Strong firing of the barrel. Preparing an oak barrel for moonshine

04.01.2021 Recipes

In the life of every distiller, there comes a moment when you want to raise your skills to a new level, to ennoble the home-made alcohol produced.

Oak barrels for moonshine will come to his aid, aging in which the distillate literally transforms him. Inexpressible notes in taste and aroma are added, and no one will disparagingly say about such a product: “Oh, moonshine”!

We will not dive into historical research, especially since no one can say for sure when the hobby for storing moonshine in barrels began. Yes, and guess what. There were once two materials for storing and transporting alcohol: clay and wood. Today there are much more of them, but the choice has increased slightly.

container requirements

It all depends on what we need to achieve: preservation of the strength of the drink, taste or its improvement and refinement. So, today the container is available to us:

Plastic bottles. You can't imagine a worse choice. They provide tightness, and degrees "will not run away", but at the same time, plastic reacts with alcohol. And when long-term storage we even feel the chemical component in the taste. Consequently, plastic bottles can be used only in one case - if alcohol needs to be transported from point A to point B. No need to worry that the bottles will break on the way.
Glass vessels: bottles, jars, bottles. Being hermetically sealed and stored in coolness and darkness (cellar, basement), they retain their taste and strength for a long time and reliably.
oak barrels- for centuries, a proven and reliable container for aging moonshine from various raw materials. As alcohol matures, color, aroma and taste will change. And here it is important not to overdo it, otherwise, instead of the expected great taste, you can get a skirting board - oversaturated with tannins and completely unsuitable for drinking.

Choice of finished barrel

A modern buyer rarely has the opportunity to choose a barrel on his own - inspect it, see the degree of roasting, knock, smell it. Most purchases are made over the Internet.

However, “google” in your region, because it often happens that literally at your side they make and sell coveted barrels for home use.

Moreover, you may even be given the opportunity to personally observe the manufacturing process.

So, what are the requirements for an oak barrel for moonshine?

Size. Practice shows that for pouring and aging moonshine, kegs from 5 to 20 liters are most often ordered. More is impractical, and less is already for “decorative” use.
Burning. Containers from the inside may burn or not carry out this procedure at all. Firing can be low, medium or high. Universal, suitable for any alcohol that will be infused in a barrel - medium roasting.
Waxing. It is highly desirable that the keg has been waxed. This is important so that the wood breathes, and the evaporation of the poured alcohol is minimized. If the keg you bought was not waxed, it's easy to do it yourself.
Hoops. Also an interesting question. It would seem that there is not much difference, anyway, few people will see your container for moonshine in the basement. But experts note that even hoops can affect the quality of aged moonshine. Because wood is a porous material, homemade brandy or whiskey can taste like ferrous metal. Therefore, the best hoops - stainless steel.
faucet. They offer faucets made of wood or metal. Better - without them, for draining it is enough that there is a chop (wooden gag), but such is the fashion today. If we talk about the fortress, a stainless steel faucet is better. The main thing is that it does not let liquid through at the junction. However, wood is more environmentally friendly. If the faucet starts to leak, it is better to replace it with a gag.

Preparing a new oak barrel before pouring moonshine

Before filling a new barrel with home distillate, it must be prepared. This is necessary in order to:

it has not leaked and you have not lost valuable alcohol;
the wood inside the container became suitable for the gradual refinement of the filled liquid.

Therefore, it is important not to rush, but to go through everything preparatory stages.

Soaking with water

Fill a new barrel with clean water under the cork and leave for 3 hours.

Carefully. Filling is best done in the bathroom. If the keg is leaking, it won't damage your kitchen.

Drain the first water. It should have a dirty black color, this is due to the firing of the barrel. Refill with clean water. Leave for a day. And so several times. Do this procedure for three to four days. Then leave the water for 2-4 days. By the end of the second week, the water drained from the barrel should be clear.

Soaking with alcohol

Soaking with water is not enough for the poured distillate to acquire a noble aroma and taste qualities that you want to feel in it. First, the barrel must be soaked with alcoholic liquid.

