Your Top 5 Imperial Stouts?

1. BORIS the Crusher
2. Bell's Expedition
3. Founder's IS
4. Ten Fidy
5. Old Raspy

And now that I think about this more, Alesmith Speedway stout deserves a top 5 RIS rating, but I don't know where to put it. This really is a difficult list to make. I'm sure there's others I've neglected.

 

Sierra Nevada 30th Anniversary Black Barleywine was also basically an imperial stout, and tasty too.

 

Gotta go with Espresso as king of the Yetis!

 

Goddam Old Rasputin!! Its my unicorn!
I bought a bottle when in the states at christmas, saved it the whole time until the last night, thought i'd sign off on a high! The bottle fell and smashed all over the floor as i went to lift it.. It smelt magnificent as i cleaned it off the floor!

 

Plead the 5th.
Plead the 5th.
Plead the 5th.
Plead the 5th.
Plead the 5th.

 

This is silly. Looks like mostly repeaters. Fine, I'll bite, since it's my favorite style.

1. Ten FIDY
2. B.O.R.I.S.
3. Bell's Expedition
4. Kuhnhenn Solar Eclipse
5. Brooklyn Black Chocolate

 

I'm OG the one that started it all, espresso is a fine beer though.

 

1. Darkness
2. Ten Fidy
3. Founders Imperial Stout
4. Plead the Fifth
5. Parabola

 

My top 5 RIS (as they they are labeled on BA)

• Stone Espresso IRS
• Founders Imperial Stout
• Parabola
• Barrel Aged B.O.R.I.S.
• Barrel Aged Siberian Night

 

1. Old Raspy
2. Founder's Breakfast
3. BORIS The Crusher
4. Brooklyn Dark Chocolate
5. Storm King

On a related note, a local draft house is giving everyone in the place a a free Raspy at 7:00 pm tomorrow in honor of his birthday. As Bart Scott says.....CAN'T WAIT!

 

1. Great Divide Yeti
2. Old Rasputin
3. Samuel Smith (no love for any UK versions?)
4. Founders
5. 3 way tie...Stone, Brooklyn Black Chocolate and Ten Fidy

FYI...Alesmith Speedway I gave a perfect 5 rating on but it's not listed as a Russian Imperial Stout...American Double/Imperial Stout so its disqualified.

 

De Molen Hel & Verdoemenis
The Kernel Imperial Brown Stout
Thornbridge Russian Imperial
Goliat
Samuel Smiths Imperial Russian

And Founders Oatmeal Breakfast or founders KBS. I don't know if those are allowed on the list.

Not really in any order. I have yet to get my hands on the Founder's Imperial. Counting on loving that beer. I see a lot of people with Ten Fidy on their list. Am I the only one who wasn't too impressed with that beer? Maybe I'll have to try it again.

 

Also in no particular order,

1. Long Ireland's Black Friday
2. Blue Point's Sour Cherry IS (assuming it qualifies as an RIS)
3. Espresso Oak Aged Yeti
4. Spider Bite's Boris the Spider
5. An honest toss up between Narwhal and Old Rasputin.

As far as I can tell, Long Island kind of sucks for RIS now that I have been prompted to think of it. We don't get FIS or Stone's RIS even though we are otherwise in each brewery's fooprint.
Um, would anyone be willing to trade for some of my locals? (Do I need to go to the trade boards for this? Come to think of it, I haven't seen trade offers on beer talk.)

Cheers!

 

Assuming non-BA RIS…

1) Founders Imperial Stout
2) Dark Horse Plead the 5th
3) Great Divide Yeti
4) Oskar Blues Ten Fidy
5) Thirsty Dog Siberian Night

Honorable Mention: Clown Shoes Blaecorn Unidragon (would have made my top 5 if it were 12oz, Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout

 

9.3 US oz. is just not enough for me. But the Stout alone makes up for the serving size. Cheers!

 

I don't spent a lot of time drinking BIG beers and I don't whale hunt/trade, so this a modest, humble list of beers I'm sure most of you have had and know much better. But oh well!

1. Big Bear Black Stout: I gave this beer a five when I first had it. It's not a big one, but I felt that its elements were all in a perfect balance and was strong yet highly drinkable, and a real pleasure. It falls in line with many of my non-imperial preferences: simple enough but perfectly presented.

2. Lost Abbey Serpent's Stout: Had this fresh on tap and it tasted wonderful without any notice that it would benefit from cellaring (perfect out of the starting gate!) I need to revisit soon!

3. Deschutes The Abyss: Had only one so far, with a about fourteen months of age on it. Unfortunately I had a cold when I drank this, but even with my subdued senses I was able to appreciate its many flavors and it definitely lived up to the hype.

4. Oak Aged Yeti: I've also had the Espresso and Chocolate variants, but this one enjoyed the highest rating. Not sure why! They are all pretty much in the same class: fucking delicious!

5. Old Rasputin XV: from all the barrel aged beers I've tasted (not nearly enough) I conclude that having bourbon flavors in stouts doesn't always improve them. However, in this case it was pretty much an oral orgasm. I love regular Raspy, but this was Godly (Satanly?)

Edit: still have a Parabola in the fridge, so I really hope that one lives up to the hype!

 

Yeah? And stone is an imperial russian stout and not a russian imperial stout.

 

Yeti, Stone, BORIS, Storm King, Ten Fidy.

 

BORIS
FIS
Expedition
Ten Fidy
Blackout

 

1. BCBS
2. Founders Breakfast Stout
3. Evil Twin Imperial Biscotti Break Stout
4. Mikkeller Beer Geek Brunch Weasel
5. Tie between Speedway Stout and Great Divide Chocolate Oak-Aged Yeti

But honestly, there are so many great stouts out there!