"Barrel Fermenting vs. Barrel Aging: Unraveling the Distinctive Paths of Flavor and Maturation"

"Barrel Fermenting vs. Barrel Aging: Unravelling the Distinctive Paths of Flavour and Maturation"

You may have already read our blog post on exploring the art of barrel fermented ales where we deep dive into the thought process and development of our barrel fermenting process and how that defines our beers. Traditionally people associate the term 'barrel ageing' with beer. There are some fantastic examples of barrel aged beers usually in ex bourbon or wine casks however these are usually very high alcohol and challenging for most to drink. We wanted to avoid this and create a range of beer with complexity and drinkability in mind. 

What are the key differences between barrel ageing and barrel fermenting 

Type of beer: Barrel aged beer is usually very high alcohol, barrel fermented ale is not. 

Time and oxygen: Oxygen is taken into beers from the barrel largely in the first 2-4 months. Barrel aged beer spends in excess of six months in the barrel and as result oxygenated flavours are part of the overall flavour profile. Barrel fermented ale only spends the duration of active/primary fermentation in the barrel before oxygen is taken up from and into the barrel and adversely affects the beer.

Condition of the barrels: barrel aged beers choose used barrels from other industries which can have adverse effects on the beer. Barrel aged beers often have flavours of the liquid that was in the barrel before the beer, which we absolutely did not want. Barrel fermented beer in new charred American Oak only gains the flavours of the oak itself. Overtime we will refurbish our own barrels which have been exclusively used for beer only. 

Fresh wort (liquid extract) or already fermented product: most barrel aged beer uses beer that was already fermented in a modern stainless steel vessel. Our barrel fermented ales use unfermented wort which goes through primary fermentation within the barrel to utilise the unique properties of the barrel itself. Refer to our blog post on the art of barrel fermenting. 

Traditional Mixed Culture or sour beer; the exception?

You may be familiar with traditional sour or mixed culture beers. These types of beers use many different microorganisms over a long period (usually) within used barrels. Some of these are pre-fermented before being filled into barrels for a minimum of a year. These beers prefer a neutral contribution from the barrel itself and are often not cleaned between batches to retain the mixed microbes within the staves for the next batch.

In summary:

Barrel fermenting is the process of taking unfermented wort and fermenting that wort solely within a barrel. To capture the flavours that develop due to the shape, pressure and temperature within the barrel as well as the flavours from the oak itself. Barrel ageing is the process of storing beer that has already been fermented within a barrel for a long period of time to add additional complexity to beer.