Barrel aged mead

[Shine0n]

I've recently came into a great find of endless bourbon barrels for 50 bucks a piece, most are wheat but others are rye and all corn whiskeys.

I want to age a traditional for sure but are there any other flavors that match well with bourbon?

I'll look for some answers but I'd love to hear some of the stories from those who HAVE directly used barrels for aging, yeast used for the mead etc . etc.

I have a 5.5gal mead going and just about finished (.020) I was about to toss in some fruits here shortly but now with these barrels I have other options.

The fruits are frozen so that's good, and now my brain is really wanting to toss the mead in the barrel.

I've had some in the same barrels I have and it's freaking awesome. Really really awesome.

These folks are selling their bottles of this for 75 bucks and 90 for the ones with the extra vanilla beans added. It's just a traditional too!

 

[Hoppy2bmerry]

Nice that you have a reasonable source for barrels!

 

[Shine0n]

Most definitely, all others I've sourced was 80-110$ and to me was too much.

I'm picking up 4 more tomorrow

 

[loveofrose]

My advise? Buy every barrel you can. Something about barrel aging just improves a mead beyond words.

I’m drinking mine now side by side with the same batch that wasn’t barrel aged. Flavor concentration, vanilla with improved body and aroma. Perfection!

 

[Shine0n]

I'm buying as funds are available and my wife doesn't kill me.
The head distiller said he'll let me know as they're ready to be emptied.

 

[Shine0n]

My traditional is now stabilized at .010
I degased one last time and added sparkolloid and in hopes in a week or two its ready for the barrel.

The recipe was 17.5 lb raw clover honey
71-B yeast rehydraded in must and water
Sna fermaid o
Degas twice daily

It now sits at 64° f since I have no room in a fridge but I'll give it a week and check.

My new process will be bentonite in primary too, I've read really good things with that practice and following a thread on fb with an award winning mead maker so if it's working for him...I'll do what he's doing.
Now to come up with the exact amount needed to do the job and not leave any residual clay flavors.

 

[Brett_Bellmore]

Based on this, I've bought some medium toast French oak chips to toss in to *half* of my key lime ginger mead, while it's aging. We'll see how it works out, I can do a head to head tasting around Christmas.

Vernors, of course, was traditionally aged in oak barrels for 4 years before selling it, and I'm trying to duplicate that flavor. (Which what they're selling as "Vernors" today doesn't come close to.) If the experiment with the chips works out, I'm going to shell out for a 5 gallon barrel, and age a batch 4 years.

 

[GnenieGone]

I've done 2 barrel beers. The initial challenge is to rehydrate them if they are dried out. I over watered them and think I washed out some flavor, eventho the beers came out darn tasty. I'd use very little water next time over the course of a week, mixed in with bourbon to kill anything living in the barrels.

Next, 5-10days should be good at these smaller batches. I'd test mine along the way until happy.

As far as yeast, I had none left in suspension after the barreling process for the 2nd batch...thus my flat quad. I don't think there's any concern with mead in this case. Good luck and keep us informed. Was thinking about doing the same thing with mine.

 

[AkTom]

The head distiller said he'll let me know as they're ready to be emptied.[/QUOTE]
Tell him they don’t have to be empty...

 

[Shine0n]

No doubt AK, But with them selling a fifth for 100 bucks....I'll just take the barrels for 50 with some of their goodness in them. lol
Bret, I've also been thinking of another mead to follow the traditional and I have 3 gallons of raspberry melomel that isn't quite up to par so it may have to follow. Good luck with yours and please let us know.
Pianoman, what size barrel did you use? I like these 5 gallon ones expecially at 50$ AND filled with top class bourbon to boot!

That is one of my main concerns, a leaky barrel so I plan to drop in half gallon hot water and rotate the barrel every hour for a couple hours, also soak the outside once.

 

[Shine0n]

36 hours after adding sparkolloid, the mead dropped 90% clear.
I went to prime the barrel with water but first checked the the inside and there was a little less than a pint of spirit in it...Of course I had to taste it and man was it delicious so I returned it and racked in the mead.
I'll give this a month and recheck until I reach the profile I want.

This is going to be something good folks!)

 

[Shine0n]

Holy- moly!!!
I just couldn't resist the temptation so I grabbed a pint out of the barrel to sample.

This is sooo good I'm taking a gallon to Pa. next Friday to a meet with some fine folks from another forum. It may need only one more week in the barrel to get the profile I want. This happened alot quicker than I thought it would but that means the raspberries go in faster too!!!!

My goodness, thanks to all who inspire folks to do the "not normal" and experiment some.

I'd better go ahead and put this back in the barrel so I'm not tempted to sip it any further as it's only 10am and this is wayyy to good not to.

 

[imasickboy]

This is sooo good I'm taking a gallon to Pa. next Friday

I'm in PA...

 

[AkTom]

I'm in PA...

I’m wishing I was...

 

[Shine0n]

I'm headed to Allentown so if you're near hollah.