Barrel aged beers are everywhere. I
just finished thawing my extremities from the two day
Freeze-Stravaganza that was the Michigan Brewer's Guild's 2015 Winter
Beer Festival, and there was hardly a brewery that was not offering
something that had once resided in a barrel. Bourbon or wine, sherry
or maple syrup: these barrels are out there, and they are going to
get filled. It is not just the professionals out there that are
filling barrels, many homebrewers are purchasing their own, or
chipping in for a barrel purchase for group homebrew club projects.
With that in mind, I would like to
provide a compilation of barrel handling tips from Jay Goodwin, Head
Brewer of the Rare Barrel in Berkley, CA. Jay is hosting a new show
on The Brewing Network, the premiere source for high level (and free)
online beer information on the web. On The Sour Hour Jay talks to top
flight guests about the ins and outs of sour beer production, as well
as dropping plenty of knowledge himself. Do yourself a favor and
check out this podcast. Now let's roll out the barrels.
It is important to find a barrel
supplier you can trust. Now is the time to dial up those industry
connections you have and find out who among the areas barrel
providers are reputable. Especially for the professional side folks,
try and establish strong relationships with these providers as they
are going to be the backbone of your beer aging program.
Do a visual inspection of the barrel
inside and out. Make sure there are no items that have been added to
the barrel that you will want to remove (oak spirals, any other
flavoring agents, etc.) Once the barrel is free of these items, soak
the heads of the barrels. Most of the leaks you are going to get are
on the heads of the barrel. Put hot water on one head, and soak it
over night. If it is not totally dry in the morning that side can be
considered sealed. Flip the barrel over and soak the other side
following the same procedure. If the barrel is not leaking, and you
want the character of the last liquid in the barrel to carry over,
then purge the vessel with CO2 and fill.
If you are not going to use the flavors
of the previous barrel aged liquid, use the wet sulfur method. Rinse
the barrel with hot water to help facilitate the barrels expansion.
(Do not leave hot water in over night, as the water temperature will
drop into a range that can favor mold growth, etc.) Then switch to a
cold water fill. When the barrel proves to be sealed, add one pound
of potassium metabisulfite and a half pound of citric acid mixed into
the barrel full of cold water. This serves as a storage solution.
This will protect the barrel from mold growth for the next six months
before you have to replace the storage liquid.
*Side note: Do not burn a sulfur stick
in the barrel. The possibility of the barrel exploding is very real.
It seems as if barrel aged beers, and
especially sour beers, have become the next frontier in the beer
world. The purpose of this post is to aid in disseminating some of
the advice that can help us produce the beers we want to be making.
Barrel handling and care may not be the sexiest part of the entire
process, but it is a vital one. With that said, I would invite others
to chime in with practices that they have learned, or with questions
on the concepts previously listed. Once again, thanks to Jay Goodwin
of the Rare Barrel for sharing so freely from his knowledge base, and
to The Brewing Network for providing the avenue. Grab a bottle of
Jay's beer any time you have the chance, and check out some of the
amazing podcasts offered by the BN.
Drink good beer with good people!
