Oak Spirals, cubes and barrel aging...

[bbohanon]

Whats everyone experience with using any/all of the above?

I have a plan to whip up a really nice russian imperial stout and even a choc milk stout for the colder months and I would like to get a nice light bourbon/oak/vanilla infusion taste profile into them but not break the bank doing it.

I have read that you can really only use a spent bourbon barrel once for aging a non-sour beer batch before it becomes a sour beer batch barrel and then thats really only for 2-3 more batches then its toast for beer aging at all without a re-char of some sort.
Thoughts or suggestions as I have never used the spirals so I am not sure what they give you over the cubes (which I have used in very small amounts with some success).
Thanks!

 

[WI_Wino]

I don't buy that a barrel can only be used for a clean beer once and then it's "soured". If your sanitation is bad and it gets infected, then sure. But winemakers use barrels for multiple batches w/ no issues. I have to think folks like Founders and Goose Island with large clean beer barrel programs use their barrels more than once.

The oak character will definitely subside as the number of batches you run through it increases. Home winemakers will try to mitigate this by added toasted oak cubes for oak flavoring. The barrel still contributes the micro-oxidation and concentration effects though.

 

[bbohanon]

I don't buy that a barrel can only be used for a clean beer once and then it's "soured". If your sanitation is bad and it gets infected, then sure. But winemakers use barrels for multiple batches w/ no issues. I have to think folks like Founders and Goose Island with large clean beer barrel programs use their barrels more than once.

The oak character will definitely subside as the number of batches you run through it increases. Home winemakers will try to mitigate this by added toasted oak cubes for oak flavoring. The barrel still contributes the micro-oxidation and concentration effects though.

If this is right, I would be more willing to put out $135 or more to get a spent 5 gallon barrel for this...Any idea on how they might be storing the barrels to keep it sanitized between uses?

 

[WI_Wino]

Keeping beer in it all the time is the best way. That's what wine makers do. If you can't do that, then a solution of citric acid and metabisulfite will keep any nasties from growing. I don't know the amounts you need for each chemical offhand though to get to the proper concentration.

 

[Daynada]

I just planned on taking my oak chips out of the secondary and into another mason jar appropriately filled with the next liquor style (Cognac in my case). Wouldn't this maintain sanitation?

 

[Xpertskir]

You can get a full size used barrel for 135 bucks.

The small barrels are a rip off. Even worse the service area to beer makes them terrible from both an oxygen exchange and oak surface area to beer volume standpoint.

Get some friends and a bigger barrel and you can use it as many times as you like for clean and/or sour beers with diminishing oak returns. Depending on how used it was when you purchased it you should get at least 2 if not 3 runs where you have oak flavor contribution.

 

[bbohanon]

You can get a full size used barrel for 135 bucks.

The small barrels are a rip off. Even worse the service area to beer makes them terrible from both an oxygen exchange and oak surface area to beer volume standpoint.

Get some friends and a bigger barrel and you can use it as many times as you like for clean and/or sour beers with diminishing oak returns. Depending on how used it was when you purchased it you should get at least 2 if not 3 runs where you have oak flavor contribution.

When you say full, you do mean a 30 gallon barrel?
That's 3 back to back batches on my system to fill that bad boy up..not saying I ain't up for it, but it would be a brewing/fermenting marathon..
:fro:

 

[WI_Wino]

You typically don't ferment in the barrel but age/condition the beer in it. So you could brew three batches over three weekends and then fill the barrel when the last batch is ready.

 

[Cyclman]

I have had great results with spirals. I have a Bourbon Barrel Cherry Quad that I did a couple of years ago, now it's loaded with vanilla and spice, incredible.

I wanna get a 30G barrel, eventually souring it and using it as a solera.

I don't see how you can go wrong with spirals, though- way cheaper, too. A full barrel is 50G or so.

 

[Xpertskir]

When you say full, you do mean a 30 gallon barrel?
That's 3 back to back batches on my system to fill that bad boy up..not saying I ain't up for it, but it would be a brewing/fermenting marathon..
:fro:

Full size for wine is ~60
Bourbon and most whiskey is 53-55


At 30 gallons you will still be way better off, basically the bigger the barrel the better until you get to full size.

 

[bbohanon]

I have had great results with spirals. I have a Bourbon Barrel Cherry Quad that I did a couple of years ago, now it's loaded with vanilla and spice, incredible.

I wanna get a 30G barrel, eventually souring it and using it as a solera.

I don't see how you can go wrong with spirals, though- way cheaper, too. A full barrel is 50G or so.

Which spirals did you use by chance? I may attempt a few smaller batches with the spirals before making the jump with a barrel.

 

[Cyclman]

Which spirals did you use by chance? I may attempt a few smaller batches with the spirals before making the jump with a barrel.

I like the French med. toast. Plenty of flavor, but not too much.