It seems the brewing maestros at Feral are genre-benders. Hop Hog IPA has made a habit of winning the Pale Ale trophy at the Australian International Beer Awards and now Boris has picked up the trophy for Best Porter despite being tagged as a Russian Imperial Stout. If anything, it shows that the brewers there know their beers inside out and just where they're going to fit within judging style guides. Semantics aside, any beer that wins a trophy is likely to be a cracker. And, as anyone who's come across Boris before will know, this Russian Imperial Stout is indeed just that.
It's also the second release in Feral's occasional Brewpub Series, meaning you can take Boris home with you. If you do, you'll find that beneath his iron jaw lurks a beer of lush complexity. Here at Crafty Towers, were we only allowed to drink one beer style for eternity it would be Imperial Stouts, which means there's little that excites us more than pouring a thick, oily, black beer into a glass and watching a deeply dark brown head forming. That this one follows up with all manner of roast, mocha, chocolate and molasses flavours - not to mention plenty of hops to balance the dark malts - and perhaps even a hint of leather to remind us of our beloved Rasputin, means we'll be making this a Russian winter.
Published June 20, 2013 2013-06-20 00:00:00
