New Whiskey Barrel

[cmscott]

Hello,

I received for fathers day a 10 gallon whiskey barrel from a local distiller that was emptied of a peated malt whiskey just at the beginning of June.

I have just decided on the brew I want to age in it but probably will not be ready to fill it until the end of July.

Is there a technique to keep the barrel wet and still preserve the flavor of the whiskey that was in it before?

 

[Revvy]

Fill it with about 8 gallons of distilled water. If you want to you can add a cup of the same whiskey to the barrel, BUT if it just came from them, it might be wet enough that adding your first batch of water will only be necessary, you'll be pulling the alcohol into the water.

I have a bourbon barrel. Between uses I fill it with distilled or boiling water, and add a cup of bourbon to it to keep it seasoned and from drying out.

I don't know how this will be with peated whiskey, but one thing I do is preserve the barrel water when I put beer in. I then keep them in sanitized gallon jugs. I have found that using that water in things like stouts adds deep level of flavor. I've used that water as my sparge for example in my pumpkin stout.

 

[TravelingLight]

I don't know how this will be with peated whiskey, but one thing I do is preserve the barrel water when I put beer in. I then keep them in sanitized gallon jugs. I have found that using that water in things like stouts adds deep level of flavor. I've used that water as my sparge for example in my pumpkin stout.

This is damn brilliant, Revvy. I will be borrowing this idea. Thanks.

 

[Revvy]

This is damn brilliant, Revvy. I will be borrowing this idea. Thanks.

I warn you.... If you do this in the fall like I did with my pumpkin ale, especially if the barrel water was from a fill AFTER you had your first batch of beer in there, so it was yeasty and malty... every bee and yellowjacked for 100 miles will be drawn to the heating sparge water, and then the boil.

I actually got stung that day.

But the damn beer was awesome.

 

[TravelingLight]

I warn you.... If you do this in the fall like I did with my pumpkin ale, especially if the barrel water was from a fill AFTER you had your first batch of beer in there, so it was yeasty and malty... every bee and yellowjacked for 100 miles will be drawn to the heating sparge water, and then the boil.

I actually got stung that day.

But the damn beer was awesome.

Damn. That is definitely a good heads up. Thanks!