Barrel aging and the future.

Big beers like barley wines, Imp stouts and quads can stand up to barrel aging and benefit to the aging process. I think we will see more variety of barrel aging like brandy, rye, wine, rum etc... aged beers. But these are beer geek type beers that will cost $10- $30 dollars for a 750ml bottle so the audience will be limited.

 

I saw that J Wakefield was aging a Berliner in Sherry Vinegar Barrels. That type of thinking is going to be what will push the envelope of barrel aging to the next level. No idea if it is good or not, but just the concept sounds great to me.
But I love Kombucha, which is sour/vinegary in the first place.

I personally don't care for most wine barrel beers I've tried. But have loved most every brandy and rum beer, even the less well put together ones have been enjoyable.

Hoping CCB releases Sherry Zhukov soon.

 

It is not going to be a standard at all. Barrel aging is a fringe function of a brewery (well appreciated by most) and it will never be a primary business model.

 

ummm.... The Bruery

 

Well, as widely distributed as they are it is a wonder they can control their quality as well as they do. But hey, infections are a neccesary evil when on the cutting edge no?
No.

 

Yea, i WAS a member last year.

 

Hi hater!

 

what the fuck do either of these comments mean?
I'm just saying if you're trotting out Bruery as a flawless business model for barrel aging and the distribution thereof, you really are stretching the loyalty aspect of it.

 

We will definitely see more barrel-aging, but like @jmw points out, it likely will remain a small-batch thing for breweries.

Of course, if companies like Glenlivet can survive with almost all of their product aging in barrels for numerous years, I suppose it's not out of the question that a brewery could find a way to make barrel-aged beers their foundation. Single-malt scotch requires sometimes 1,000% more time in the barrel than beer (Karbach in Houston gets good quality out of six months, e.g.).

It would be a huge risk. Plus, it's not necessary. Great scotch requires all that time in the barrel. Great beer does not.

 

I think the dimensionality of barrel aging will expand, but the cost of this practice will prevent it from ever dominating the entire craft market.

 

I don't see where anyone here said The Bruery has a "flawless business model for barrel aging" but it is certainly their primary business model. Someone gives an example of a brewery that proved your theory wrong, and you start responding with ridiculous comments that have no merit or context.

 

Foudres ARE THE FUTURE.

Lots of breweries are picking them up for larger scale barrel-aging. Where is IT going? Well, breweries not only want to please every type of customer but they also enjoy most styles, themselves and by now, they know they can charge AT LEAST $20 bottle and it will eventually sell out.

Do the math bub, $20 x 5,000 bottles = CHA CHING

Infected White Chocolate was a hit, it was a great take on a bourbon-barrel aged sour, even for a mess-up.

 

Well, scotch has to be in the barrels in Scotland for at least 3 years, so depending on how long the beer stays in the barrel it could be 300%, 600% in the case of Karbach

 

Right. I believe that's why I said "sometimes 1,000% more." In fact, it can be much much more than that. My 12-year Balvenie remains in the barrel 2,400% of the time bourbon barrel-aged Hellfighter does.

The point is that companies who make their bottom line on single-malt scotch sales do so with their product aging for multiple years in barrels, which means it's at least theoretically possible for a company to exist solely on barrel-aged products. Again, it would be a risk for a brewery for several reasons, not the least of which would be an infection or imperfection getting into the aging beer and forcing a brewery to try to sell a bad batch or toss it out.

This does present a good research project. How often do distilleries have to toss a "bad batch" of whiskey vs. how often do breweries have to toss a "bad batch" of beer? Surely even a company as established as Glenlivet runs into a bad barrel or a bad batch. Or does it?

I have no idea but I'm curious ...

 

Oddly enough, I had an Abyss last night. Their hype is more Oregon-ish and it trickles down, like Boulevard to Kansas City. It's a solid Imperial Stout but very red winey, you can taste it on the finish; no bourbon. It was almost identical to Marshal Zhukov Cabernet Barrel, which I hope is not our El Cat bottle, as well. I don't think it's been too bad for them, the bottles may sit on the shelf, but they have already been sold once. They will all eventually be bought and drank. Dust on barrel-aged bottles with wax look good. It feels like you've found a niche; a secret spot. I get stragglers all the time in my shop that either know something or know what looks good. I've heard good things about Black Butte Anniversary, too. I had one that I picked up in Colorado in 2014 BUT I traded it away. I believe Deschuttes is still trying their best, winging it a bit. The Abyss hits distribution, I dont believe White Chocolate does? Isn't that a members only kind of gig? That's the true shelf issue; exclusivity. Hype.

To anyone else that is a connoisseur for imperial, barrel-aged beers :

I would not bunch them with The Bruery, in following or consistency.

In The Bruery's case, it is going to be hard to fall off. They transcended the nation, in distribution, where ABV allows and in regard; they're like one of the kings of craft. They put out non-stop 750ml's still, to this day, nothing else, past all the controversy and legality elsewhere AND, in most cases, they're barrel-aged or come in that version. The label has been embedded to every bottle shop and craft beer bar with a guy that knows one or two things. They are some bad dudes in Placentia and they know what they're doing.
Mocha Wednesday is a perfect recipe and Sucre, Bois, all it's little Cognac, Rum and wood barrel variants cannot be touched in that category. Highly accessible and highly regarded. Worth the $20 or $30 bucks, with no regrets. If you don't think so, by yourself, drink one cold to warm. If that doesn't work, the style is not for you. Send it to me.

 

According to the stats reprinted in the BI's Brewers Almanac the wine market in the US (both foreign and domestic) for 2011 was 742,450,000 gallons. The beer market was 203,314,136 barrels, equal to over 6.3 billion gallons.

In the US, the beer market is shrinking, having peaked in 2008 at 213 million barrels.

 

Do you know how the wine and beer markets compare $ wise?