What's your barrel preference for aged Stouts?

I think bourbon simply works the best for stouts, hands down. Not that other spirit barrels won't work, though. A lot of the other beer styles work great with other barrel types. Wine, tequila, and gin barrels compliment sours, saisons, and even lagers remarkably.

 

Rye > apple brandy > bourbon

 

Bourbon is very good and mixes well across the board. But some of my favorites have been stouts that spent at least some time in a wine barrel.

 

I never comment on these things honestly but bourbon is easily the most common and so I think of it as the best because I've had more of them, Tequila works great for strong ales, I haven't had a stout in one unfortunately. Sherry Cask is a good one, Rum, Brandy... I think theyre all a good option just depends on the specific beer.

 

I recently had Speedway aged in Tequila barrels and although good, doesn't stand a chance against the Bourbon Barrel aged version.

Also, this poll needs a redo. Rye should be stand alone. Rye Rasputin and Willettized Rye BA Coffee Stout are 5/5

 

Another Bourbon vote.

However, rum works well too. Maybe not so much for a Stout. BTW, I had a Gin barreled Blond Ale that was a very pleasant surprise.

 

I voted rum, but mostly have bourbon since not much RBA around. Tequila Abyss surprised me since I don't like tequila after barfing it through my nose in college. Really not a fan of wine BA alone, but can be good with one of the others.

 

When I read many posts here on BA or browse the cartoon-labeled beers at the liquor store, I imagine that many brewers and beer drinkers think, "Oh, if only peanut butter came in barrels".

 

Tequila Speedway has been on my wishlist for a while.

 

Bourbon, but more specifically, Rye.

 

Also, I guess this would fall under wine, but I think Port barrels are great as well

 

Rye's definitely up there with Bourbon but I also have come across a few really good Rum barrel stouts.

 

I'd buy it.

 

Brettanomyces barrels

 

Bourbon is what I could vote for but Rye really should be distinct- cellared some BA Old Rasputin, both Bourbon and Rye versions and Rye won the taste test for every person there.
Not saying others might decide different, but it served to illuminate just how different those can be.
Cheers!
BTW - ISO BA Old Rasputin XXIII - we’ve not seen it here in W Michigan.

 

I wish more breweries used rye barrels

 

JW Lee's Calvados was fantastic. Not quite the same but good enough for my basic tastes...

 

Toss in another vote for rye. I picked bourbon for this poll.

 

My preference is normally for Rum, but the quality of rum barrels is all over the place. Typically I look for Jamaican Rum barrels and we get all the fruity, funky rum flavor from most of those, but occasionally you get a little bit of an iodine character and there's really no way to know what you're going to get before the barrel arrives at the brewery and normally you don't get to know which distillery it came from.

Bourbon and rye barrels are pretty easy to guess what they'll taste like, but the intensity is all over the place from super strong to no whiskey character at all.

I've also had very good success with calvados barrel aged stouts and would love to do some more of those.

 

Rye by a LARGE margin.