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==Using Barrels for fermentation and/or aging==
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'''How long should you wait to fill a new barrel?''' There are a few factors to consider here when deciding on how long to keep a barrel empty when first receiving it. For wine barrels, mold can develop inside if they are not cleaned out. Spirit barrels have less of a problem with mold due to the high ABV of the spirits. Another problem is barrels drying out. Many barrels are dry when they are received, and in that case, they need to be swelled before use (see [[Barrel#Swelling_barrels|Swelling Barrels]]). Spirit barrels might remain swelled from the spirits inside if the outside environment is humid enough, or if the brewer is occasionally spraying the barrels with water to keep them swollen. Storing them for too long (generally, more than a month is considered "too long" by brewers) might make the barrels dry out, and then when rehydrating them some of the spirit/wine characters will be lost during the hydration process. Filling the barrels as soon as possible is therefore preferred for preserving the spirit/wine character, but if the barrel dries out then they can often be swollen again successfully <ref>Various MTF Members. MTF thread about how long to wait to fill a new spirit barrel. 11/16/2017.]</ref>.
'''Should you top off or not?''' Yes (Tilqiun, Rare Barrel) No (Rare Barrel<ref name='Jester King on the Sour Hour, pt.2'>[http://www.thebrewingnetwork.com/the-sour-hour-episode-15/ Jester King on the Sour Hour part 2]</ref>(~7 minutes in), Jester King<ref name='Jester King on the Sour Hour, pt.2'/>(~7 minutes in), Crooked Stave, The Bruery)
'''How long should you leave a beer in a barrel?''' The aging time will depend on what sort of beer you are making, what your desired outcomes are, and the characteristics your barrel gives. Belgian lambic is aged in barrels upwards of 4 years with no ill effects. Other beers can go through a barrel primary fermentation or very short aging and be out of the barrel in weeks to months. The longer you age a beer in a barrel, the more barrel character you will extract (in terms of both flavor and tannin structure). This is probably of secondary importance to how much the barrel has been used/how neutral it is, so keep your individual barrel characteristics in mind when determining aging time. Generally, producers of mixed fermentation beers do not report noticing problems from autolysis in prolonged aging on yeast sediment <ref name='Jester King on the Sour Hour, pt.2'/>(~9 minutes in).
Andy Parker from Avery Brewing Co., in discussing non-sour beer in barrels, says that they get a complete extraction of flavor from barrels within 2 months. After four months, effects from oxidation can be detected, and after twelve months the more porous barrels display heavier effects from oxidation. Parker recommends removing the beer from a barrel based on the effects of the oxidation of individual barrels (in sour beer, this could have an affect on the perception of acetic acid and ethyl acetate, as well as other oxidative characteristics such as sherry notes, depending on the style of the beer) <ref>[http://www.homebrewersassociation.org/how-to-brew/5-tips-barrel-aging-beers-avery-brewing-co/ "5 Tips on Barrel Aging from Avery Brewing Co." Andy Parker on the AHA website. Retrieved 05/10/2016.]</ref>. Sour beer generally takes longer to mature in barrels due to the microbial activity, however this advice might still apply to sour beers in certain barrels that are experiencing too much or very fast oxidation due to being more porous than other barrels.
'''Should you clean your barrel after every use?''' Jester King reports preferring barrels that get a bit more yeast in them (when using barrels as secondary vessels) and they may use barrels for 2-3 subsequent beers before rinsing out the trub <ref name='Jester King on the Sour Hour, pt.2'/>(~9 minutes in, ~16 minutes in).