Imperial Stout Dark Night of the Soul Russian Imperial Stout

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Yeah I highly recommend a big fermenter for this from now on. My 5.5g batch had about 2-3 gallons of krausen on top. So my 10G fermenter was plenty and didn't have one bit of blow off.

Also the other thing I decided go with for next time is hopshot at 90min instead of hop pellets. Will keep more beer that way instead of using 5-6 oz of hops.
 
Kegged mine this past weekend and after 3 months. I'll have to say is I can't wait for this to get some age!!
 
Well the three small bottles I set aside to see how it was in three month increments got progressively better. Last one I had was in July or August. If they were any indication this RIS will be a supurb hit for christmas with my family.
 
Lets hope it is so. I get nervous when I hear of somebody brewing a recipe I came up with. I feel responsible in some way if it doesn't turn out. So, I hope it is absolutely top notch.
 
Lets hope it is so. I get nervous when I hear of somebody brewing a recipe I came up with. I feel responsible in some way if it doesn't turn out. So, I hope it is absolutely top notch.

From what I tasted so far,I won't be disappointed at all!!:mug:
 
Just finished cleaning up from brewing the 5 gallon extract verison. OG 1.124. Divided it between two 6.5 gallon fermenters. Crossing fingers for no blow off!
 
Just finished cleaning up from brewing the 5 gallon extract verison. OG 1.124. Divided it between two 6.5 gallon fermenters. Crossing fingers for no blow off!

Keep a eye on it. My went nuts the for two days.
 
Just finished cleaning up from brewing the 5 gallon extract verison. OG 1.124. Divided it between two 6.5 gallon fermenters. Crossing fingers for no blow off!

That's what I did and I had a huge mess on my hands. Rig up a blow off if it's not too late.
 
So the batch I made back in Feb is great. I somehow overcarbonated the beer a bit. Not sure at this point because I didn't take good notes and didn't have beersmith at the time. Anyhow my brother and other family members love it. It's a one and done, two if you're brave.
 
Brewed a batch of this yesterday. Had intended to end up with about 5 gallons, but my manifold fell apart on the sparge. I ended up with 7 gallons pre-boil at 1.067.:mad:

I boiled for 4 hours and ended up with 3.75 gallons into the fermenter at 1.130. Hydrometer sample was GOOD. This will probably be the most "imperial" RIS I've ever had. Pitched 3 liters of WLP099 starter last night about 7PM. I came back at 4 today to a TON of kraussen:
DNotSMedium.jpg


If you brew this make sure you have adequate headspace for a BIG kraussen. Mine is currently at about the same height as the beer and I did use foam control. I can't imagine squeezing a whole 5.5G batch into a 6.5G carboy or bucket.
 
Well I'm 48 hours in and I'm wondering when I should worry about a blow-off. I have 5 gallons split between two 6.5 gallon fermenting buckets. I can't see through them and don't want to open up the lids. Any idea when I'm past the danger zone for a blow off? Three days, five days?
I'm going to primary for at least 4 weeks, possibly 5.
 
Well I'm 48 hours in and I'm wondering when I should worry about a blow-off. I have 5 gallons split between two 6.5 gallon fermenting buckets. I can't see through them and don't want to open up the lids. Any idea when I'm past the danger zone for a blow off? Three days, five days?
I'm going to primary for at least 4 weeks, possibly 5.

I'd pop the lid..4-5 days depending on how much yeast you pitched.
 
I made a batch about 5 weeks ago and the hydrometer sample is amazing. I somehow botched the SG and only got 1.100.

What would everyone's opinion be on added oak cubes or oak spirals to the secondary?
 
I made a batch about 5 weeks ago and the hydrometer sample is amazing. I somehow botched the SG and only got 1.100.

What would everyone's opinion be on added oak cubes or oak spirals to the secondary?

My batch didn't get down very far at all for whatever reason (stuck at 1.056 after 2x more yeast additions and another one with champagne yeast) but I did start higher than this recipe, something like 1.135.

