CJ article Brown Forman

[bobbyc]

This
Article
was in Sundays Louisville Courier Journal. 2 noteworthy items to discuss here.
Hint ; it has nothing to do with Jack and Coke.

[Barrel_Proof]

First there were Erlenmeyer flasks. Could Griffin beakers be next?

Better drinking through chemistry.

[bobbyc]

Who are those guys ( and Gals) drinking from those flasks?
<font color="red"> Why are they all smiling ? </font>
<font color="blue"> They are so smug!</font>

[brendaj]

Bpbby,
Thanks for the link.
I found this interesting...

"Because of commercialization of the forests, we're seeing a lot of younger trees going into our barrels — that's something we really are concerned about," Lioutas said. "Younger trees don't give you the same flavor.

never thought about that before.
Bj

[bobbyc]

Well Brenda you have cut to the chase here. That's one of the things I think noteworthy to discuss here. Some time ago someone asked if there is plenty of oak left to supply this industry. It was answered in the affirmative , there's plenty. Now I know that the Eastern Hardwood forest of the United States is a pretty big place. After seeing this, one wonders.

[brendaj]

Bobby,
Reminds me of the conversation last night in the chat room about pressure cooking with strips of oak (jump on in here Chris... ). Using less wood and speeding up the aging process.
This is starting to creep me out...
Bj

[bobbyc]

I want to say I am not in favor of changing the barrel. I find it interesting that they can break down a sample of bourbon and know which part of the country the wood in the barrel came from. I also find it incredible that if Bourbon hadn't developed as it did , and did not exist today, we would never find it. It was all chance meetings of things. No stainless steel barrels or plastic in those days. Good thing pine is knotty for the most part and White Oak is straight grained and easily split. Could you imagine a future for a drink that picked up turpentine and Creosote flavors from the barrel?Maybe there's room in the future for an alcohol based drink with essense of oak added. At my age, thankfully I won't be around when it catches on! One more thing, there's nothing to be saved by not making barrels from white oak, except a piece of furniture or something. If they don't harvest and utilize them, all you get for a couple hundred years of growth is a pickup truck load of compost.

[tdelling]

&gt;Good thing pine is knotty for the most part and White Oak is straight
&gt;grained and easily split. Could you imagine a future for a drink that
&gt;picked up turpentine and Creosote flavors from the barrel?

Well, pine would be terrible. There are distilleries around the world
experimenting with other woods for maturation. I've seen mention of
cedar, spruce, alder, and birch. There are probably others, too.

&gt;Maybe there's room in the future for an alcohol based drink with essense
&gt;of oak added.

I certainly think so, as long as it's done well. I think that
Southern Comfort could come out with a "top shelf" version, completely
reformulated. If we're using essences, it's better to keep the word
"whiskey" off the label. (Shame on the Canadians, with their additives...)

I'm a little surprised that whiskey makers don't follow the lead of the
winemakers, and add oak chips (or even sawdust) to the barrels during
maturation. I suppose with heavily charred barrels, it would just be
an unneccessary expense.

Tim Dellinger

[bobbyc]

Doesn't Budwieser age in Beechwood barrels?

[jeff]

That's not a good argument in favor of Beechwood Bobby