Overall Impression: An intensely flavored, solid, dark stout with many interpretations. Roasty-burnt malt with a depth of dark or dried fruit flavors and a warming, bittersweet finish. Despite the intense flavors, the components must meld together to create a complex, harmonious beer, not a hot mess – sometimes only accomplished with age.
Aroma: Rich, deep, complex, and often intense, with a pleasant blend of roast, fruit, hops, and alcohol. Light to moderately strong roast can have a coffee, bittersweet or dark chocolate, cocoa, black licorice, tar, or slightly burnt grain quality, sometimes with a light caramel sweetness or toasty maltiness. Low to moderately strong esters are often perceived as dark or dried fruits like plums, prunes, figs, black currants, or raisins. Very low to aggressive hops, usually English or American in character. Alcohol flavor is optional but should not be sharp, hot, or solvable. The balance between these four main components can vary greatly; not all need to be noticeable, but those present should have a smooth interplay. Age can add another dimension, including a vinous or port-like impression, but not sourness. Age can decrease aroma intensity.
Appearance: The color ranges from very dark reddish-brown to jet black. It is opaque. The head is deep tan to dark brown. Generally, it has a well-formed head, although head retention may be low to moderate. High alcohol and viscosity may be visible as legs.
Flavor: Like the aroma, a complex mix of roast, fruit, hops, and alcohol (same descriptors apply). The flavors can be intense, often more significant than the aroma, but the same warning about the balance varying wildly still applies. Medium to aggressively high bitterness. The maltiness balances and supports the other flavors and may have the qualities of bread, toast, or caramel. The palate and finish can be dry to moderately sweet, an impression that often changes with age. It should not be syrupy or cloying—aftertaste of roast, bitterness, and warmth. The exact age effects as in the aroma apply.
Mouthfeel: It should be full to very full-bodied, chewy, velvety, and luscious. The body and texture may decline with age. Gentle, smooth warmth should be present and noticeable as a background character. Low to moderate carbonation.
Comments: Sometimes known as Russian Imperial Stout or RIS. Varying interpretations exist, with American versions having more significant bitterness, more roasted characters, and late hops. At the same time, English varieties often reflect a more complex specialty malt character with a more forward-ester profile. Not all Imperial Stouts have a clearly ‘English’ or ‘American’ character; anything in between is also allowable, so it is counter-productive to define strict sub-types. Judges must be aware of the broad range of the style and not try to judge all examples as clones of a specific commercial beer.
History: A style with a long, although not necessarily continuous, heritage. Traces are the roots of strong English porters brewed for export in the 1700s and are said to have been popular with the Russian Imperial Court. After the Napoleonic wars interrupted trade, these beers were increasingly sold in England. The style eventually all but died out until being popularly embraced in the modern craft beer era in England as a revival export and in the United States as an adaptation by extending the style with American characteristics.
Characteristic Ingredients: Pale malt with significant roasted malts or grain. Flaked adjuncts are common. American or English ale yeast and hops are typical. Ages very well. It is increasingly used as the base beer for many specialty styles.
Style Comparison: Darker and more roasty than Barleywines but with similar alcohol. It is more complex, with a broader range of possible flavors, than lower-gravity stouts.
Vital Statistics: OG: 1.075 – 1.115
IBUs: 50 – 90 FG: 1.018 – 1.030
SRM: 30 – 40 ABV: 8.0 – 12.0%
Commercial Examples: American – Bell’s Expedition Stout, Great Divide Yeti Imperial Stout, North Coast Old Rasputin Imperial Stout, Oskar Blues Ten Fidy, Sierra Nevada Narwhal Imperial Stout; English – 2SP Brewing Co The Russian, Courage Imperial Russian Stout, Le Coq Imperial Extra Double Stout, Samuel Smith Imperial Stout, Thornbridge Saint Petersburg
Tags: very-high-strength, dark-color, top-fermented, British-isles, north-America, traditional-style, craft-style, stout-family, malty, bitter, roasty