NorthernBrewer Bourbon Barrel Porter

[brewSTI]

I just cracked one that had only been in the bottle for 10 days. I expected it to be green and under carbed... which it definitely was. But man it had a nice flavor! I cant wait to taste it again after it is aged for a bit.

I added 5 vanilla beans to the bourbon for a week. Tossed bourbon and 3 beans into secondary with about 1 oz of cacao nibs. I will definitely be making this one again.

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[cjonesga]

I'm brewing this jewel this weekend and will let it condition until the end of October. It might be good to crack one open on Halloween. I'm hoping it will be as good as some of your reviews!

 

[RaiderNation]

Unfortunately, I have a pretty weird off flavor going on right now.
It's currently in week 1 of secondary.
Everything seemed fine up until secondary (sample taste and smell during transfer). I don't know how to describe it, if it's a stale taste or a moldy taste. I'm sure the bourbon is covering up a little of the off flavors. So i don't know if I got oxygenated or infected or what.
A/C did go out during day 3 or 4 of fermentation, but I assumed it didn't harm it too much since the sample taste was fine.

But I guess my question to you guys is, would you even bother bottling this 2 weeks or so from now and wait another 2-3+ for it to condition?
Or just dump the 5 gallons and count it up as a F up.

 

[doublebogey10]

Unfortunately, I have a pretty weird off flavor going on right now.

It's currently in week 1 of secondary.

Everything seemed fine up until secondary (sample taste and smell during transfer). I don't know how to describe it, if it's a stale taste or a moldy taste. I'm sure the bourbon is covering up a little of the off flavors. So i don't know if I got oxygenated or infected or what.

A/C did go out during day 3 or 4 of fermentation, but I assumed it didn't harm it too much since the sample taste was fine.



But I guess my question to you guys is, would you even bother bottling this 2 weeks or so from now and wait another 2-3+ for it to condition?

Or just dump the 5 gallons and count it up as a F up.

Unless it is infected, I see no reason to dump, especially if you haven't even bottled yet. This is a beer you have to have patience with. It evolves. I'm not saying there's nothing wrong with it, but you might be surprised how it comes out.



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[heckofagator]

Hey guys, I have this kit on the way and hope to try it this weekend. It'll be my 2nd time brewing.

A couple of questions that I'm not 100% on. Should I opt for a yeast starter kit? I see NB recommends it. If so, I'll go to the local store and pick up that stuff ahead of time. Or am I ok with just pitching just the yeast that comes with the kit?

If you're only using primary fermentation and then straight to the priming bucket, is 4 weeks usually enough? With the oak and bourbon added for the last 2 weeks?

 

[DAJDive]

Hey guys, I have this kit on the way and hope to try it this weekend. It'll be my 2nd time brewing.

A couple of questions that I'm not 100% on. Should I opt for a yeast starter kit? I see NB recommends it. If so, I'll go to the local store and pick up that stuff ahead of time. Or am I ok with just pitching just the yeast that comes with the kit?

If you're only using primary fermentation and then straight to the priming bucket, is 4 weeks usually enough? With the oak and bourbon added for the last 2 weeks?

It is a big beer. I would go with a starter if you can to give the best fermentation possible.

I secondary this beer. Two-three weeks in the primary then two-three more weeks in secondary. Then I add the bourbon soaked oak cubes and age it a couple more weeks. After it has bulk aged for about two months, I will bottle it and let it bottle age for a couple more months.

I drank the last bottle from my last batch of BBP about a year after brewing it. It was 1000 times better than the first bottle. BBP will get much better with age.

 

[heckofagator]

I'm still in the learning phase for sure - what does the secondary fermentation buy you here over just leaving it in one vessel for 4-5 weeks?

 

[PourSomeMore]

When barrel aging using wood chips is there an optimal time to be in contact with the wood? The longer you leave the chips in do you get more wood flavor?

 

[drat12]

I have this sitting. In secondary on oak and bourbon (used about1/2 of recommended amount). I'm reading that several people had issues with it carbing. Anyone recommend either upping sugar addition or adding additional yeast?


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[jshake]

I put a full pint in mine it carbed up just fine. Let it set for a month before you open your first one

 

[doublebogey10]

What is the difference between oak chips and oak cubes? If I have chips, how should I change amount (if at all) for this brew. Or does it matter how much bourbon I am using?

 

[BrewPharm]

Mine is now 5 days since adding bourbon and cubes and I'm noticing A&W root beer type bubbles around edges. Not covering full surface or krausen like. Normal? anyone else see this? My final gravity did end fairly high after 3+ week primary 1.028. But I've had issues with this yeast in the past.


