New to barrel aging

[vp1839]

So I just acquired a 5 gallon whiskey/bourbon barrel that’s 1/4 filled with said liquor.

Plan: This summer I want to make a stout. Thinking mocha coffee. I’m still doing kits since I don’t have the equipment for all grain. I know to add the beer to the barrel after primary fermentation, but when would I add the cocoa nibs and coffee? I want to barrel age it for 2-3 weeks then have an Imperial Russian Stout ready to be added for the next 4-5 months.

Questions:
1. When would I add the cocoa nibs and coffee beans for the stout for the first beer in?
2. The bung it comes with is a plastic capped wooden one, would I continue to use this or switch to an airlock?
3. Could I add the whiskey/bourbon back to the barrel (I know it will throw the flavor off) to preserve the barrel?

 

[RPh_Guy]

1. Adding them to the barrel makes the most sense in my opinion.
2. I recommend using a rubber stopper (not silicone) and airlock.
3. Preserve the barrel with a solution of 0.15-0.30g/L K-meta and 1g/L citric acid if it's going to sit empty.

4-5 months might be too long. Taste it periodically to make sure there's not too much oak flavor.... You may need to top it up periodically as well.

 

[vp1839]

1. Adding them to the barrel makes the most sense in my opinion.
2. I recommend using a rubber stopper (not silicone) and airlock.
3. Preserve the barrel with a solution of 0.15-0.30g/L K-meta and 1g/L citric acid if it's going to sit empty.

4-5 months might be too long. Taste it periodically to make sure there's not too much oak flavor.... You may need to top it up periodically as well.

I only say that long because I am in school and plan on having it sit for the semester, but can plan to have it sit the least amount of time.

 

[madscientist451]

Pull a sample after a week in the barrel and taste it, when you get enough oak, siphon to a keg and add the coffee bean and cocoa in a bag or metal cylinder that's designed for that.
A new (used once for whiskey) five gallon barrel will provide oak character very quickly. If you over-oak your beer, you'll have to brew another batch to blend with and bring the oak character down.
I'm surprised that its "1/4 full" of liquor, did you dump it out and measure the contents?

 

[vp1839]

Pull a sample after a week in the barrel and taste it, when you get enough oak, siphon to a keg and add the coffee bean and cocoa in a bag or metal cylinder that's designed for that.
A new (used once for whiskey) five gallon barrel will provide oak character very quickly. If you over-oak your beer, you'll have to brew another batch to blend with and bring the oak character down.
I'm surprised that its "1/4 full" of liquor, did you dump it out and measure the contents?

I still bottle my beer, sadly. And I turned the barrel until it almost poured out of the bung hole and drew the imaginary line across to guesstimate the amount.

 

[bracconiere]

i was just thinking about a oak aged stout/porter...fortified..be sure to report back with tasting notes! i was just thinking of using JD chips though, an actual barrel would be cool! can i/we get a pic?

 

[cactusgarrett]

So I just acquired a 5 gallon whiskey/bourbon barrel that’s 1/4 filled with said liquor.

Plan: This summer I want to make a stout. Thinking mocha coffee. I’m still doing kits since I don’t have the equipment for all grain. I know to add the beer to the barrel after primary fermentation, but when would I add the cocoa nibs and coffee? I want to barrel age it for 2-3 weeks then have an Imperial Russian Stout ready to be added for the next 4-5 months.

Questions:
1. When would I add the cocoa nibs and coffee beans for the stout for the first beer in?
2. The bung it comes with is a plastic capped wooden one, would I continue to use this or switch to an airlock?
3. Could I add the whiskey/bourbon back to the barrel (I know it will throw the flavor off) to preserve the barrel?

Make sure the barrel doesn't actually leak - if it's been sitting 1/4 full, the top staves could be dry and therefore leak. Roll the barrel with the whiskey still in it to make sure it holds liquid all around.

1. Add the nibs and coffee after your oak flavor profile has been hit. In order of shortest to longest necessary contact time, it goes: coffee (2-3 days), nibs (7 days), oak (weeks, depending on "strength" of oak an barrel newness). To account for all this, you'd have to either put things into the barrel working backwards from your package date, or transfer it out of the barrel to another vessel for aging the coffee and nibs. Madscientist has a good plan in transferring to a keg and adding that stuff via a bag that can be pulled once desired taste profile is hit.

2. A drilled stopper and airlock are your friend. LONG term aging you could continue to rock the airlock, but it's a pain to keep checking to make sure it's full. You could hard bung it when you KNOW you're done with gravity drops and pressure won't build.

3. Adding a liquor when storing empty is my go-to. It serves to recharge whatever flavor you're looking to impart into the wood, keeping the wood hydrated, and preventing growth. You could do as RPh suggested and use a citric acid/sulfur solution for long term storage (think beyond 3 months), but I myself am highly averse to adding anything sulfur based to barrels, as it's often a huge pain to rid the wood of those flavors. For a 5gal barrel, you could add a handle (1.75L) of liquor and rotate it every few days.

 

[vp1839]

i was just thinking about a oak aged stout/porter...fortified..be sure to report back with tasting notes! i was just thinking of using JD chips though, an actual barrel would be cool! can i/we get a pic?

 

[bracconiere]

View attachment 659968

5 gallons? looks like the size of my 13 gallon fermenter.....

 

[vp1839]

5 gallons? looks like the size of my 13 gallon fermenter.....

Just the angle. It’s the same size as my 5 gallon carboy