Whiskey Barrels for Homebrewing!

Oak Barrels for Aging Homebrew!

Oak barrels can be used to used to age stouts and porters, age other beer styles, make sour beers and more.

New oak barrels can be had in sizes ranging from 1 liter all the way up to 1 barrel/53 gallons. As with most things 5 gallons seems to be a sweet spot for a lot of brewers. Larger barrels can be good for prolific homebrewers or group brews and smaller 1 to 5 liter sizes are great if you’re wanting to give barrel aging a try without a huge amount of expense or space.


Limited Time Deal on Aroma Sciences Extracts! (ends 2-4)

aroma sciences oak extract

Aroma Science’s internationally-patented Evaporative Extraction™ technology naturally captures complex aromatics from wine and whiskey barrels to create aroma profiles that are perfect copies of the original barrel source. Use to balance and boost oak aroma in beer, wine, spirits, ciders, seltzers, and traditional, reduced proofed, and nonalcoholic ready-to-drink cocktails.

Choose from American  Bourbon Barrel, French Brandy Barrel, American Oak Barrel, Caribbean Rum Barrel, Brazilian Cachaca Barrel and French Oak Barrel

Aroma Sciences Barrel Extracts


Limited Time Deal on Saint-Martin New French Oak Barrels

Saint-Martin New Oak Barrel (French) – 110L (29gal) – Medium Long toast

More Info

From the product description, check product page for current description, price and availability:

Do you have a world class wine that deserves a world class barrel? This is the best 30 Gallon French barrel we have used … let us tell you why!

It starts with the oak… these smaller barrels are made from the same premium-quality French Oak used to produce all of the world class Saint Martin barrels. Tight grain and high in phenolic extractives that add body and texture to your wine.

The toast… fire toasted to a unique Medium Long toast that is between a medium and medium plus toasting level. If we took a 30 gallon barrel and a 60 gallon barrel and toasted them to identical levels you would find that the 30 gallon barrel had more toast impact on your wine. It many cases the medium plus level in a 30 gallon barrel is too much for most wines. The unique Medium Long toast is a great solution. The toasting fire is kept at a lower intensity but the barrel actually stays on the fire longer than a medium plus toasted barrel would. This results in very rich flavors that will taste very similar to wine aged in a 60 gallon Medium Plus toasted barrel. Your fruit is respected and not stepped on and you impart great structure and rich toast flavors… ideal? Yes!

Francois Saint-Martin, third generation cooper, crafts Bordeaux style barrels for winemakers throughout the world. His emphasis has always been a profound respect of the fruit notes in his low-impact and elegant barrels. Francois Saint-Martin personally inspects the wood in the forests of Vosges and Allier. As a traditional Bordeaux cooper, Francois Saint-Martin likes to find the tightest grain possible and blend the forest origins to combine their qualities. The barrel exteriors have been sanded to a smooth finish.

Features

  • 24 month air-dried, 20mm thick split oak staves
  • Premium, blended Central France forest origins
  • Medium Long toast for lighter, longer barrel impact
  • Bung size approx. 1-10/16″
  • Includes solid silicone bung

 

For a limited time MoreWine has these 29 gallon barrels marked down 20% to $680.99. Shipping is calculated based on location.

Saint-Martin New Oak Barrel (French) – 110L (29gal) – Medium Long toast WE467


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Why Are Used 5 Gallon Barrels Hard to Find?

Since I started doing Homebrew Finds 5 gallon barrels have been a tough find. They would generally become available in batches and would usually sell out quickly. I believe the root of this availability issue is… most distilleries use larger barrels. It’s easier and probably cheaper to manager large barrels compared to smaller barrels.

In the past couple years this has become even more of an issue. I think this stems from distilleries using these smaller sizes less and less. There have been some times recently where I was aware of no in stock options.

More About Smaller Barrels:

Smaller barrels can also be dual purpose: You can age one (or more) batches of still spirits and at that point, the barrel becomes a used whiskey barrel that you can use for beers.

A past description from William’s Brewing re: their smaller barrels explains this well:

“When you distill a spirit, it invariably comes out clear as water. Put the clear spirit in contact with charred American Oak, and it turns amber and mellow over time with toasted wood vanilla-like richness. Want to speed up the aging process? Our new American Oak Barrels are charred on the inside for Whiskey, Bourbon, Tequilla, Rum, and Brandy aging. The large wood surface contact area per ounce compared with commercial 53 gallon barrels means this will age spirits much quicker than larger barrels. Handmade in Mexico following centuries old cooperage methods; the valve is wood and sealed with leather, and the top plug is wood and sealed with a wrap of leather. No plastic, glue, or rubber are used in construction.”