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[heckofagator]

Well, I started mine yesterday and just now pitched the yeast after the wort made it to 66. I only made a OG of 1.055. I did a full boil and ended up with a little over 5g, so I guess that will lower the OG a bit but I wasn't expecting to be that far off.

Hopefully everything ends up alright.

 

[BrewPharm]

Hope it doesn't finish as high as mine did! A 3.5% porter seems like a waste!


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[RhodySeth]

Cracked one of these open that I brewed last November. Oh man, sooo good!

 

[ahariton]

This is by far my favorite beer!! I've brewed it twice now with Woodford Reserve and it's been fantastic both times.

Any thoughts on skipping the secondary, and instead adding the soaked oak cubes and bourbon directly to the primary after a couple of weeks?

 

[heckofagator]

Any thoughts on skipping the secondary, and instead adding the soaked oak cubes and bourbon directly to the primary after a couple of weeks?

I'll let you know in a couple weeks. I had mine in primary for 5 weeks and just bottled on Sunday. I put in the oak, makers mark and a vanilla bean for the last 3 weeks.

 

[doublebogey10]

Carbonation question ...
Is there a consensus on the amount of corn sugar to use properly carb this? I've been kegging for a while now and use the carb drops when I occasionally bottle a couple. Been a while since I bottled an entire batch!

 

[c2mcclel]

I used half the normal amount and it carbed perfectly to my liking. 2.5 ounces

 

[RhodySeth]

I made another batch of this stuff at the end of December with a slightly lower gravity (1.058). By mid-January I transferred it to secondary and added the bourbon/chips. At this point the gravity was higher than I would have liked (1.024) but I figured the bourbon and transfer would probably wake the yeast up enough to finish the job.

It did wake 'em up - a ring of krausen formed at the top of the carboy and the krausen has been growing/shrinking/growing ever since. I took a gravity reading a week ago and it was down to 1.016 (I honestly don't know how to factor the bourbon addition into the gravity reading) but here we are about 40 days into secondary and there are still bubbles rising to the top and that healthy ring of krausen is still staying strong.

By racking to secondary too early did I create one of those endless fermentations that just drag on? At this point I'm leaning towards taking another gravity reading and just kegging it.

Here's a pic - I filled my 3 gallon to the brim and put the rest in a little guy. The little guy's fermentation seems to have stopped but I'm not too worried about that on. It's the three gallon that seems to have the never-ender.

 

[GaoDeBrew]

I brewed this kit 2/8, transferred 3 gallons of the 5 to my 3 gallon carboy for secondary on 3/3 over of three-fifths of the oak and Makers. Then poured in two-fifths of the cubes and bourbon into to what was left in the bucket.

I plan to bottle the 2 gallons from the bucket this weekend, and then age the rest in secondary for a few months. Will be tasting every week or two and see how much oak comes through. Looking forward to testing both bottles to see what I like most!

I'll post the results in a few months. Seems so far away but at least I'll have the 2 gallon batch to sip on while I wait!

 

[RhodySeth]

As a follow-up to my post above, after another week I took a gravity reading - it had dropped to 1.012. At that point impatience got the better of me and I kegged it. Made another first time mistake - since I was racking out of two vessels, I didn't consider that when I primed the pump on the smaller jug that I'd be blowing air bubbles into the keg. Whoops!

Anywho, it's been in the keg a few weeks and it tastes darn good!

 

[sensortech]

I brewed and bottled it a few years ago. This wasn't something I wanted in a keg. This beer was awesome and it got better with age. The best one was the last! (which I had a couple months ago)

 

[brewbama]

I did this brew a while back and loved it!

 

[hopsandhops]

Well, I started mine yesterday and just now pitched the yeast after the wort made it to 66. I only made a OG of 1.055. I did a full boil and ended up with a little over 5g, so I guess that will lower the OG a bit but I wasn't expecting to be that far off.

Hopefully everything ends up alright.

I know it's been awhile, but do you remember what your FG was? I brewed this the other day and it came in at 1.054 OG. Pretty bummed, but I'm sure it'll still be delicious, even at ~5% instead of ~7%. Did you use the full 16 oz of bourbon even with the low OG?

 

[heckofagator]

I know it's been awhile, but do you remember what your FG was? I brewed this the other day and it came in at 1.054 OG. Pretty bummed, but I'm sure it'll still be delicious, even at ~5% instead of ~7%. Did you use the full 16 oz of bourbon even with the low OG?

