The short answer is the term “imperial” is used interchangeably with “double” and “strong” to refer to any style of beer brewed with an extra dose of grains and hops to produce a higher ABV (alcohol by volume). So it’s essentially a stronger stout.
But the long answer is more fun!
Historic Hearsay
It all started with a request, allegedly!
On a 1698 trip to England, Peter the Great is said to have tasted his first stout. It was love at first sip and he immediately wanted to bring the brew home to Czarist Russia, so he requested that some be sent to the Imperial court.
To help the stout weather a long journey, additional hops and alcohol were added.
If that is all true, Peter the Great was a very early adopter of the stout style because porters originated in the early 1720s and the first use of stout as a beer descriptor is documented as 1677. So the “stout” that Peter the Great drank was more likely a dark higher gravity ancestor of the Porter.
But even if it wasn’t a stout as we know it today, this chain of events could have been the driving force behind exporting darker ales. Because the Russian Imperial Stout really came into its own in the late 1700s. In 1781, Barclay Perkins started to export a higher hopped stout to the Baltic regions.
This style took the region and Russia by storm because its higher alcohol and greater depth were a strong fit for a bitter cold region of the world. These imported stouts also impressed the Imperial Courts of Russian Empress, Catherine the Great, which ensured strong trade would continue, as well as a name that would live on for centuries.
Appearance and Tasting Notes
A Russian Imperial Stout can range from a dark, deep reddish brown to pure black with little color edging. It will be opaque with a good dark mocha head forming, but retention is often rather low. You can expect intense flavors that are complex and rich. It will have variable amounts of roastiness, malt tones, hop bitterness/flavor, and fruit esters, often with undertones of alcohol.
As for pairing food with an Imperial Stout, it’s recommended that you match strength to strength. Bolder beers typically go extremely well with fattier and sweeter foods such as beef stew, bacon, pate, cheeses and chocolate cake.
In our Raised Expectations Series, we offer our Druthers Superior Imperial Stout. It was conditioned on toasted coconut and almond at a rate of 10 lbs per barrel of each. You’ll enjoy notes of hot chocolate, caramel, coconut and almond in both the aroma and flavor.
Cheers!