Barrel-Aged Magic

As you begin your quest into the crafty universe, you may notice that there are a lot of brews that claim to be “barrel-aged.” Perhaps their name indicates something to do with an oak barrel or bourbon barrel, or even a wine cask. But what does this mean exactly? Are they actually incorporating wooden barrels into the brewing process?

Spoiler Alert! The answer is yes.

Barrel-aged craftiness inside the Bruery in
Orange County, CA

Beers are sometimes aged in barrels to achieve a variety of effects in the final product. Sour beers such as lambics are aged in wood (usually oak) barrels similar to those used to ferment wine. The wooden vessels allows for secondary fermentation to take place because wild yeast live in the wood and are allowed to join the brewers yeast in devouring the sugars and enzymes in the wort. The method of aging beer in used wine barrels has expanded beyond lambic beers in recent years to include saisons, barleywines, and blonde ale. Typically, the barrels used for this have previously contained aged red wine (particularly cabernet sauvignon, merlot, and pinot noir).

The beer equivalent of the warehouse at the end of
Raiders of the Lost Ark

Other beers are aged in barrels which were previously used for maturing spirits. Porters and stouts are sometimes aged in bourbon barrels, which impart some of the bourbon flavors into the beer. Some breweries are experimenting with other varieties of beer and bourbon barrels, such as the Allagash Brewing Company in Portland, Maine which makes a Belgian tripel that is aged in a Jim Beam barrel. Another common spirit-aging barrel that is commonly found in the brewing world is a rum barrel, which creates a very unique and complex flavor note when used to age beer. The Avery Brewing Company in Boulder, Colorado makes a pumpkin ale that is aged in a rum barrel, creating a spicy, pumpkin ale with candied molasses and delicate oak notes.

There are countless other examples of barrel-aged brews out there and one thing they all have in common is unique flavors that cannot be attained any other way. If you’re looking for something truly different to delight the palate, you cannot go wrong at the bottom of a barrel.

Here’s to craft-brewed happiness… Cheers!