I bottled a 6'er the other day and put the rest on oak cubes that I've been soaking in bourbon for a few months. Big oaked stouts taste great so I'm sure you can't go wrong with either. Search up on oaking in this forum. I can't remember where I found the info, but Basic Brewing Radio or Jamil's Show talked about oak and it's effects and someone summed it up here. I remember it saying something about using cubes if you intend on letting it sit there for a long time (over 3 months).
 
My batch didn't get down very far at all for whatever reason (stuck at 1.056 after 2x more yeast additions and another one with champagne yeast) but I did start higher than this recipe, something like 1.135.

I bottled a 6'er the other day and put the rest on oak cubes that I've been soaking in bourbon for a few months. Big oaked stouts taste great so I'm sure you can't go wrong with either. Search up on oaking in this forum. I can't remember where I found the info, but Basic Brewing Radio or Jamil's Show talked about oak and it's effects and someone summed it up here. I remember it saying something about using cubes if you intend on letting it sit there for a long time (over 3 months).

Awesome, somehow my yeast did great and I saw a drop from 1.100 to 1.024 in about 5 days, then it dropped another 2 points to 1.022 and it stopped there. I'll look up that info on using oak.
 
Brewed a batch of this yesterday. Had intended to end up with about 5 gallons, but my manifold fell apart on the sparge. I ended up with 7 gallons pre-boil at 1.067.:mad:

I boiled for 4 hours and ended up with 3.75 gallons into the fermenter at 1.130. Hydrometer sample was GOOD. This will probably be the most "imperial" RIS I've ever had. Pitched 3 liters of WLP099 starter last night about 7PM. I came back at 4 today to a TON of kraussen:
DNotSMedium.jpg


If you brew this make sure you have adequate headspace for a BIG kraussen. Mine is currently at about the same height as the beer and I did use foam control. I can't imagine squeezing a whole 5.5G batch into a 6.5G carboy or bucket.

Checked the gravity on mine a few weeks ago. All activity had stopped and it looked like I was going to be stuck at 1.050 (from 1.130). The sample at that time was very good but also VERY sweet.

I just got done checking it again. It seems that I've dropped to about 1.038. That gives me about 12.5% ABV. The difference in hydrometer samples was amazing. The drop in FG and 2-3 weeks time really helped out. Can't wait to taste this one in another 4-6 months.

I'll be moving this one to a smaller carboy for another month and then probably into the bottles. Should I be thinking about adding a little S-05 to this at bottling time?

Going to be a great brew; thanks for the recipe!
 
Just served up the last of my reserves of this. About 3 years old, went over very well at the homebrewers meeting. I think I may brew this one up again, Brew-In-A-Bag No-Chill for Big Brew '11!
 
i've been trying to remember what this brew was called for a long time, as i wanted to make it when i saw it, but never did. thanks to whoever revived it. it's in beersmith now
 
Brought this to our annual snowboard trip in the cascades and finally got to share it. Reviews were all positive. I think my favorite comment was from one of the guys who had hurt his shoulder a couple days previous saying "Its better than vicodin"

Edit- One thing I think I would change is I think I could have used more oak flavor in it. The oak was lost at this point for me with the addition I used of sour cherries.
 
Brought this to our annual snowboard trip in the cascades and finally got to share it. Reviews were all positive. I think my favorite comment was from one of the guys who had hurt his shoulder a couple days previous saying "Its better than vicodin"

Edit- One thing I think I would change is I think I could have used more oak flavor in it. The oak was lost at this point for me with the addition I used of sour cherries.


Oak and sour cherries sounds great!
 
Brewing this one today! I'll be pitching a stir-plated WLP099 starter.

I'll amend this post with my observations.

Have you used WLP099 before? I've made this recipe three times now and used WLP001 and WLP051 with absolutely no problems. The yeast is a monster. FG have been 1.022 1.022 and 1.023.

