Is it just me with barrel aged beer?

BeerEtSeq (https://www.beeretseq.com/the-memory-of-memel/) discussed some history of beer in wood barrels. Historically, British beers in wood used European Oak. When those supplies were interrupted by WWI, the British substituted American Oak with poor results for pale ales. The New World oak imparted a flavor that was new and undesirable to Brits. Better results for them were obtained when the barrels were lined with a more neutral material to minimize the wood flavor. I'm not sure of the condition of barrels used in cratt today, but I suspect that they are recycled whiskey barrels and / or relatively new unlined American Oak. Certainly the prized Memel oak trom Eastern Europe is in very short supply (expensive!) or unavailable. Follow your own taste preferences (they seem to be in agreement with early 20th century Britain). There are so many options, don't waste too much time on styles that you don't appreciate.

 

I'm in your corner on barrel aged beers. Tried some over the years and they're not for me. But drink what you like. Cheers!

 

Are we talking plain oak barrels here that have stored beer only, or barrels that have seen at least one use for aging spirits of some sort?

OP, if you're referring to barrels that previously used spirits, or more specifically bourbon (or whiskey), have you had New Holland's Dragon's Milk? That one has the least bourbon barrel influence in the beer that I have tried. I rarely buy it because I like my BA beers to be the major influence in the taste.

 

I am stuck in the past. I would sample some barrel aged beers if those beers tried to capture the taste of a century ago. But I'm a skeptic about the craft barrel aged beers. These are really new products that I might classify as flavored beers. Some people complain about corn or rice fermentables, but used judiciously, those can have minor effects compared to some of the ingredients or processing variations that are used (for good or for evil) these days.

 

Cruise through the halls of reviews of BBS beers right here on BA! Perhaps you'll find something that might be what you'd like without having to buy a ton of brews that you'd find too boozy. I get ya about the balance. I too prefer a base beer taste in front of enhancement. Some are very much over the top IMHO but beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Barrels. As you know there's rum, whiskey, sherry, bourbon, port, French foeders, just to name a few. It's a thang. Cheers!

 

When I first got into craft, several people on BA recommended that I try BBA stouts, so I picked up a New Holland Dragon's Milk. Not knowing any better, I drank it cold out of the bottle. The bourbon smacked me in the face, and I had the same reaction as you, I only tasted bourbon, and I immediately swore off BBA beers. Then I posted here, and was advised to use a glass, and to let it warm. Now BBA and RBA stouts/porters/quads/scotch ales are my favorite.

I presume you drank it out of a glass, but did you drink it slightly warm? If so, then I'd suggest trying several others. Some of them hide the bourbon better than others. I can also recommend RBA (rum barrel-aged).

As far as other styles, I've had them all except the elusive Czech Amber. I used to despise IPAs and sours. About four years ago I decided to immerse myself in them after having trouble finding new beers to try in the summer months. Now I like them, but strong dark beers are still my wheelhouse.

 

I am being honest when I say you can consider yourself lucky to some extent. Well, at least that's one way of looking at it. In some ways it can be a curse to develop a taste for something you wouldn't enjoy otherwise. The downside of not challenging your current tastes is that you could feel like you "missed out" when/if you develop a taste for something in the future.

In my case, I definitely enjoy barrel aged beer (if specifically talking about bourbon barrels, gin, etc.) because I simply like beer, but in general, I enjoy stouts, barley wines, saisons (or whatever) that haven't been given such treatments even more. The current fandom culture around craft beer clearly doesn't share this viewpoint and views such treatments as upgrades.

@moodenba - I think it's a safe bet that the OP is talking about typical barrel aging in modern craft culture - in which case we are specifically talking about used spirit (or wine) barrels that are used to impact the flavor of the beer with the flavor of the previous alcoholic beverage. In this context, the spirit choice (or brand) is normally part of the marketing of the beer and a lack of such flavor would often be considered a disappointment.

For what it's worth, I also tend to avoid craft beers advertised as aged in oak or foeders due to the risk of getting a beer with heavy-handed oakiness.

 

I still sometimes drink Dragonzz Malkzzz cold out the bottle and it's still great.

 

How many Barrel-aged beers have you sampled thus far? The bourbon barrel flavor in beers can have a wide spectrum between tasting more like bourbon than beer (as you described), to slight bourbon notes, to not very noticeable at all.

 

I always thought that was kinda the point :shrug:

 

The more you drink them the easier it gets. These days I rarely find one that has a huge barrel/spirit character. When I first dtarted, Dragon's Milk tasted like straight bourbon to me. Now it doesn't even taste barrel aged.

 

Lots of good comments already in this thread.

I am personally a fan of bourbon (I drink it straight up) and bourbon barrel aged beers (e.g., Bourbon Barrel Aged Imperial Stouts). A few months ago I bought a four-pack of BCBS but I will be conducting a exBEERiment with this four pack and drink two bottles a year from now and then a bottle at 2 years and a bottle at 3 years.

@TwilightBeerCareer there is likely some brands of bourbon (or other spirits) barrel aged beers that have lesser intensity of the spirit but my since you seem to not really enjoy the spirits flavors my suggestion is that perhaps barrel aged beers just are not for you. Just enjoy the non-barrel aged versions and save lots of money, a classic win-win!

Cheers!

 

Hmm, I'll add a few thoughts. I have definitely pulled back on the amount of barrel aged beers I drink over the last several years. Not that I don't enjoy them, just that they are expensive, high ABV (some are getting over the top in ABV for me), and a lot of times all very similar. I do still grab some on occasion. I bought a 4 pack of 512 barrel Aged Double Pecan Porter a month ago and enjoyed having maybe one a week, and again a Bourbon Barrel Aged Quad from True Anomaly. Those are both perfectly fine, but am good with those until I get another craving in like a year ha.

I also enjoy Bourbon and other whisk(e)y's on there own. I have never thought a barrel aged beer was similar to a shot of the spirit added. I mostly get wood/vanilla/tannin (which I guess are overarching "Bourbon" flavors, but a far cry from just a shot being added to a beer IMO), which as you say can overwhelm the base, and make it all overly similar at times. Especially for stouts.