Everyone by now knows the historical moorings of IPAs, right?

When the Brits were conquering the world in the 17th and 18th centuries, brewers added hops to their pale ales for the journey to British troops in India as a preservative-- India Pale Ale.

It turns out, IPA was intended for officers only, thank you. The common man drank porter, because it was cheaper than pale ale. Immensely popular at that time.

Breweries shipped two beers to India: India Pale Ale for the officers and India Porter for everyone else.

We recreate this unknown beer style here, starting with our porter recipe, then adding an insane amount of hops--almost two pounds per barrel. IBUs go from 14 to 67. Yowza.

We also up the grain bill for balance. Of course, that ups the ABV from 6% to about 7.5%. That's why it's Imperial.

The Fortune Teller part of the name was to evoke the spiritual and mystical side of India. It's not all Ouija boards, grasshopper.

Fortune Teller

Style Guidelines: East India Imperial Porter

Rotation Schedule: once or twice a year

Food Pairings: Excellent accompaniment to shellfish, especially oysters in any form. Porter pairs nicely with almost any meat dish. Mushrooms; rosemary; chicken. The imperial nature of this beer pairs well with spicy Indian cuisine or any assertive hard cheese.

Body: medium to full
Color: nut brown

Grain: British pale, chocolate and Victory

Bittering Hops: Columbus, Cascade, Centennial and Millenium
Finishing Hops: Centennial, Columbus, Cascade

Original Gravity: 1.080
IBUs (estimate): 67
Alcohol By Volume: 7.5%

First Tapped: October 20, 2011 at Oysters & Stout; previewed on the firkin October 14, 2011