Bourbon Barrels

[EvanAltman36]

My LHBS is taking pre-orders for some once-used whiskey barrels, so I was intrigued. However, after checking the cost and the process (link below) I have determined that it's just not worth it for me at this point. I was wondering though how many of you here on BF have ever used a barrel for aging, or whether you've used oak chips or something like that.

I'd like to do a bourbon-maple porter with some wood chips and was thinking about simply soaking the chips in bourbon and then adding them to the beer after primary fermentation. I don't rack to secondary and I use carboys for fermenting though, so I was also wondering whether it'd be a better idea to use a bucket in order to be better able to add the wood chips. That, or chop 'em small enough to fit in the neck of the carboy. Thoughts?

http://blog.greatfermentations.com/gene ... i-barrels/

 

[EvanAltman36]

Sorry, should have included this in my last post, but I'm also wondering about imparting a maple flavor. The experiences I've read about are varied but tend to skew toward having little-to-no success in getting flavor from maple syrup. I'm thinking about adding some at flameout and then also using some to prime, but I'm wondering if I'd get better results from simply using a maple-finished bourbon like Crown Royal Maple or something. It seems that the only result of adding the syrup to the boil, the fermenter, or as primer is an increased dryness with maybe a hint of maple. And with bourbon and some relatively strong flavors from the grains and hops, I'm thinking that the maple might just get lost anyway.

 

[bruce.gates]

Hello again!

I don't have any experience with barrel aging or oak chips, but I have heard that you can get pretty good flavor from using the oak chips. You definitely want to soak them in vodka or some other strong alcohol before pitching them in. I also do not rack to a secondary and I was thinking about using oak chips in my next batch. I use plastic buckets, so if you're using a carboy, I'm not sure what the approach would be. I can't imagine it would hurt to chop up the pieces smaller as I don't think they receive any special treatment that would be altered by cutting them. If anything, you get more surface area exposed and more surface area = more flavor.

You may want to soak in Crown Royal impart its flavor slightly. As far as getting a more strong maple flavor in there, have you considered using it as a priming solution? If not, you may want to give that a shot or even try experimenting with adding more maple to the boil to get more of the flavor. Sadly, in either case you are going to be boiling the maple syrup, so you will ultimately be losing some flavor.

Good luck and let us know how your adventures in oak and maple turn out!

 

[EvanAltman36]

Gracias, Bruce. The stuff I was reading online seemed to show disappointing results from adding to boil, secondary, and as priming agent. That all leads me to believe that the best way to impart the maple flavor is to do so with something non-fermentable. So I'll probably use a maple whiskey, as that will both sanitize the wood chips and impart a maple flavor. Actually, I've also heard that roasting the chips a bit can bring out the flavor in any residual oils. Also, I believe I should probably rinse them first in order to remove any dirt/dust that could linger in the beer.

 

[EvanAltman36]

Follow-up: tried a bourbon-barrel aged brew this past weekend, Alkoholika Imperial Stout, and couldn't stand it. The aroma was great, but I have heard that the barrel aging can lead to oxidation and sour flavors, which this certainly did. While some people might like this, I could barely choke it down.