Barrel aging?

[mtodd]

Anyone have any familiarity with barrel aging? I snagged a 5 gallon used whiskey barrel and was planning on filling it up with some imperial stout to let it age. My question is this....would it be ok to rack over a batch that I just kegged a few weeks ago and let it age or should I brew a fresh batch and rack it over after fermentation? I don't think that I want to ferment in the barrel but just age in it but at the same time I know I will lose a lot of carbonation with it in the barrel. Should I overcarb it and rack it in there and just let it sit for a while then I can transfer back to a keg later and put a little more carbonation back into it?

[ejonsson]

My two cents - I would transfer the batch you already have kegged. First, dice you are legging, it is no big deal to transfer back to a keg and recarbonate when you are done aging. Second, as you transfer the carbonated beer to the keg, the CO2 will come out of solution and help purge the oxygen. Third, the beer you have in the keg has already had a few weeks for the yeast to settle out, and I would prefer to keep the yeast out of the barrel. It would also be a good idea to brew another batch though, in case the barrel-aged beer ends up being too strong in flavor from the wood or whiskey.

Any chance of bringing some finished product to the Bluebonnet?

[mtodd]

I will definitely try to bring some with me. I plan to fill it up this weekend so by the time the Bluebonnet rolls around it wont have much time in there but I will monitor it carefully to make sure it doesnt get too strong in that short amount of time.