What are your favorite Imperial Stouts?

The two you mentioned are great. Bell's Expedition, Brooklyn Black Chocolate, Ten Fidy, and SN Narwhal are my other favorites. I feel that for straight up Imperial Stouts (no added ingredients), the larger, national craft breweries do a better job than the smaller locals.

 

BA Adjunct Trail - Angry Chair
Assassin 2019 - Toppling Goliath
More Rare Scoop - Cycle
FAHA - 3 chiefs
DB Fluffernutter - Hidden Springs

 

Rasputin is the tops

 

I buy a case of Narwhal every year and squirrel some away for verts. Price point is great and I just generally love it all around flavor wise.

Rasputin is the best though, but I take for granite for some reason. I’ll always put Expedition right up there as well.

I’m 100% in favor of the OP though, and will second the previous poster’s sentiments regarding the natty brands making these better than the local ones... shout out to Yuri’s RIS from Equinox though, very much a top dawg RIS in my opinion.

 

FIS is the king! There's no substitute! IMO Old Raspy, Expedition and Narwhal are way too hop forward (for my tastes), when fresh. Old Raspy and Narwhal are also thinner/lighter beers than the rest of these. Dark Horse Pt5 is my 2nd favorite. Brooklyn BCS would be my #3 choice.

Cheers!

 

I'm a big fan of Serpent's Stout

 

hahaha - I’m not sure these are quite what OP was getting at. polar opposite even

OP - agreed, FIS is a GOAT stout for me. There was a couple years where I was obsessed with it. Crazy to think back then that the stuff would fly off the shelves the way that 5 day barrel aged marshmallow & krispy kreme stouts do now

 

This....I was thrilled to see it on shelves this year... it's crazy to think they wouldn't at the very least make it a seasonal...especially in light of the fact that KBS is going year round...

 

I would still say that FIS is my favorite imperial stout. It was really starting to sit on shelves though. When the news came that it wouldn't be produced in 2017, I was able to buy quite a bit of year old 2016 off local shelves. I think Founder's had an idea that if they didn't make it for a couple years, they could add the most desirable adjunct: scarcity. That said, it's supposed to hit town today and I'll buy a case if I can.
Brooklyn Black Chocolate and Old Rasputin are my other favorites for drinking fresh. I do like Narwhal and Expedition, but more so after a couple years in the cellar.

 

Courage

 

Founder Imperial Stout was in my top 4 for a long time along time. It's good to know it's back. I hope it's unchanged. Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout has been my #1for more than 20 years now. My other top Imperial Stouts are Bell's Expedition, SN Narwhal, Great Lakes Blackout and Victory Storm King. Welcome back Founders.

 

OP’s question was super vague, figured I’d just say what my favorites were

 

La Negra from La Cumbre is a sleeper. It gets no hype, is priced well, and is fantastic. Same with malpais, a thought it is a bigger stout it doesn't quite make it into the imperial range.

 

Cigar City's Marshall Zhukov's by far then,
Old Rasputin
Biscotti Break

 

Brooklyn chocolate stout. It is awesome, one caveat is a bottle is 350 calories-

 

This beer does not contain any chocolate. 6 different malts roasted mimic bittersweet chocolate. This is supposed to be a Russian Imperial stout-

 

The best beer ever had was Dogfish Head world wide Vanilla Stout. They only made it once. The Vanilla was so pronounced it probably made the beer non -profitable. Madagascar Vanilla is very expensive, and there was a ton to offset a 18% ABV.

 

Thanks for nothing