Homebrewing.Com Balcones Barrel Delivery Time Frame

Justin,

I was under the impression that they ship these barrels as they become available.

Hopefully @GUNSLINGER will chime into this thread.

Cheers!

Jack

 

Jack is correct- they ship as they become available. It really depends on how many orders they have in front of yours and when they get the barrels, how many they get, etc. Longest I waited for one was a few months; 3 or 4 I believe- fastest was a few weeks.

Try these:
http://www.woodinvillewhiskeyco.com/barrels/

They are pre-order right now but will ship first of February. They are also less expensive and larger- 8 gallon barrels.


I've had good luck with Balcones barrels, but the woodinville barrels are larger and the spirit from that distillery is a bit higher quality in my opinion.

The decreased surface area in a 8 gallon versus 5 gallon makes for a better end product- with both spirit maturation and beer aging.

Hope that helps!

Edited to add:
I've got a BIG ASS barleywine aging in one of the woodinville barrels right now and took a sample a few days ago- I'm quite excited for the finished product based off of the sample.

I got hints of coffee, vanilla, chocolate, fig, dates and well balanced oak from the barrel.

My wife said it was my best bourbon barrel aged beer yet- and she gulped the whole sample down before I could get another taste.

 

I'd also like to add that the Woodinville barrels seem to be freshly emptied and shipped- still wet when delivered to me, whereas the Balcones barrels seem to be a bit dryer upon delivery and need soaked to rehydrate the wood properly before aging.

I had one balcones barrel I filled the day after it was delivered that I didn't soak down and I got a few leaks that my beer sealed (losing some beer in the process). One out of twenty or so isn't bad though.

And don't get me wrong the Balcones barrels are good to go- my initial impression of the woodinville barrels is that they are superior to the balcones for many reasons. Either will make good booze!

 

Is your wife of Irish heritage!?!

My wife is. As she drank two of my homebrewed Sticke Alt beers this weekend she looked right at me when she was pouring her second beer and exclaimed: "I gotta make sure I get my fair share!". I replied: "Good for you."

Cheers!

 

Irish for the win! Once I found a woman who likes whiskey, beer and guns as much as I do- I put a ring on that finger post haste!

Gotta love those Irish girls!

 

The only challenge is keeping up with the beer demand. Whenever friends/family ask my wife if she helps me brew beer she always responds: "I 'clean' the bottles; I make sure they are empty of beer."

Cheers!

 

By having multiple barrels really- waiting to brew or cold crashing and storing the beer for when the barrels are in hand and tested for leaks.



I typically buy two to four barrels at a time and use them several times and then Sour them and/or send them down the line to friends to re use.

I did brew one once and waited for a barrel to be delivered and just ended up aging it with oak cubes as the barrel took forever. But that's not my typical experience.

 

What are you planning on brewing? When did you place the barrel order?

 

Looking at their site and at their amazon listing they appear to be in stock so I would guess you'll get the barrel in about a month.

I'd go ahead and brew it on up. May need to keg and sit on it for a week or two- but as they say they are in stock I wouldn't think you'd be waiting longer than 3-4 weeks for it.

I've ordered about 20 or so of their barrels and most were delivered in 3-6 week window of time.

Hope that helps buddy!

 

I spoke to the seller this morning and they confirmed the barrels were in stock- said they usually ship 2-3 days after ordered and lead time for delivery is dependent on where it is being delivered to.

They ship from Austin Texas.

 

I guess I'm spoiled because I can just get in my truck and drive 5 minutes one way and buy a barrel! (I live in Waco, where they are located).