13 replies to this topic

[wengared]

Stopped by a local outlet today and they have 60 gal oak barrels for $40.00 each, they last contained vanilla and sassafras extract, now there's no labels on the barrels to verify what was in them. any opinions as to wether these could be used?

[earthtone]

In my opinion, you would be better off finding a freshly dumped whiskey barrel.

Find me a full one and I'll "freshly dump" it for you

[Deerslyr]

Haha, im not telling where my secret source is

Is that the same place McDonald's get's their "secret sauce" for the Big Mac??? Oh wait... that's just Thousand Island Dressing...Apart from not know what was in it beforehand, if the barrell contained vanilla, seems like it might be prime for a Vanilla Porter. Do a batch and if it's too strong, brew another and blend to tone it down. That's a lot of Vanilla Porter, but hey... just and idea.I'm assuming that with a 60 gallon barrell, you guys would do this as a group brew?

[wengared]

I'll probably have to pass on them, there's no way i could brew that much beer at one time and there's no one around that homebrews.

[Deerslyr]

I'll probably have to pass on them, there's no way i could brew that much beer at one time and there's no one around that homebrews.

Yeah, that would be three ten gallon batches a day for two days just to fill er up. Of course that's based on how long I think it would take me... A lot of work!

[dadzcool]

where are these barrels located?...i will be seeing drewslue tomorrow when we tap our scottish ale that has been aging in a 23 year old pappy van winkle barrel for the last year...

[siouxbrewer]

Other considerations is barrel integrity. Doesn't take long at all for a empty barrel to get unwanted bacteria and leaky staves which can be tough if not impossible to seal back up.

I have a partially empty 55g Bulleit barrel that has sat for over a year for this very reason. It belonged to a brewery in KC, but they abandoned it after what they thought was a lactic infection. About a third of the beer still remains I acquired it through a friend (who brews with the big boys now) with the intentions of making it a sour barrel for lambics and other weird creations... I've reconsidered the idea as of late - too much precious wort that could be wasted on oaky/sour weirdness. It may end up in someone's smoker some day, who knows...

[Uisgue]

First, I think that a barrel that had contained pure extract (either vanilla or sassafras) would be WAY too saturated to use for aging beer.Second, I would be concerned about how long it may have been sitting empty, via-a-vis infections or leaks.However, I think that it might be quite valuable chopped into pieces to be used as flavored oak chip additions while conditioning.(I'll take some!)

[stellarbrew]

Forgive me if this is a stupid question/idea....strangely enough, I've been drinking beer in fair amounts, which will cause me to ask questions I might normally keep to myself. Here's my thought: What if you suspended the barrel up-side-down over a wood fire, to cause the inside of the barrel to be toasted or charred a bit? I would think the the inside surface of the wood would get to a high enough temperature at a sufficient depth into the wood staves to kill any infection it may be harboring, and at the same time, burn off any residual vanilla soaked into the wood. The toasted wood should then lend the same kind of quality given to a chardonnay or bourbon aged in an oak barrel.*drunk rant over*

Edited by stellarbrew, 25 April 2009 - 07:41 PM.

[wengared]

where are these barrels located?...i will be seeing drewslue tomorrow when we tap our scottish ale that has been aging in a 23 year old pappy van winkle barrel for the last year...

Hoods in Festus.