Wooden barrels: The fifth ingredient in making flavorful beer

One might consider a wooden barrel the fifth ingredient in beer after water, malt, hops and yeast. Brewers use them to impart additional flavors into the beer.

But why barrels — bourbon in particular — and how did this come about, you might ask?

Ancient Egyptians, Greeks and Romans all used large clay jars with long necks and handles to transport beer and wine. These vessels would crack or — even worse — break, and they weren’t suited for transporting their liquid on long journeys.

As vessels evolved, wooden barrels were created because wood is softer and barrels can be rolled and stacked. Certainly, barrels were less likely to break and easier to transport than clay pots.

It didn’t take long to learn that not only were barrels good for storing, but they imparted flavors into whatever they were holding.

Kentucky distilleries use wooden oak barrels to age bourbon just as vintners have been using barrels to age wine for years prior to that.

More recently, in 1992, Greg Hall, then brewmaster at Goose Island Brewery in Chicago, aged beer in bourbon barrels. It was a first that started a trend that will be around for as long as we drink beer.

Taste the benefits

Most barrel-aged beers have already been fermented in large steel vessels prior to heading into a wooden barrel. Once the liquid is removed from the barrel, it must immediately be filled again or the barrel will dry up. Oxidation is a risk brewers take when aging beer in wooden barrels, due to the fact that the barrel may not be airtight.

However, we can clearly taste the benefits from a barrel-aged beer, as barrels provide a plethora of flavors in addition to rounding out the ones that are higher in alcohol.

Brewers can readily obtain used barrels, due to laws that prohibit distillers from using bourbon barrels more than once. Brewers use these barrels to impart flavors in their beer from the wood, which may include oak, char, vanilla and caramel. Additionally, beer will absorb the flavor of what had been stored in the barrel previously, with wine, sherry, rum, tequila, scotch and bourbon being the most popular among beer consumers.

Used wooden barrels have microorganisms that live inside the wood, which add flavor as well. Although porters and stouts may be the most popular choice to age in bourbon barrels, other styles including barleywine, saison and Belgian beers also age well in wooden barrels.

Good Wood Barrel-Aged Beer Festival

The fifth annual Good Wood Barrel-Aged Beer Festival is happening from 6-9 p.m. Jan. 19 at East End Brewing Co. in Pittsburgh. There will be 20 Pittsburgh-based breweries sharing their barrel-aged delicacies alongside Wigle spirits, which, by the way, provide barrels to many of our local breweries.

In attendance will be East End Brewing, Wigle Whiskey, Threadbare Cider and Mead, Butler Brew Works, Grist House Craft Brewery, Hop Farm Brewing Co., The Church Brew Works, Four Seasons Brewing Co. Pub, Spoonwood Brewing Co., Strange Roots Experimental Ales, Full Pint Brewing, Allegheny City Brewing, Hitchhiker Brewing, Rock Bottom Brewery, War Streets Brewery, Bloom Brew, Mindful Brewing Co., Eleventh Hour Brewing Co., The Leaning Cask Brewing Co, Burghers Brewing and Rusty Gold Brewing.

The price per ticket is $50, which includes a snifter glass you can take home after you sample the beers and Wigle spirits. A nice selection of food will be sold separately. Designated driver tickets will be sold for $15, which includes a snifter glass and East End’s homemade ginger ale.

The bad news is that tickets will have sold out by the time you read this. But the good news is twofold!

Next year you’ll remember to get your tickets early, and right now you can visit these breweries to find many of their barrel-aged beers on tap or in bottles for you to take home to enjoy.

Cheers!

Mark Brewer is a Tribune-Review contributing writer. He’s the author and illustrator of “Brewology, An Illustrated Dictionary for Beer Lovers.”