Reference. Scottish whiskey producers buy barrels to age their product in the US after they have aged bourbon.

It is believed that after bourbon has been inside the oak container, the whiskey acquires a delicious aroma during subsequent infusion.

Alcoholic liquid for pre-soaking the barrel before pouring moonshine should be quite strong - from 18 ° and above.

For starters, you can pour in the last fractions of moonshine - tails. After soaking the barrels, they are re-distilled. However, if you have tails with a pronounced fusel smell, refrain from such soaking. This can adversely affect the taste of subsequently poured high-quality moonshine.

Fortified wines such as sherry or port are good for soaking. If you make them yourself, all the better. Pour wine into a barrel treated with water and keep for three months. Unfortunately, it is impossible to drink it after that. But don't spill it!

Wine is an excellent material for distillation. It does not need to be cooked in any way - pour it into alcohol mashine and distill at one time, but with division into fractions. The moonshine obtained from wine for stabilization and refinement can be poured into the same barrel, aged for a couple of months - and elite alcohol is ready!

Steaming and drying

After the alcohol product has already been in your keg, it should be steamed. This will eliminate the possible ingestion of fungi, pathogenic microorganisms. At the same time, remove the remnants of the alcoholic liquid that has been there.

Pour about 10% of boiling water from the volume of the barrel, close the cork and roll from side to side. Drain the water.
Fill the barrel halfway with a hot soda solution: 100 g per 10 liters and roll it again so that the hot solution bathes the entire interior.
Pour it out, and rinse the barrel 3-4 times with hot water.
Shake out the water well and expose the barrel under the sun to dry. Given the narrow filler neck, it will not be possible to achieve complete drying, and if it succeeds, then by that time the barrel will dry out and let the liquid through. So a day or two is enough.

Important. Smell the barrel by touching the filler neck. There should be no musty smell.

Reuse

It is unwise to buy or make a barrel to only use it once or twice. It is believed that for brandy, cognac, whiskey (in our opinion - moonshine from grain or grapes), a barrel can serve up to 7 times. Moreover, each time it takes more time for exposure.

For further use, it is necessary to add oak chips (chips) to the barrel, since natural saturation with the substances contained in the oak boards from which the barrel is made no longer occurs.

But Calvados can be insisted indefinitely. Like aging wine.

We make an oak barrel with our own hands

A specialist in products from boards (barrels, shanek, etc.) is called cooper. This craft requires certain skills and dexterity. No wonder they often do this in the same family from generation to generation.

But if you have a great desire and the absence of "curvature", you can make a barrel with your own hands. To get started, get the right wood, dry it for a year in the air. Then divide the work into stages.

Making staves

The best are barrels made of split riveting. The uneven inner surface with fibers undamaged by sawing contributes to a better saturation of alcohol with substances that ennoble it. But without experience, it is better not to get involved with such work. Take oak boards.

Rivets for barrels have narrowing at the edges. You can make them straight, then the barrel will be straight.

Attention: the number of rivets is calculated by the formula: 2 x Pi (3.14) x bottom radius / riveting width.

Bottom

The bottom is (with a small volume) a circle of solid wood or planks. In our case, a barrel for moonshine, two identical bottoms are laid for it.

hoops

These are the pieces that hold all the rivets together. For a small barrel (up to 50 l) it is enough to have:

2 morning (located along the edges of the product);
2 bunches (on both sides - closer to the center).

Only in products of large volume are neck hoops installed between fart and morning hoops. It is better to take strips of stainless steel 1.6 mm thick, 30 - 36 mm wide. Fasten the hoops with rivets, depending on the circumference of the barrel.

barrel collection

It's time to assemble the workpiece into a single product:

In the smaller hoop, fasten 3 rivets at the same distance with clips, then fill the remaining space with the rest of the rivets.
Put on a larger hoop and upset it so that the rivets close tightly.
Steam the barrel for 30 minutes in boiling water.
Wrap the remaining open edge with a rope and tie it to two supports. Using a crowbar, tighten the rivets and fix the hoops on the other end of the barrel.
After loosening the brackets, insert one bottom and pull it off again.