My FG was 1.010. I added in the entire 350ml bottle.

I have to say, even though I'm only up to 14-15 batches under my belt, this is easily one of my favorites, if not the best. And it's so true what others have said, it really gets noticeably better with age. This will probably be the first recipe that I re-brew, although now I'm doing BIAB so I'll have to find an all-grain recipe.

I'm ok with the lower OG's now, too, but yeah, I was disappointed at first. I'm finding, though, I'd prefer a session style brew over the really high alcohol beers.

 

[hopsandhops]

I'm with you on enjoying the sessions

This one is for the winter and I'm hoping to finish around 1012-1016. I mashed at 153, so we'll see.

Thanks for the reply!

 

[arnobg]

This is an older thread, but I'm hoping to find out from people who have made this how much priming sugar you carbed 5 gallons with and how long it took to carb with the high gravity.

I've never done a high gravity this will be my first. Thanks.

 

[glenn514]

arnobg...I've made it twice before, and the second time I had "bottle bombs" from too much priming sugar. I currently have my third batch in secondary, with the bourbon and oak chips already added.

Upon checking with Northern Brewer's "Priming Sugar Calculator," it tells me to use 3.19 ounces of table sugar, which is the sugar of choice here at Washington Street Brewery. That's almost TWO FULL OUNCES less than the normal 5 ounces included with kits.

So, from my perspective, DO NOT use five ounces of priming sugar! By all means, use closer to 3 ounces.

glenn514

 

[arnobg]

arnobg...I've made it twice before, and the second time I had "bottle bombs" from too much priming sugar. I currently have my third batch in secondary, with the bourbon and oak chips already added.

Upon checking with Northern Brewer's "Priming Sugar Calculator," it tells me to use 3.19 ounces of table sugar, which is the sugar of choice here at Washington Street Brewery. That's almost TWO FULL OUNCES less than the normal 5 ounces included with kits.

So, from my perspective, DO NOT use five ounces of priming sugar! By all means, use closer to 3 ounces.

glenn514

Thanks for the tip, I'll be using corn sugar. What CO2 level are you shooting for with that amount of table sugar?

If you don't mind me picking your brain since you've done this multiple times, what is your suggestion for the oak/bourbon amount? I don't want over powering oak flavor I just want a hint of it like it was actually in an oak barrel.

 

[glenn514]

arnobg...according to the Priming Sugar Calculator, I am aiming for 2.1 volumes of C02. The calculator specifies 3.5 ounces if you are using corn sugar.

And maybe if there is a real technical person out there that can link the Northern Brewer Priming Sugar Calculator to this thread? I have no clue.

I used 16 ounces of Jim Beam. You can taste the bourbon, but it doesn't overpower the porter flavors. I used only ONE OUNCE of medium oak chips. To my taste, that was perfect. Too much oak, and it seems like you are chewing on an oak branch! I want it to give the impression that it was aged in an oak barrel, as Jim Beam bourbon whiskey is aged.

And regarding those oak chips, I put them inside the muslin bag that Northern provides in their kits. I poured the bourbon and oak chips into the bag held in the opening of the secondary bottle. That way, I can just fish out the bag and discard it when I bottle.

glenn514

 

[arnobg]

Thanks, no need for the link I have it. I was just curious what volume you went for and how you liked it. Thanks.

 

[Requiemm]

So I just started a 1 gallon kit of this and got a starting gravity of 1.084. Seems a bit high, but this is only my second beer batch. Any thoughts from the masses?

 

[BlackDog-Brewery]

With all of the talk in the last few years about racking to a secondary being an unnecessary step (including John Palmer's recent change of opinion), I need some advice about whether or not I should transfer this bourbon barrel porter.

A little more info . . . .

- I used a hop sock which allowed me to pull out all of the pellet material that had expanded to many times it's original size in the BK

- I whirl pooled and allowed the trub to settle in the BK before slowly draining the wort to the fermenter

- After nearly 2 weeks the active fermentation has slowed down, and all I have at the bottom of the fermenter is about 3/4" of what appears to be mainly yeast

So even if I follow perfect sanitation procedures, do you think racking to a secondary is worth the risk, or is it simply a waste of time considering the small amount of particulate that is laying at the bottom of the fermenter, and the fact that (as far as clarity is concerned) this is a porter.

Any advise would be appreciated!

Cheers

 

[arnobg]

(EDIT: sorry, I responded to a search result that was in the extract forum rather than all grain)

Question . . .

