Barrel advice

[botch13]

Hey. I got given a 20l barrel from a local distillery. It was originally a port barrel and has since had whiskey in it for three years . Its been empty for about a two months. I'm a bit concerned about the condition. Was told the old leaks were port and its been fine with whisky. Has a plug also. What approach would you take before getting beer in there...? Hoping I'm im the right area for this post.

 

[madscientist451]

I'd brew a high ABV Imperial stout and fill it up.
You might have to brew another version of the same beer for blending.

 

[cyberbackpacker]

At the brewery where I work the SOP is to "burn it out" with near boiling water for a bit if the barrel has been sitting empty for a bit like yours-- an attempt to mitigate any microbes present inside the barrel that may have started taking up residence in mass quantities

 

[botch13]

Sounds good, cheers. Do you ever go the chemical route? Or heat is best? I guess filling it will also find any leaks if there are any. Should I try clean up the outside or just leave it as I could just create more problems...? Thanks

 

[cyberbackpacker]

We don't use any chemicals, although I know some breweries will use sulphur in their barrels if they are going to sit empty for a while.

Don't bother with the outside; burn out the inside and fill-- that is my $0.02 at least!

 

[RPh_Guy]

Are you planning to use it for sour beer?

 

[botch13]

Eventually yes I'd like to. Thinking of getting some big stouts/porters in there to use the whiskey up then get some sours in there. Would that work out you think?

 

[RPh_Guy]

I can't offer much advice since I haven't really studied up on barrels. I skipped that chapter in American Sour Beers. Great book, recommended!

Also MTF is a good resource, as always:
http://www.milkthefunk.com/wiki/Barrel

I was just thinking you might want to avoid chemicals cleaners though since eventually you'll be wanting bacteria to grow in there.
A "whiskey sour" actually sounds pretty tasty!

Either way, I'd get some beer in there ASAP!

Cheers

 

[radwizard]

I would def fill it with near boiling water before putting beer in there. You will lose some of the whiskey, but you could add that back in when you are more comfortable with it. I would want to make sure there are no leaks before putting beer in there. You should probably wax the whole thing before you put longer aging beers in there.

 

[NTexBrewer]

When you fill the barrel with hot water be prepared for it to leak a little. This is common until the staves swell to seal the barrel.

So be prepared to make a mess! If you have a spare bathroom, I would fill and leak test in a bathtub.

 

[ong]

Really don’t burn sulfur in a barrel that stored hard alcohol — huge safety risk. When I got my 10g barrel it was on the dry side, so I removed the spile, rinsed with boiling water, then rinsed with a bottle of a similar spirit. The first batch was EXTREMELY strong — I did a 13% RIS and the rye whiskey flavor still almost overwhelms the beer. Even the third batch in the barrel had a very pronounced bourbon flavor, although it was getting little less dominant.

 

[505-Brewer]

Small barrels you can also pour hot water on the heads and even steam the outside in a large pot.

You want to add hot water ideally so upon resting its no hotter than ~ 180 dsg F. Any hotter and you risk the chance of breaking down the cellulose structure and weakening the bbl. prob not a big deal for a hoobyist though.......

 

[botch13]

Thanks for all the great info people. Will give it a super hot fill and if all Ok, fill with beer! Any idea how to remove the timber plug? (there's probably a proper name) ... Also, with the strong flavour that is possible can you just get it out quicker and replace with a new beer. No reason to leave it in longer if you have enough whiskey already...?

 

[ong]

One easy way is to drill a screw into the bung and grab that in some vise grips. You’ll probably want to replace with a drilled stopper anyway.

 

[couchsending]

I wouldn’t leave it in the barrel for long, with small barrels the beer to wood surface area is much much higher than in a typical 60 gallon barrel. You extract way more flavors much quicker. I’d check it after a month.

 

[botch13]

Hey, finally have a porter (8.5%) ready to go in this barrel. Have filled it with 80 degree water (c) and have a small leak where a plug is. It has slowed to basically nothing now. Would you recommend sorting it now somehow or just get the beer in there...? Thank you

 

[505-Brewer]

If its not leaking Id fill it with beer. Lots of talk about short residence time w smaller barrels. If you drink the beer quickly it will be boozy. But if you age it like you should with a big beer it will mellow nicely. 13% RIS 5 months then age and drink over the next year or so - perfection. Biggest issue i have w smaller barrels is they lose a lot to evaporation over time. Surface area to volume is part of it but the staves and heads are really thin too.

 

[botch13]

Thanks. I went ahead and filled and no problems so far. Expecting it won't be in there for too long going on the advice in this thread and the ridiculously huge whisky aroma from the barrel when transferring.

 

[botch13]

Hey, just an update. I tested the barrel at 4 weeks. Not quite enough. 6 weeks I felt was right. Been in the bottle for 3.5 months and I tried one yesterday and the whisky flavour is spot on for me. It's not overpowering, pretty mellow some that want a huge whisky hit may want longer. Cheers for the assistance!

 

[terrenum]

Good news;; glad it all turned out great.