Burning

Put the barrel on its side, pour shavings from fruit trees inside and set it on fire.

Important. No incendiary substances can be used!

Rolling the barrel, achieve uniform firing.

The final stage: inserting the second bottom, grinding. Drilling holes: in the middle - inlet, in the bottom - drain.

Used oak barrel repair

If you already have a barrel that has served enough, it can be restored. Wood is impregnated with alcohol by only 1-2 mm. And barrels are made of thick boards. According to GOST (8777-80) - not less than 16 mm thickness of the bottom and rivets. That is, if you remove these 2 mm from the inside, and then re-burn the barrel and prepare it for a new filling of moonshine, then it will still serve to ennoble home-made alcohol.

Examine the product. It may be necessary to prepare new hoops.

Let the open barrel dry out of the water under a canopy for several weeks, making sure that the hoops do not fall (lightly knock them out). Then number each riveting, indicate which bottom is which. This is just in case the barrel falls apart completely.

knock down the hoops on one side;
take out the bottom;
cut off with a grinder or other tool up to 2 mm a layer of wood inside the container;
refire and reassemble the barrel.

Rules for storing oak barrels

New containers should be stored in a room where the humidity is 75% so that they do not dry out. The same applies to used containers. Best recommendation- always keep alcohol in a barrel, but if the infused one has already been drained, and the new one has not arrived in time, then they do this:

rinse with soda;
rinse several times with hot and cold water;
dry by opening all holes and turning over;
smoke with sulfur. After completing the procedure, immediately close all openings and store in the basement.

So that the barrel does not dry out and pathogenic microorganisms do not start in it, fill it with one of the following solutions: sulfuric acid (1%); solution citric acid and potassium pyrosulfite per liter of water: 2 g of pyrosulfite and 1 g of citric acid.

Pouring into a barrel of distillate and its exposure

Alcoholic, then steamed and dried barrel is used for aging elite drinks. And there are many nuances that should be taken into account.

Share of angels- this is how beautifully it is customary to call the process of evaporation of alcohol during aging in a barrel. Wood is also porous. And this is very beneficial for distillers and winemakers, since the alcohol in it "breathes", gaining new taste and aromatic shades. But it is slowly fading away.

Note. When the keg is in the room, the proportion of angels increases, and the poured distillate becomes stronger. In the basement (in a cool, humid environment), the evaporation of the liquid is less, but the strength drops.

What strength of alcohol should be poured into a barrel? Usually this moonshine with a strength of 40 to 55 °. But consider the conditions in which the barrel is located, and what should happen to your drink in the end - will it strengthen or weaken? Although with small container sizes, these deviations will be insignificant.
Terms of infusion are very different from those accepted on an industrial scale, since the kegs of distillers are small. What recommendations are found on moonshiners forums? In order for alcohol not to turn into a plinth, it is advisable not to exceed such terms. Approximately, for a 5-liter barrel:

Irish-style grain moonshine from germinated grain (whiskey) - from six months to 8 months.
The same, but in the Scottish style - up to a year.
Grape brandy - up to 8 months.
Calvados and other types of fruit moonshine - 4-6 months.

But this is relative. After 2 months of infusion, get in the habit of tasting the product every two weeks. And when the taste seems to you the most organic - drain.

What is the share of angels and how to reduce it?

When moonshine is aged in an oak barrel, natural evaporation of liquid. The amount of loss is 1 liter per year, regardless of the size of the container. Therefore, it is undesirable to store alcohol in a small volume of containers for a long time: in 2 years the drink will completely disappear from a two-liter keg.

The evaporating volume is called share of angels, each alcohol manufacturer tries to reduce this share without compromising the quality of the drink:

cracks are closed natural oils, paint;
the outer part of the oak barrel is waxed;
to withstand moonshine is not worth it in a barrel for a long time. As soon as the drink acquires the desired qualities ( cognac color, softness, pleasant aroma), it is recommended to pour the liquid into glass bottles. Further infusion and storage of moonshine takes place in another container.

