Courage Imperial Russian Stout

Wasn't brewed from 1993 to 2011, when a new batch (under new ownership) hit the states. Distribution was fairly large, though I don't know exactly where it landed. I picked up a case here outside Philly.

Opened a bottle about a week ago and it is aging gracefully. Definitely recommend picking some up to drink fresh and to age if you have a chance. I assume any new batch would again have good distribution throughout the U.S.

 

It really is one of the originators of the style and the best version available from England. I had the 1993 bottling in 2006 and it was sublime. One of the best beers to age.

 

never heard of this one but will seek it out

 

How long are we talking about when we say "aging"? And does the aging time vary based on the style of beer?

 

We have a case of it on shelf, slow seller at $6.19 for 9.3ozs but I agree it's a great example of the style. We've had it since 6/12 so I assume it's a 2012 batch, but easily could be 2011.

 

might have to trade to get this one never seen it around here

 

Around $6.99 for a 275ml bottle in the Chicago area. Excellent beer, glad to hear more folks will get to try it.

 

Neck labels on my bottles state clearly "BREWED IN MAY 2011" and the rear label notes the "Best before" date is stamped on the neck (actually, I'd call it the shoulder, since the neck is pretty much covered by the label):

"19/09/24" - Sept. 19th, 2024? So, figuring it wasn't bottled until the year after brewing, 12 year "shelf life"?

 

I paid $5.99 for a 275ml bottle back in December. Very good beer, and I still see it on the shelves in my area (Columbus).

 

Great beer- one of my favorites. I love the complexity, yeast signature, mouthfeel- everything about it. Pricey, but worth it. It doesn't seem to be too hard to get, either.

 

thanks for the heads. if im around there ill have to pick some up

 

The new version is different from the pre-2012 ones, as it doesn't have brettanomyces apparently.

Love how it's cheaper after export. It's like £5.99 here, making it one of the most expensive native (to the UK) stouts.

 

As Rochefort10nh mentioned above, he had a 1993 bottle in 2006 that he calls "sublime," and the jesskidden notes that the Best before date on the 2011 bottles is 2024. So for this beer, it looks like you can age it for at least 13 years with great results. That is typical for Russian Imperial Stouts that were made to last through long ship voyages from where they were brewed in England to Russia centuries ago. In fact, Courage still uses the original recipe that was made in England for Catherine the Great of Russia.

As for aging time per style - yes, it varies greatly per style. Most styles you want to drink as fresh as possible (e.g. IPAs), but some will evolve or even improve as they age (e.g. lambics, barleywines, imperial stouts, Belgian strong ales). Check here for more information on storing beer: http://beeradvocate.com/beer/101/store

 

I believe the label claims it can be aged for up to 18 years.

 

I have tried the new version and it is very tasty. It's fairly easy to get off the shelf here in SoCal.

 

The myth persists.
Beers of standard strength were surviving long sea journeys including crossing the Equator , even IPA was weaker than standard beer (though it had the extra hops) so why would beer need to be this strength to last through a relatively short journey through cool waters? Porter over a year old was found to be in excellent condition in New Zealand as Joseph Banks wrote "23 Sept 1769 Our Malt liquors have answerd extreemly well: we have now both small beer and Porter upon tap as good as I ever drank them, especialy the latter which was bought of Sam. & Jno. Curtiss at Wapping New Stairs. "
Fact is that they were that strength because that's how the customers liked them.

 

The trip to Russia was actually pretty short and simple. Much easier than crossing the Atlantic in the 18th centiury and plenty of standard-strength Porter was shipped to the American colonies.

The beer is no longer brewed by Courage (they no longer) exist, butt Wells & Young. In ant case, the beer was only briefly brewed by Courage (1969-1981). For two centuries before that it was brewed by Barclay Perkins (earlier called Thrale's). 1982-1993 it was brewed at John Smiths in Tadcaster.

The current beer isn't brewed to the original 18th century recipe. It couldn't be for two reasons:

- the original recipe no longer exists (the earliest surviving Barclay Perkins brewing records are from 1804);
- the original beer would have been 100% brown malt as diastatic brown malt is not available commercially, you can't brew a beer that way now

The recipe went through several changes in the 19th and 20th century. In the 1850's, it had a grist of pale, brown, black and amber malt; in the 1970's it was pale, black and amber malt.

It will age pretty much indefinitely. I had a 1977 vintage last year that was in wonderful shape. The 1992 and 1993 vintages are still improving.