Russian Imperial Stout Help

What is your projected OG, FG, and IBUs? Is this for 5 gallons?

Also, are you shooting for a thick mouthfeel?

If you are doing a partial mash, you will need base malt, but from the specialty malts you are including i believe you can just steep those.

Edit: If shooting for a thicker mouthfeel, you will want to drop the corn sugar and possibly choose a less attenuative yeast.

As HB42 said below, make sure you pitch enough yeast for this one. On top of that make sure to keep the ferm temp closely monitored or you will have a beer with a lot of fusel flavors.

 

I'm assuming this is for 5 gallons. Your recipe is short on the dark roasted grains for an RIS, I would increase the the roasted barley and/or black patient considerably. 3 of carapils isn't going to hurt anything but its a waste of time, I would either omit it or increase it. This looks short on IBUs to me. Plan on making a yeast starter. Also, just FYI, this is not a partial mash as the recipes does not contain any enzymatic malt, it's an extract with steeping grains, not that theres anything wrong with that.

 

short on ibu's and roasted grains. sugar may not be necessary.

 

i did a five gallon RIS with 1.5 lb chocolate and 1.5 lb of roast once. this is the other extreme but mine tasted great.

 

And/or a blown airlock and krausen on the ceiling.

 

I like what HB42 had to say as I was thinking the same thing. For a RIS you need to have a more robust roast flavor then what your recipe has. I am not sure what your AA's are on your Challenger but my guess is that you should double it. Your recipe would probably be tasty as is with the addition of more bittering hops but would be more of a imperial Porter. Good luck!

 

BrewCipher 3.0 spreadsheet perhaps.

 

Here's a clone recipe, just FYI:

Stone Imperial Russian Stout clone
(5 gallons/19 L, partial mash)
OG = 1.096 FG = 1.020
IBU = 90+ SRM = 93 ABV = 10%
Ingredients
8.75 lbs. (4.0 kg) light dried malt extract
2.0 lbs. (0.91 kg) amber malt
1.25 lbs. (0.34 kg) roast barley
1.25 lbs. (0.34 kg) black malt
30 AAU Warrior hops (60 mins) (1.9 oz/53 g of 16% alpha acids)
White Labs WLP002 (English Ale) yeast (3 qt./3 L yeast starter)
7⁄8 cup corn sugar (for priming)

 

I'll share a story to a new brewer,(argyle324). I just opened up a 10% beer that I brewed 18 months ago. I'm sure as shit glad that I really had my technique and brew skills sharp for that one. Otherwise, my bad beer will stlll be bad beer in a bottle 18 months from now. Just cross your t's and your heart that you make this right. If you think that you can make strides towards making better beers, you shouldn't attempt to make a big beer. Get the technique down first and then make something you are proud to cellar away. Treat it like a wine--It'll be better in 12 month to 2 years.

 

The answer is this...
http://www.amazon.com/Designing-Great-Beers-Ultimate-Brewing/dp/0937381500

 

Swap the carapils for caramunich 60L, and back the c120 down to 8oz. Add 8oz Special B.

 

Perhaps you could tell the OP what your changes would do for his beer.

 

Why? What's wrong with carapils? Why add caramunich 60L and Special B to a beer that already has 120L? Will any of these changes even make an appreciable difference in a big roasty RIS like this?

 

I thought that was a bit high on the C120 too. Raisiny flavors come from that one, no? I guess it depends how much of that flavor you want. But I doubt it will be a major big deal either way, it's just a thought.

well Al... you thought. that's where you went wrong!

Also I wouldn't bother with the 0.5 fuggles at 45, add the whole ounce of fuggles at 5. I say this because fuggles is good and earthy and IMO is a great hop for stouts (and other styles too, but especially stouts). However, it's not real strong, and the subtleties of its flavor won't be very noticeable if you boil it that long. You could probably add 2 oz fuggles at 5 minutes and they would still be great in this beer (I love fuggles!).

 

I'd personally nix the sugar. It'll up the ABV and will take more time for the beer to shape up, if it does. It'll taste like someone dropped a shot of vodka into each glass of your RIS. BOOZY, feusal nodes are offputting to me and can be achieved just as easily by fermenting too warm. Don't do that either.

Everything looks just a little out of proportion to me. I'd up the LME by 2# and skim some of the steeping grains. I've never delt with more than a pound of ANY of those grains in an RIS and the roast and bitterness comes through quite nicely. Come to think of it, I haven't dealt with more than half a pound of any of those and my RISs have come out nicely.

It's your beer and totally up to you.

Good luck.

 

Not much to add other than damn that'll be expensive with all that extract.

I did a RIS back in May that turned out well.
2# roasted barley
1.5# chocolate malt
.5# black patent
1# crystal 120
.5# crystal 60
1# flaked oats

Was a 1.125 OG stout. I used a pound of Demerara sugar in mine as well. I also hopped it to around 95 or so IBU?

Keep your temps down its violent. I ended up around 1.027 FG I think. It's boozy and very roasty. Rich doesn't even start to describe it