Is my barrel ruined?

[cowdery]

A lot of small barrels are sold primarily as bar decoration.

[Res/st-or]

Oh well... I bought the 2 liter with brass hoops cuz its soooo purdy. Now I have to decide what to put in it. I really like the OWA, but I've always thought it could use a bit more age. Any thoughts on better candidates?

[p_elliott]

Oh well... I bought the 2 liter with brass hoops cuz its soooo purdy. Now I have to decide what to put in it. I really like the OWA, but I've always thought it could use a bit more age. Any thoughts on better candidates?

[theDon]

Oh well... I bought the 2 liter with brass hoops cuz its soooo purdy. Now I have to decide what to put in it. I really like the OWA, but I've always thought it could use a bit more age. Any thoughts on better candidates?

I went with the black hoops cause they were the cheapest. I thought about OWA also. High proof is good. I have had good results from 100 proof and better. Any cheap 100 proof will have noticable results in a short amount of time. I wanted to find some HH 100 p gold label and see if it could be smoothed out with a little more time in a barrel.

[silverfish]

If you wanna start from high proof scratch (so to speak,)

try the Wasmunds un-aged spirits as seen at Binny's.

I've had three barrels in the basement since Feb. 1st and

look forward to the results. One is a Single Malt barrel

Mother's Day gift for my sister-in-law!

[p_elliott]

If you wanna start from high proof scratch (so to speak,)

try the Wasmunds un-aged spirits as seen at Binny's.

I've had three barrels in the basement since Feb. 1st and

look forward to the results. One is a Single Malt barrel

Mother's Day gift for my sister-in-law!

Why in the basement it would be to cold ?

[ILLfarmboy]

WT 101 Rye is what I had in mind.

Excellent choice!

Great rye that could use a bit more age.

[Res/st-or]

If you wanna start from high proof scratch (so to speak,)

try the Wasmunds un-aged spirits as seen at Binny's.

I've had three barrels in the basement since Feb. 1st and

look forward to the results. One is a Single Malt barrel

Mother's Day gift for my sister-in-law!

[silverfish]

Why in the basement it would be to cold ?

I'm located in Western NY (near Buffalo) and back in Feb.

it's cold in any part of the house. Plus, my sister in law

visits frequently and the basement is one of the few places

everyone else avoids.

Now that you mention it, maybe it's time to transfer them

to the garage attic for some springtime warmth!

[ErichPryde]

WT 101 Rye is what I had in mind.

Excellent choice!

Great rye that could use a bit more age.

that makes three of us.

[theDon]

Another week has gone by with bourbon in my barrel and it seems to be getting better. There is no tequila nose coming from the bung hole or from a sample in the glass and there is only a hint of tequila in the taste. I'm actually started to get some nice bourbon flavors despite the off note. I'm going to give it a few more weeks and reload with some fresh juice. Maybe a nice strong WT Rye would get the barrel back on track.

[kickert]

There is no tequila nose coming from the bung hole.

This would only make sense on this forum... and perhaps at a spring break party in Cancun.

[unclebunk]

This would only make sense on this forum... and perhaps at a spring break party in Cancun.

Very funny, Kick. That really made me laugh!

[theDon]

This would only make sense on this forum... and perhaps at a spring break party in Cancun.

Dang......I probably shouldn't tell you about how I sucked on the spigot....geeez!

[Res/st-or]

Dang......I probably shouldn't tell you about how I sucked on the spigot....geeez!

And nothing happened to the bunghole I hope. :bigeyes:

[Res/st-or]

Sooo... Does the char lose any of its caramelizing properties when you use it more than once?

[cowdery]

Have you ever used a tea bag twice? It's like that.

[theDon]

Have you ever used a tea bag twice? It's like that.

Where are you on that one Kickert? Come on.......Tea Bag......you should be all over it.

[Bonfire Smoke]

I have been maturing bourbon in a small barrel for over a year now. I have decanted several bottles from the barrel. I use OC 8 yr old. After a few months in the barrel it really smooths out and becomes drinkable. I can not drink the OC 8 yr old from off the shelf. When this batch comes out I am going to dry the barrel and rechar it. I have a small propane torch that I will use without taking the barrel apart. I have a blog on my project. I have not updated it in quite some time. Take a look. http://backroombourbonhome.blogspot.com. Let me know what you think.

Johnny