Method of aging barley wine ?

[firebird400]

I am looking into making a big all-grain barley wine soon and it got me thinking about how best to age it.

I have the options of aging in glass carboys (extended secondary)
Carbonated in kegs prior to bottling
or bottled

What are your thoughts on the matter

I usually carb in kegs and then bottle the finished beer once clear.

 

[TheZymurgist]

Your best bet would probably be to age it in a keg, that way you can purge any oxygen and protect it from light. I say that, and at the same time I have a glass carboy of a barleywine sitting in my closet to age for four or five months. It's more the oxygen that concerns me, but there isn't much headspace, seeing as how it's a five gallon carboy.

 

[trent]

Age it in a barrel.

 

[Cyclman]

Like the barrel idea, but in a carboy filled to the neck is how I age beers, never had issues.

 

[firebird400]

I won´t be barrel aging anything.
To be honest, I have never had a good barrel aged beer. The high level of oxidation is just not for me.

Carbonated in kegs is probably the way I´ll go on this one.

I´ll make one batch of Barelywine and one of Old Ale. Split each into two fermenters and use different yeast in each one.
That way I get four kegs of different brews.

I have some fresh packs of Scottish and Irish ale yeast as well as US-05, S-04 and a selection of washed lager strains.
Now I just need to decide what gets what.