I've heard bad things about WLP099 but haven't personally used it so let me know how it turns out!:mug:
 
I brewed this the first week of February. I did a partial mash due to limited space. I wanted to boost it up a bit so I did 15lbs of light DME and added .5lbs Black Patent (only because it was a bit light due to the DME). I used a 1/4 gallon starter of WLP099 and 2 packs of US-05. Primary for 5 weeks. Then aged it in a barrel I got from Farmhouse Brewing Supplies for an additional 6 weeks.(When I got the barrel I put 2 bottles of bourbon in it right away for about 7 weeks so I could get the bourbon barrel qualities in it). Tasted absolutely amazing when I transfered from barrel to bottling bucket! It's been bottled for almost a month now. It had some heat so I will let it sit for a while still. I did add Brown sugar a few times during Primary. I am unsure of the abv because of the brown sugar additions and what the bourbon in the barrel contributed. OG - 1.146 FG - 1.030 = 15.2% + brown sugar and bourbon. I will crack one this weekend to see how it is.
 
Niilo said:
I brewed this the first week of February. I did a partial mash due to limited space. I wanted to boost it up a bit so I did 15lbs of light DME and added .5lbs Black Patent (only because it was a bit light due to the DME). I used a 1/4 gallon starter of WLP099 and 2 packs of US-05. Primary for 5 weeks. Then aged it in a barrel I got from Farmhouse Brewing Supplies for an additional 6 weeks.(When I got the barrel I put 2 bottles of bourbon in it right away for about 7 weeks so I could get the bourbon barrel qualities in it). Tasted absolutely amazing when I transfered from barrel to bottling bucket! It's been bottled for almost a month now. It had some heat so I will let it sit for a while still. I did add Brown sugar a few times during Primary. I am unsure of the abv because of the brown sugar additions and what the bourbon in the barrel contributed. OG - 1.146 FG - 1.030 = 15.2% + brown sugar and bourbon. I will crack one this weekend to see how it is.

Sounds awesome. Keep us posted.
 
Thanks for the recipe. Grain is getting picked up Tuesday and I can't. Gonna pitch onto a wlp007 cake as soon as my amber is done....Psyched.....I'm defiantly going to lay this down on some oak....
 
Decided to try without a blowoff....yea bad idea. I should have listened. My LHBS was out of fermcap :( This shot off and sprayed the ceiling and the walls.....fermenting like a beast though...and smells terrific :)

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Probably brewing this Labor Day weekend. Lots of horror stories about blowoff and losing a lot to blowoff. I plan on a 5 gal batch. Pitching onto a Pacman yeast cake. Should I split the 5 gal batch into 2 buckets to ferment? Think I'll be OK in a 6.5 gal bucket with blowoff (only about 1/2 inch ID)? I was thinking I might split into two 2.5 gal batches to Primary and then combine them in carboy for Secondary. Thoughts? Is it overkill and will I be OK with 5 gal in 6.5 gal bucket?
 
Niilo said:
I brewed this the first week of February. I did a partial mash due to limited space. I wanted to boost it up a bit so I did 15lbs of light DME and added .5lbs Black Patent (only because it was a bit light due to the DME). I used a 1/4 gallon starter of WLP099 and 2 packs of US-05. Primary for 5 weeks. Then aged it in a barrel I got from Farmhouse Brewing Supplies for an additional 6 weeks.(When I got the barrel I put 2 bottles of bourbon in it right away for about 7 weeks so I could get the bourbon barrel qualities in it). Tasted absolutely amazing when I transfered from barrel to bottling bucket! It's been bottled for almost a month now. It had some heat so I will let it sit for a while still. I did add Brown sugar a few times during Primary. I am unsure of the abv because of the brown sugar additions and what the bourbon in the barrel contributed. OG - 1.146 FG - 1.030 = 15.2% + brown sugar and bourbon. I will crack one this weekend to see how it is.

Any updates on this?
 
stinkynathan said:
Check my picture. At the highest point I had just as much kraussen as I had beer.

That is 3.5 gallons of DNotS in a 6.5 gallon carboy.

Damn, that's a great pic.
 