What strength the drink is obtained depends on the storage conditions:

at high humidity (65-75%) moonshine becomes less strong, but the proportion of angels also decreases;
if alcohol is stored at room temperature (20-25 ° C), then it ripens faster, the strength increases, but natural evaporation is also higher.

Preparing a new barrel

A new product is not suitable to immediately fill it with moonshine. Should spend pre-processing barrel to reduce the content of tannins.

Preparation of an oak barrel for moonshine includes several mandatory operations:

soaking product allows you to detect and correct the shortcomings of the keg. In addition, components that are unnecessary for infusion of alcoholic raw materials (tannins, dyes, tart substances) pass into the water.
Steaming, except for waxed containers, helps to clean the container from harmful bacteria that can harm homemade alcohol.
Drying of the finished product ensures the long-term use of oak containers to obtain a delicious alcoholic drink.

Soak the oak container first every day, filling the container with water to the top and leaving it in the barrel for a day. Then it is recommended to extend the period of infusion of water content up to 2-5 days. After half a month, the water infused in the container should be absolutely transparent, colorless and have no foreign smell.

The second stage begins with steaming the inside of the barrel with boiling water (steam is better). The container is half filled with boiling water with the addition of baking soda, the amount of which is approximately 10% of the liquid volume.

The inner walls are thoroughly washed with a hot soda solution by rolling the barrel on the ground on its side. Then hot water is required to wash off the soda solution.

The oak product is washed several times with clean warm or cold water. The container storage conditions must comply with the following characteristics:

air humidity about 75%;
lack of drafts and direct sunlight;
temperature regime from 10 to 15°C.

How to use the secondary container?

How to prepare an oak barrel for infusing moonshine for reuse:

it is necessary to rinse the container several times with clean cool water;
roll the barrel on its side, half filling it with boiling water;
remove the remains of tartar with a hot solution of soda (2%);
thoroughly, rinse the product several times from the remnants of soda;
after storage in a red wine container, it is desirable to treat its inner surface with a 2% bleach solution. Then rinse the wooden surface with boiling water and steam;
Rinse again with cold water and dry outside in direct sunlight.

If the treatment did not help to get rid of the sour, musty smell, the inside should be burned and the container should be washed in the manner for a new product. The use of secondary containers is more preferable for infusing moonshine. Barrels after Sherry enjoy special authority.

A properly prepared oak wood barrel can serve for several years, providing home-made alcohol with a unique aroma of noble drinks.

27.06.2018

Using an oak barrel

Making alcohol is like painting a picture. Before applying the first strokes, the artist prepares the canvas, and the distiller thoroughly cleans the distillate from heavy impurities of fusel oil. The next step is to work on perception. Careful strokes create a masterpiece, and the use of oak barrels for moonshine enriches the aroma and taste of the alcohol aged in them.

The role of the oak barrel

Why is the use of an oak barrel for refining alcohol so popular? There are few resinous substances in the composition of oak wood. It is dense and durable. Therefore, the barrel serves for a long time, is devoid of resinous secretions on the surface and absorbs alcohol less. But how does it affect the aftertaste of the drink stored in it? Oak wood combines aromatic components: tannins, - in other words, tannins, - lignin, carbohydrates, proteins, amino acids. They get into the liquid and begin to interact with each other. As a result, moonshine changes color, is saturated with aroma and acquires astringency.

The use of an oak barrel is impossible without roasting its inner surface. This process achieves the following goals:

give each rivet a curved look and fix it in this position;
avoid cracks;
add caramel flavor to the drink.

There is a lot of sugar in oak wood. When roasted, it turns into caramel. The stronger the roasting of the boards, the brighter this shade, the faster it saturates and the darker the color of the final product.

There are three degrees of firing:

weak. Caramel notes are barely perceptible. Suitable for brewing white wine and beer;
average. The drink takes on vanilla flavor. Whiskey, Calvados, cognac, red wine, rum are kept in such a container;
strong. Alcohol absorbs a bright taste of caramel. It suits fortified wine, Calvados, sugar moonshine.

Rules for aging a drink in a barrel

Terms

What kind of drink you get after aging it in a barrel depends on the composition of the distillate:

grain, in extreme cases, sugar becomes whiskey;
apple, pear - Calvados;
with cane molasses - rum;
grape - cognac.

