Aged a whiskey barrel not the beer

[ClaudiusB]

My home brewing buddy Albert handed me a new whiskey barrel and told me "Do something with it", I did.
I didn't like the new look and decided the barrel needed some character and forced aged the barrel before I fill it.
To keep Albert from killing me I decided to put his and the beer name on it.
The aging took three days to get it to the correct darkness and old used look.
I soaked the barrel for 24 hours in hot water to loosen the clear coat and sandpaper for removal.

The aging was done with common household items, vinegar, steel wool and black tea.

The first picture after soaking for 24 hours in hot water.

The other pictures show the darkening process.

 

[ClaudiusB]

Showing the darkening process and final product.

 

[Texas_Brew]

Wow thats cool lookin. Are you storing any booze inside it?

 

[ClaudiusB]

Wow thats cool lookin. Are you storing any booze inside it?

The barrel is currently filled with Scotch and after a few month I put the Doppelbock. I hope to get just the right balanced whiskey beer flavor.
This a first for me.
I tried a few Bourbon aged beers and they tasted like pure Bourbon, not my style.


Cheers,
ClaudiusB