Should I split the 5 gal batch into 2 buckets to ferment? Think I'll be OK in a 6.5 gal bucket with blowoff (only about 1/2 inch ID)? I was thinking I might split into two 2.5 gal batches to Primary and then combine them in carboy for Secondary. Thoughts? Is it overkill and will I be OK with 5 gal in 6.5 gal bucket?

I think you'll want more headspace than that. Check out stinkynathan's pic, this beer will krausen like crazy. From the last RIS I brewed, definitely glad I split the batch into 2 fermenters or I would've lost a lot of beer.
 
I just finished adding oak to mine after 8 months and thought I would give a tasting update.

Mine ended up right around 13% alcohol. At 6 months, it was undrinkable. Was way to harsh of flavors. I took about a 2oz sample and didnt have more than a sip. Now at 8 months, its divine. Still can use some aging, but in a worse case could be drank. Another 2 months and it would probably be perfect. I just added about .75 oz of wood chips and will age for another 4 months before I bottle it.

Im already planning on brewing this once a year.

Awesomeness!
 
I brewed this the first week of February. I did a partial mash due to limited space. I wanted to boost it up a bit so I did 15lbs of light DME and added .5lbs Black Patent (only because it was a bit light due to the DME). I used a 1/4 gallon starter of WLP099 and 2 packs of US-05. Primary for 5 weeks. Then aged it in a barrel I got from Farmhouse Brewing Supplies for an additional 6 weeks.(When I got the barrel I put 2 bottles of bourbon in it right away for about 7 weeks so I could get the bourbon barrel qualities in it). Tasted absolutely amazing when I transfered from barrel to bottling bucket! It's been bottled for almost a month now. It had some heat so I will let it sit for a while still. I did add Brown sugar a few times during Primary. I am unsure of the abv because of the brown sugar additions and what the bourbon in the barrel contributed. OG - 1.146 FG - 1.030 = 15.2% + brown sugar and bourbon. I will crack one this weekend to see how it is.


So it's been 7 months since I brewed and barrel aged this beast. This is f*cking amazing!!! It was very hot at bottling and has since came together to be the greatest beer I have ever brewed!!! I got very little carbonation from it at bottling. I dropped a packet of S-05 at bottling and it didn't do a whole lot. But I didn't want a whole lot of carb from it. It's a big awesome sipper. I bottled in 22oz. bombers. Highly recommended!!!

I currently have a 10 gallon variation of this in primary for 1.5 months that I will be barrel aging in a 10 gallon barrel that I got from Farmhouse Brewing Supplies. I did add some oat and will dry hop whole espresso beans and vanilla beans right before bottling. I plan on letting it sit for about 4 months in the barrel. The 6 weeks was perfect for the 5 gallon batch. If you have the space and funds I highly recommend getting a used barrel from Farmhouse Brewing Supplies and putting this beer in it. You will not regret it!
 
That sounds really good. I am glad you are enjoying your creation. I still have 4 bottles from my first shot at this. They are precious to say the least. I can't say for sure when I will drink them, but it will have to be a SPECIAL occasion!
 
Brewed this about a week ago. OG came in WAY too low (probably my fault) for my liking even after a LONG boil with a BIG pre-boil volume. In any case, that's not my current question or issue....

Do you think I'm good with a 3 week primary on this, if I plan to secondary a while (maybe another 2 months before bottling)? That's enough for the yeasties to do their thing and clean up a bit before racking, right?

I'll be checking in gravity tonight to see where I stand.
 
An update for all that are interested in this great recipe:

I just received an email stating that my brew of this recipe won best of stouts/porters at the Clearwater Beer Festival in Eau Claire, WI. I'm still waiting to hear who won the Best of Show for this event, but I'm at least in the running.

GREAT recipe!
 
An update for all that are interested in this great recipe:

I just received an email stating that my brew of this recipe won best of stouts/porters at the Clearwater Beer Festival in Eau Claire, WI. I'm still waiting to hear who won the Best of Show for this event, but I'm at least in the running.

GREAT recipe!

Very cool! Sounds like a great brewer to me. Well done. :mug:
 
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