Label Peelers:

american oak barrels

As of this update, Label Peelers just announced the availability of new used barrels.

American Oak Barrel 5-Gallon

William’s Brewing:

William’s periodically has used barrels available. When they become available they usually sell out quickly.

MoreBeer:

I don’t recall ever seeing used barrels offered by MoreBeer. They’re a reliable source for brand new barrels.

Oak Barrels at MoreBeer

More Barrel Sources:

Tip: When looking at eBay and Amazon look for offerings that are specifically for aging beer and wine. Rain barrel and decorative options are also out there. In my opinion, you should disregard those as they may not be food safe or they may be beyond repair for use with beer or wine.  If a barrel leaks too much = it’s now a decoration.

Barrel Books, Tools and Supplies:

Finding Used Whiskey Barrels!

Used 5 gallon whiskey barrels are very popular for homebrewers.  Brewers use them to age stouts and porters, age other beer styles, make sour beers and more.

This is one case of a smaller item being more coveted than a larger one.  Most distilleries use larger 10 and 15 and… up – like 53 gallons sort of up.  As you can imagine, most homebrewers don’t want to find a place for a 15 or 53 gallon barrel in their home.  Also, most don’t have the ability to brew 53 gallons to keep one of these behemoths full.  Beyond being sought after for their reasonable size, there is also a supply issue.  As I’ve mentioned, this isn’t a standard size for commercial distilleries.  That means supply is relatively low on the 5 gallon size.

Some sources for used 5 gallon whiskey barrels:

These are sources and specific offerings we’ve seen in the past (some past graphics are below). I’m not suggesting that any of these are actually in stock, but these are some places to check if you’re in the market

Tip: When looking at eBay and Amazon look for offerings that are specifically for aging beer and wine. Rain barrel and decorative options are also out there. In my opinion, you should disregard those as they may not be food safe or they may be beyond repair for use with beer or wine.  If a barrel leaks too much = it’s now a decoration.

Other Wood Options:

Barrels can be expensive, hard to find and require a lot of space. Here are some options for adding wood to your beer without a barrel

  • Aroma Sciences Barrel Extracts – Aroma Science’s internationally-patented Evaporative Extraction™ technology naturally captures complex aromatics from wine and whiskey barrels to create aroma profiles that are perfect copies of the original barrel source. Use to balance and boost oak aroma in beer, wine, spirits, ciders, seltzers, and traditional, reduced proofed, and nonalcoholic ready-to-drink cocktails.
  • Search “homebrew oak chips” at Amazon
  • Oak Aging at SoCal Brewing
  • Oak Aging at William’s Brewing
  • Oak Infusion Spirals via William’s Brewing.  Multiple toast levels are available
  • MoreBeer doesn’t generally offer used barrels.  They have a good selection of new barrels, but they don’t seem to be big into used barrels.  One really cool offering they do have that is related to used barrels is… MoreBeer has worked closely with Russian River on their Russian River Kits including Pliny and Blind Pig.  These recipes aren’t clones in that they are directly from the brewery.  So much so, that their Consecration kits actually have chunks of real Consecration Barrels included with them.  From MoreBeer: “we actually include chunks of oak from actual Consecration barrels with each kit. Periodically we get a call from Vinnie that they are bottling Consecration and that we can come pick up some of the used barrels.”  Because of this, these kits can have some availability problems.  Really cool!  Extract and All Grain – via MoreBeer

Toasting Your Own Wood Chips!

roasting your own wood chips for homebrew

For Historical Reference – Graphics from past Barrel Offerings…

William’s Brewing:

homebrew used whiskey barrels

USED 5 GALLON OAK WHISKEY BARRELDrained 5 Gallon Reservoir Wheat Whiskey Barrel

Drained 5 Gallon Whiskey/Bourbon Barrel

rye whiskey barrel

Great Fermentations:

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WEST FORK "THE COLONEL" BOURBON BARREL

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used whisky barrels Fresh 5 Gallon American Oak Barrel Used 15 gallon Whiskey Barrel

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Make sure the components you use are compatible and rated for your intended application.  Contact manufacturer with questions about suitability or a specific application.  Always read and follow manufacturer directions. 2.27.18 tag:lnksfxd toppost:findingbarrels #tag:tpr