Barrel Aging and its Effects Flashcards
What is a barrel, cask, or tun?
This is a hollow cylinder container, traditionally made of wooden staves bound by wooden or metal hoops
Small barrels are called what?
Kegs
What is an “aging barrel” used for?
to age wine, distilled spirits (whiskey, brandy, or rum), beer, tobasco, and balsamic vinegar.
Distilling alcohol creates chemical byproducts called ______.
congeners
Congeners can vary from
beneficial, to bad and poisonous
The good congeners
happen to be quite stable
The bad congeners do what over time?
break down over time
Aging a distilled product allows what to happen?
the proper amount of time to pass
allowing the proper amount of time to pass results in what?
in decreasing the amount of bad tastes and poisons, and increasing the amount of good flavors and aroma components.
Almost any material undergoes a chemical reaction when exposed to this>
oxygen
When wine or spirits are aged in a barrel…
small amounts of oxygen are introduced as the barrel lets air in.
bc wood is ____ this is allowing only small amount of air to passion and out of the barrel
porous
The porous wood is helps in controlling the rate …
at which congeners are oxidized
What does the term “angel’s share” mean?
so during the process in which the porous wood lets air in and out of the barrel in which this controls the rate at which congeners are oxidized, the ethanol will also oxidize (evaporate) allowing the ABV to drop slightly
Early distillers called the process “angel’s share” bc
they saw the volume drop by itself and believed that angels watched over their products and then took some as payment.
Warm climates will cause what?
faster chemical reactions
these faster chemical reactions caused
changes to occur more quickly but also more harshly TF occasionally removing desirable components
To better control these warm climates …
barrels are usually placed in cellars where temp can be regulated
Strict barrel laws exist for:
bourbon, scotch and irish whiskies
these strict barrel laws are made in order to
impart proper expected flavor and aroma char. expected from each style.
There are two main types of wood used:
French
American oak
French barrels:
impart smoky, spicy flavors with satin/silky textures
American Oak Barrels:
impart heavier charring, gives stronger flavors of vanilla and smoke as well as notes of coconut and cream soda with a creamier texture
Heavily charred barrels impart
stronger flavors of smoke
Lighter charred barrels impart:
toasted subtle smoke
Oak contains compounds such as:
lignin (polymer making plant rigid and woody)
tannins (yellow brownish bitter tasting organic substance, presented in some galls, bark, and organic plant tissue0
vanillins (chief flavoring compound in vanilla extract)
that all break down during the char
there are also sugars called _______ which are caramelized from the wood as it is burned.
hemi-cellulose (a combination of 8 different natural sugars)
What does charring the barrel to much will do what?
break down these compounds to far and thus negate their flavor contributions
To much humidity cause more ethanol to ____
To little humidity causes more ____ to be lost and changes in ____
evaporate
water
ABV
Water and ethanol act as what?
solvants and contain many compounds responsible for producing desired flavors and aromas
Distillers in more humid climates
typically work with higher casks strengths to avoid losing too many flavor components
As the American craft beer industry blossomed, some brewers began using_________ to age a few beers.
whiskey barrels
The intent of using whisky barrels was to:
derive interesting flavors from the wood that were left over from its previous use
Since _____ are only used once for whisky aging
they are readily, inexpensive, and contain enough ____ _____to flavor the beer if it’s eft there fore a while
What barrels are used this way?
bourbon barrels
enough residual character
whisky, rum , and wine barrels
Barrel aging is not to be confused with _______
cask conditioning
Whiskey barrels are not designed to hold a …
pressurized product and can not be used for fermenting (which produces CO2), unless they are vented (the cask is vented)
The barrel aging process is just a _____ procedure in which
flavoring
fully fermented and finished beer is helped in a used barrel for a period of time
often the brewer will simply “________” one of there products. Other times a _____ of _____ beers will be barreled
Sometimes a ______ ____ will be designed to take advantage of the possible flavor combinations
“barrel age”
blend of several beers
Special brew
The end product must be:
re-carbonated and is usually blended with a significant volume of unbarreled beer prior to sale
The length of time that a beer remains in the barrel can be as little as a ____ and as long as a____ or _____
week
few months
year
The length of time depends on what?
the brewer
the type of beer
the intended result
Why are barrel aged beers sold at a premium and are usually in a short supply?
bc of the extra time and expense involved
