Bourbon Barrel Question

[callisbeers]

I bought a small 2 L barrel about 3-4 months ago. I had a large batch of brown ale so I took some and filled the barrel. About a month ago I tool a sample, it had a nice brown flavor as well as a good bourbon taste. I sampled it again today, and it tastes/smells like nail polish. Any thoughts on why?

 

[CadillacAndy]

You're most likely smelling ethyl acetate which is a byproduct of acetic acid producing bacteria, which means the barrel probably has a bacterial contamination. Was it freshly emptied when you got it? How long did it sit without bourbon or beer in it? Did you do anything to clean it before you put the beer in?

 

[callisbeers]

I followed the instructions that came with it about cleaning, if it sits for some time, etc. I noticed several weeks ago, a thick, brown tar that had started coming out where the spigot connect to the barrel. Tasted like concentrated bourbon. Tonight I noticed some mold on that spot. Should I just dump it? If so what should I do to clean it?

 

[CadillacAndy]

I followed the instructions that came with it about cleaning, if it sits for some time, etc. I noticed several weeks ago, a thick, brown tar that had started coming out where the spigot connect to the barrel. Tasted like concentrated bourbon. Tonight I noticed some mold on that spot. Should I just dump it? If so what should I do to clean it?

What were those instructions, and how long did it sit for? Did you have to rehydrate it prior to using?

 

[callisbeers]

New barrels - fill barrel with hot water, rotate it and empty until the color of the water is transparent. If not using for a period of time, fill 1/4 full of water.

I did this but I filled it 3/4 just to be on the safe side. It probably sat like this for 3-4 months.

I was surprised to see it leaking after the beer was in there for some time because there were no leak when it was originally filled with water and sat for a couple of days and no leak when the beer was in there for a couple of months.

 

[CadillacAndy]

So was this a previously used barrel or was it brand new?

How does the beer that wasn't in the barrel taste? If it's clean, then you most likely have a contamination in the barrel.

 

[callisbeers]

This was a new barrel. The other part of the batch was fine. As I mentioned, this was tasting normal about a month ago. Do you think the leak and the contamination are related? Why would it have started leaking after all this time?

 

[CadillacAndy]

Gotcha. I was confused because you said it had a nice bourbon taste in the original post.

I have a 60 gallon wine barrel that has had beer in it for over a year and it still gets a leak every once in a while. The leak probably didn't introduce the bacteria.

I think the bacteria that creates it usually requires oxygen to work, but I could be wrong with that one. You're getting a ton of oxygen diffusion in such a small barrel and since it was a new barrel, maybe there were so many strong oak/tannin/char character that it hid the solvent character. It's hard to say for sure.