With all of the talk in the last few years about racking to a secondary being an unnecessary step (including John Palmer's recent change of opinion), I need some advice about whether or not I should transfer this bourbon barrel porter.

A little more info . . . .

- I used a hop sock which allowed me to pull out all of the pellet material that had expanded to many times it's original size in the BK

- I whirl pooled and allowed the trub to settle in the BK before slowly draining the wort to the fermenter

- After nearly 2 weeks the active fermentation has slowed down, and all I have at the bottom of the fermenter is about 3/4" of what appears to be mainly yeast

So even if I follow perfect sanitation procedures, do you think racking to a secondary is worth the risk, or is it simply a waste of time considering the small amount of particulate that is laying at the bottom of the fermenter, and the fact that (as far as clarity is concerned) this is a porter.

Any advise would be appreciated!

Cheers

I don't really necessarily have advice however, I brewed this on Halloween and will share my experience. I racked it to secondary after about 15 days in primary and had a pretty solid yeast cake in my primary. By the end of my 28 day secondary aging there was a yeast cake the same size if not larger in that fermentor too. In terms of clarity it won't be noticeable, this porter is DARK. you can't even barely see into it even under a focused light.

What are your plans for oak/bourbon aging did you do that in the primary? Are you looking to harvest the yeast?

 

[BlackDog-Brewery]

What are your plans for oak/bourbon aging did you do that in the primary? Are you looking to harvest the yeast?

Hi Arnobg,

I was planning on adding the oak & bourbon after the primary fermentation calmed down (which is right about now) as per the instructions.

No plans on saving the yeast.

I'm just looking to see if anyone else skipped the secondary (which seems to be very common these days) and aged the oak and bourbon right in the primary.

Cheers

 

[arnobg]

Hi Arnobg,

I was planning on adding the oak & bourbon after the primary fermentation calmed down (which is right about now) as per the instructions.

No plans on saving the yeast.

I'm just looking to see if anyone else skipped the secondary (which seems to be very common these days) and aged the oak and bourbon right in the primary.

Cheers

Don't see any issues with that as long as you don't leave it in there for another month, but let's see if some more people chime in. I personally soaked my oak (only used 1 of the 2 oz it came with ) and 2 split vanilla beans in 12 oz. of bourbon for 1 month, then dumped that into my secondary when i racked it and let it age for 28 days. Use caution with the oak and taste weekly as it can get pretty strong and it is a personal taste. I found the 12 oz. of bourbon to be perfect.

Cracked my first bottle last night after about 1 month in the bottle. Was carbed pretty good and had awesome flavor but it still has some aging to do. I'm hoping it will be really amazing in about 3-4 months from what I've read in this thread.

 

[hopsandhops]

Hi Arnobg,

I was planning on adding the oak & bourbon after the primary fermentation calmed down (which is right about now) as per the instructions.

No plans on saving the yeast.

I'm just looking to see if anyone else skipped the secondary (which seems to be very common these days) and aged the oak and bourbon right in the primary.

Cheers

I did a month-long primary and then racked to a keg to oak and age. My thoughts were that I didn't want "waste" the oak and bourbon by using them in the primary that would have some of the volume discarded (trub, the last of the liquid, etc). I was also concerned about leaving the beer on the cake for months.

I followed a similar process as @arnobg by soaking the cubes (I used the full 2 oz) in 16 oz of bourbon for 4-6 weeks and then dumping that whole volume into the keg. I bagged the cubes and let them hang for another 6 weeks before pulling them. I then aged the keg for a month or two before tapping. It came out excellent. I wanted noticeable oak and bourbon, without being overpowering, and that's how it came out; smooth, luscious and vanilla.

One thing I did differently was soaking the cubes in a cheaper bourbon for a few weeks and shaking them to dislodge bits of char and then I discarded that bourbon. It smelled awful. I then added fresh Makers and soaked for 4-6 weeks before dumping into the keg

 

[glenn514]

My daughter and her husband and I each had one with some fantastic steak on Sunday evening. While this current batch needs to age a bit longer, it is already extremely tasty! And my son-in-law could not get over how well the beer paired with the steak! By March 2016, this batch will be almost overwhelming!

glenn514

 

[arnobg]

My daughter and her husband and I each had one with some fantastic steak on Sunday evening. While this current batch needs to age a bit longer, it is already extremely tasty! And my son-in-law could not get over how well the beer paired with the steak! By March 2016, this batch will be almost overwhelming!

glenn514

How long has yours been aging?