The final product is also affected by the strength of moonshine and the level of humidity in the room. When using an oak barrel for distillate aging, it is important to create the following conditions:

room temperature - 15-20 ° C. Low temperature does not allow the drink to ripen, and high - increases the amount of evaporation. So, more drink will have to be added.
humidity - 75-80%. The drier, the higher the concentration of alcohol in the liquid due to its evaporation. High humidity reduces the strength of the drink;
light ventilation is maintained in the room. With the sunset, the barrel "inhales", and with the sunrise - "exhales". As a result, the product is saturated with aroma, and air circulation contributes to this.

Term Alcohol matures as it comes into contact with the walls of the barrel. A large enterprise uses containers with a volume of over 600 liters, for preparing a drink at home - up to 25 liters. In the second case, moonshine interacts with a larger area of the barrel. This affects the final product in the following ways:

1. Aging is accelerated by 10 times. So, in production, exposure can take 3 years, and at home - 4 months.

The settling time depends on the type of drink:

for whiskey - 6-10 months;
for Calvados - 4-6 months;
for bourbon - 3-4 months.
2. Losses due to evaporation increase. During the year, the drink loses - winemakers call it "the share of an angel" - 5-10% of the liquid. In case of violation of storage conditions, this figure increases to 70%.

Rest drink and oak barrel

After painting, the artist waits for the paint to dry. The distiller, after aging the drink, pours it into a container, brings it to the desired strength and also waits. Within a couple of weeks of “rest”, the alcohol becomes soft and finally reveals the aroma of an oak barrel. After the drink has matured, the barrel also needs a “rest”. Preparing an oak barrel for storage includes the following steps:

Empty the barrel and rinse several times. To do this, pour into it cold water, plug the hole and shake. Pour, refill and shake. Repeat until liquid is clear.
IN hot water dissolve baking soda and shake.
Rinse the container with cold water several times and dry.
Fill with wine and put in a cool room away from light sources.
Storing a barrel without a drink is fraught with its deterioration. The boards dry out and form cracks. Such a product will only be thrown away.

Thus, the artist and the distiller are united creativity. One creates a beautiful plot on the canvas, the other builds a composition of aromas in an alcoholic drink. Choosing the right oak barrel for cognac, its preparation and storage is the key to success in the manufacture of noble distillates.

Before firing an oak barrel at home, the hoops are removed from one side and the lid is pulled out, after which the products are placed on their side, while the rivets diverge slightly. Very often, light traces of flame can be seen inside new products. But this does not mean that the barrel has already been burned - the rivets are heated to bend, and traces of this manipulation remain on their walls. Then you can proceed directly to work with fire:

a fire is made from small pieces of oak and wood chips;
when the flame begins to subside and coals appear, they are thrown into the middle of the barrel, some sawdust is added;
after that, the container is smoothly rolled, supporting combustion. This must be done carefully so as not to damage the chimes.

When an oak barrel is fired, it is rather difficult to predict the burning time without knowing the details - it depends on the strength of the fire and the size of the vessel. To work professionally with cognac barrels, you have to study for years. After all, different degrees of roasting allow you to achieve different aromas and tastes - from subtle, barely noticeable vanilla to rich coffee.
It is much easier to prepare containers for whiskey aging. There is even a special "American" way. The beginning is the same, but before burning the whiskey barrel, the lid is pulled out, after which the container is placed and coals are thrown into it. Further, everything is quite simple:

coals are poured with liquid for a fire (supporters of traditions can first kindle coals, and then throw them into a container);
a strong flame burns the walls.

The question is how long this procedure should take. In a barrel with walls burned to a dark brown color, a light drink with a bright, even harsh taste is obtained. Strong roasting until the appearance of a charcoal coating helps to obtain a soft whiskey of a classic dark color. Choosing which firing is needed for whiskey is based on your preferences. Do you want a drink similar to Jack Daniel's? So you should hold the flame longer. Do you want something sharper, like VAT? Then you need to carry out the procedure more carefully to prevent the appearance of coal. Thus, it turns out to create one that will give specific properties to the drink .

