Barrel Aging and Brands: Does it Matter?

I totally agree, and I would take it a step further and venture to say that there isn't much discernible difference between bourbon and rye barrels.

 

I think it matters less than people think for sure, but one of the best (but not cheapest) ways to test it is with Eclipse.

 

The Eclipse variants should provide the science experiment you're looking for, but it's a pricey horizontal.

 

I think the main thing is the difference in receipes and how long each is in the barrel for. Sure they all start out as oak barrels or whatever, I think the biggest thing what bourbon, whiskey, liquor was aged in those barrels before beer use.

 

You couldn't be more incorrect. I know I am going to miss a lot of points here, but lets start with the fact that bourbon from different manufacturers are made differently. So the actual bourbon that has sat in the barrels differs from each manufacturer. This will create a different flavor profile depending on the bourbon barrel that is used. Another factor is how long the bourbon sat in the barrel. Would you rather have a BA beer from barrels that had bourbon in them for 10 years, or 23 as an example. Then there is even a consideration of where the barrel sat in the storage warehouse during its course of maturation. I'm sure others will add to this list.

 

As a bourbon lover, I couldn't personally describe the whisky notes in and of itself when masked by a stout. I can taste the effect whisky has on it, but if you were to side by side two stouts and make me identify the bourbon? Not with my palate! Maybe a trained and certified whisky rater guy or gal could though...maybe.....

Perhaps a bourbon that was ages longer would leave behind barrels that imparted more vanilla and tannins (or at least the mouthfeel would benefit from tannins) as opposed to an inferior whisky that left behind more of a rubbing alcohol taste.

 

I'm not an expert in the slightest, but my feeling is the importance is not as much in the specific spirit in the barrel, but the age of the barrels themselves.

 

Just a guess on my part, but I suspect that the condition of the barrel itself plays a much larger role than the quality of the spirit it used to contain. I imagine that a freshly emptied Jim Beam barrel would result in a better barrel aged beer than a dried out Maker's Mark barrel.

Purely speculative on my part. I would love for some brewers with experience using various barrels (brands and age of barrel) to chime in and answer questions like these.

edit: ooops. Guy above made my point before me.

 

If they use a quality barrel I don't think the differences will be extremely noticeable, however I can tell you that I have tried beers aged in really cheap whiskey barrels and you can definitely tell the difference.

 

I love how people can read something in a way that made the post sound "snappy". I read his answer to be friendly and honest. Not Snappy at all. And I agree with him by the way. Heaven Hills has a distinct aroma that I can sometimes pick out in barrel aged stouts. I think there are subtle differences in the flavors when beers are aged in different barrels

 

Bourbons made by each manufacturer are actually not that different. Some use different grain mixes, but the law specifically states that it must be at least 51% corn and aged in charred new oak barrels. The spirit itself prior to aging does not differ appreciably between manufacturers. The difference in flavor profiles is almost entirely a function of aging conditions and duration, and any spirit manufacturer will tell you that what sets apart, say, Pappy barrels from others is their location in the warehouse. The spirit itself is no different from that used in any number of other bourbons produced by Buffalo Trace.

As for whether you'd rather have a BA beer from barrels used for 10 or 23 years - I don't know. 23 years sounds better, but is it? I think that greatly depends on what I want the beer to taste like and what base beer I'm barrel-aging. For example, the difference between Pappy 15 and Pappy 23 are more in the mouthfeel and texture, than in the actual flavor. The Pappy 15 tends to be more aggressive, where the 23 is mellower, less boozy, and a lot smoother. That doesn't automatically make Pappy 23 a superior spirit to age beer with.

A bourbon with a distinctive flavor will lend that flavor to the beer. Spicy rye notes were very noticeable in BC Cherry Rye (though sadly missing from Backyard), much to the benefit of the final product. Others have said that Pappy does indeed make a noticeable difference in the final product, by lending its distinctive flavor to the beer. So while I think the brand and type can certainly make a difference in the final product, I don't think it necessarily follows that an older or more premium brand of spirit will necessarily make a better beer.

As with anything, it comes down to the brewmaster's skill in making a beer to match the barrels he or she has to work, as well as giving proper care and attention to aging, and aging for an appropriate amount of time (again accounting for the characteristics of the base beer and spirit barrels) which will determine how good the final product is. There's a reason Firestone Walker consistently puts out world-class barrel-aged beers, and so many other breweries muck it up, and it has nothing to do with getting better or worse barrels.

 

Probably not.

 

I doubt different brands makes a ton of difference, though I've never done a scientific comparison. However, there is definitely a difference between rye and regular corn whiskey. As long as you're talking a whiskey with a huge percent of rye grain--for example Templeton Rye.

Source: I recently got to try the ride barrel Sucre next to the regular Bourbon barrel version. I've also had the Rittenhouse Rye variant of Eclipse and the 4 Roses.

 

We hosted an Eclipse tasting in Denver a few years ago with literally every variant that was available at the time (early 2012). They definitely tasted discernibly different, but opinions varied a bit on which ones were better.

I've often heard that the preferred barrel for many brewers is Heaven Hill...which isn't exactly a high end bourbon. The explanation I got once was because the off notes don't really translate over and that the sweetness does seem to carry over and give the beer more of the character that you expect. No clue if it's true, but it at least made sense when I was being told that.

 

Actually I was just at The Bruery and was able to try Sucre on Rye and on Bourbon. Tremendous difference...in fact, so much so that several people disliked one or the other when tried side by side. That being said, I've never been able to discern which bourbon was used to age a beer, although one can definitely tell a difference in the Eclipse beers when tasted side by side.