Breweries naming which bourbon brand they source for barrel aging

All about the base beer IMHO.

 

It doesn't really matter to me.

Personaly I'd rather see less BBA beers. But that's just because I'm crazy.

In 2018 we'll have BBA Bud Light at this rate .

 

Just marketing so they can sell their beer for more if they use barrels from a highly regarded bourbon, IMO.

I don't think it makes any noticeable difference.

 

Part of the problem is that frequently can't tell the quality of the spirt that rested in the barrel just by knowing what distillery it came from. A "Jim Beam" barrel could have held spirt that ended up in regular old white label, or it could have been a stellar single-barrel bottling of Knob Creek. They're both Beam. There's a lot more to what makes a good barrel or a bad barrel than the name of the distillery that's stamped on it.

(also, not entirely on topic, but my favorite is when you see a beer that claims to be aged in barrels from a distillery that doesn't actually exist. Aged in Bulliet barrels! Ok, well, despite what Diagio would like you to think, Bulleit has never distilled or aged a drop of whiskey...)

 

There is a thing called a Trademark.

 

It really would mean nothing to me. What I notice in BBA brews is the oakyness of the barrel, I get the whiskey, bourbon, rum... notes, but to tell which one specifically to me, I could give a rat's ass. I'll buy the real thing.

Cheers!

 

This is two fold. A marginal beer aged in a quality barrel will still be a marginal beer. An exceptional beer aged in a marginal or garbage Bourbon or Whiskey barrel may turn out OK, but who would want to risk their product that way?

My thoughts are that brewers with a reputation for producing the best beer they are capable of would place well crafted stand alone beers in Whiskey and bourbon barrels of respected distilleries; it just makes good sense.

Agreements can be made with the distilleries, and if the brewery doesn't want to do that, they can just state the beer is Bourbon or Whiskey barrel aged without divulging the source. Frankly, if the finished product is exceptional, it will be noticed by the consumer.

 

There is absolutely no way you can tell what brand of whiskey came out of the barrel that housed your beer. Often it is also arbitrary as distilleries own multiple brands (Jim Beam could also be knob creek, heaven hill could be Evan williams, Henry mckenna, fighting ****, Parker's heritage, ect).

 

Marketing Marketing Marketing..that's all it comes down to..slap an "Aged in Pappy Van Winkle" or "Elijah Craig" on it...and BAM!!! Instantly price tad is $29.99+

 

In my neck of the woods both Red Rocks and Squatters have made BB doppelbocks using High West whiskey barrels, a local distillery in Park City. I think it's cool to know and when it's local brewers and local distillers teaming up I'm all for it. They proudly tout what barrels they're using. Gives it a local feel.

 

what would beer nerds do with their pappyboners if barrel sources weren't identified?

 

I don't know how big of a difference it would make, but I'd assume there would be some minor differences between different types of mash bills that it might be worth knowing.

 

The only time I've seen a noticeable difference is with Jack Daniels barrels. Still, it's nice to know what type of barrel just because, if it actually does make a difference, big or small, I'd like to gain the ability to pick them out with enough practice. I am annoyed that the new BA Gulden Draak just says "whisky barrels." It could be Scotch whiskey for all I know.

 

Exactly!

Cheers!

 

Before you know it, we will have beers in BIB.

Cheers!

 

The key is the spelling I think. Whisky is Scotch. Whiskey is Bourbon or other whiskies in some combination. (Assuming the brewers know that distinction. )

Edit: Looking at a web page description

http://www.globalbeer.com/belgian-beer/gulden-draak-brewmaster-reserve

it is "Whiskey" and comments that the Brewmaster was influenced by multiple visits to the US, etc. So I'd figure it's not Scotch Whisky.

 

Bourbon is blended whiskey, I believe...

And most brewers know the distinction between Blended Bourbon and Straight Whiskey. If they don't, they should.

 

All Bourbon is whiskey, but not all whiskey is bourbon.

Cheers!