 
I have a few bottles that are about 4 years old that have held up very well with a crown cap, no cork, no wax. Well-aged character, a little vinous, big fig/raisin notes. I guess that's oxidation, but the good oxidation. It's nice.
After 4 years do you have any carbonation left? I don't mind a little (or more) oxidation as I will mind if I loose carbonation.
 
Great news, then I will stick with the classic crown cap. A 2.0 CO2 volume will be ok ?

I carb my big bba ris to 2.3-2.6 and use the crown caps and I then wax the tops. Gives a nice carbonation but I also use cbc-1 in the bottling bucket to make sure I get some carbonation. So far it’s worked great on both using the bottling yeast and priming to that range.
 
So this looks like an EpIc stout. I am slowly building a 15 gallon Spike+ HERMS system right now and wondering if I’ll have enough room in the Mash tun to do the full 10 gallon recipe. I have already bought the HLT and BK, so want to know - should I go with 20 gallon MT? I bought the 15 gallon stuff because I want to be able to do 10 gallon batches. Also wondering if anybody has put this on nitro? I am thinking to age it add some whiskey chips and then serve on nitro from keg.
 
So this looks like an EpIc stout. I am slowly building a 15 gallon Spike+ HERMS system right now and wondering if I’ll have enough room in the Mash tun to do the full 10 gallon recipe. I have already bought the HLT and BK, so want to know - should I go with 20 gallon MT? I bought the 15 gallon stuff because I want to be able to do 10 gallon batches. Also wondering if anybody has put this on nitro? I am thinking to age it add some whiskey chips and then serve on nitro from keg.

If you want to do 10 gallon batches of BIG beers, I would get the 20. Honestly, you may not be happy with the 15 gallon BK either. I do 10 gallon batches in a keggle, which is supposed to 15.5 gallons, and it gets a little tight at the beginning of the boil. I like to put a full 12 gallons into my fermenter if possible.
 
If you want to do 10 gallon batches of BIG beers, I would get the 20. Honestly, you may not be happy with the 15 gallon BK either. I do 10 gallon batches in a keggle, which is supposed to 15.5 gallons, and it gets a little tight at the beginning of the boil. I like to put a full 12 gallons into my fermenter if possible.

Thank you for the feedback and advice, TxBigHops! Reading between the lines I was thinking that would be the case. Bummer on the BK since I already bought that with all of the custom TC ports...
I think I’ll have to buy another keg just for this stout. A year or two aging will tie one up for some time.
 
Now's about the time year I brew big beers for next winter, and I'm running low on my last RIS. This may be on the short list.
Thanx op for the recipe.
 
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