What to do after roasting

When the barrel cools down, the remains of ash are removed from it, the chimes are cleaned with a brush. The container is ready for collection. After that, the bottom is inserted, the rivets are pulled together and the hoops are put on. You can pour and infuse an alcoholic drink.

It should be borne in mind that in small containers alcoholic drinks infused faster, since the area of contact of the liquid with the wood is larger relative to the volume, and the aromatic esters from the wood are drawn out faster. If this is not particularly applicable to wine, then for whiskey lovers this state of affairs is good news. After all, you can taste a drink from a homemade keg in a month. Considering that house whiskey is not subjected to additional processing, partially destroying the flavor, then in such a short time you can get a divine drink.

Lesson number 20 in the "School of crafting" is devoted to the choice of barrels for cognac aging. I will talk about the most suitable options, what to look for, how to create the conditions for proper aging and how to prepare a cognac barrel. The bell rings - let's start the lesson!

Oak only, no alternative

Cognac is obtained by distillation grape wine. The resulting distillate acquires an amber color, an exquisite bouquet and a characteristic aroma of a noble drink after aging in a barrel. All the accumulated winemaking experience shows that cognac needs only an oak barrel.

Why oak?

The choice of oak as the only possible material for cognac barrels is explained by the properties of wood.

High density and strength. Oak does not shrink as much as soft woods, it lasts a long time and becomes stronger with age.
The wood has a low content of resinous substances and the absence of resin channels, which has a positive effect on the taste of the drink.
IN chemical composition many tannins, tannins and phenolic substances. They bring woody, peaty and cigar notes to the bouquet. They also give alcohol its color.
Oak contains a large amount of lignin. Breaking down during the roasting of the barrel into simpler compounds, lignin provides the presence of vanilla and spicy notes in the bouquet.
Contains hemicellulose. When the barrel is fired, it decomposes into simple sugars, which add sweet caramel notes and color depth to the drink.

What kind of oak should a cognac barrel be made of?

Oak to oak is different. Trees grow in different climatic and geographical zones. Naturally, this affects the characteristics of the wood. What kind of oak should be a good cognac aging barrel? Ideally - from French, in reality, you can take a barrel from Slavonian or Caucasian, as well as oak of Russian origin, but with some reservations.

french oak

French oak, also known as European or Limousin, is considered the ideal material for making cognac barrels. It has a high density, saturation with tannins and phenolic substances. In the chemical composition of wood, the amount of lingin reaches 25%. That is why cognac in such barrels acquires delicate fragrance vanilla and delicate floral aftertaste.

Making the best French barrels takes several years. During this time, oaks are spread on boards. Please note: the best barrels are obtained only from chipped, not sawn boards. The consumption of wood is also great. From 5 cubic meters, only 1 cubic meter of material suitable for the production of barrels comes out. Chipped boards lie in the open air for three years. And only after that barrels are collected from them, burned and sent for sale.

These wonderful barrels have only one minus, but a significant one. They are expensive.

American White Oak

White oak of North American origin has high strength, is saturated with lignins, their content in wood reaches 32%. It is a strong competitor to the French colleague, but is more used for whiskey aging due to a large number lactones in wood. They saturate the distillate with woody, coke, charcoal and peaty flavors that are more appropriate in whiskey than cognac.

Caucasian sessile oak

A close relative of French, it has a rather high content of lignins (up to 30%), which, when aged, give softness and aroma to drinks. However, the wood is inferior to European oak in terms of density and tannin content.

Slavonian (Serbian) oak

Slavonian oak is not as dense as French oak, but rather stable, strong, with a good chemical balance of the wood. For aging craft cognac, you can safely buy such barrels.

pedunculate oak

The pedunculate oak grows in Spain and Portugal, as well as in the European part of our country. Pedunculate oak has a relatively low lignin content. It has loose wood, which needs to be dried for a long time and thoroughly to reveal tannins and phenols. In order to qualitatively infuse cognac in a pedunculated oak barrel, I advise you to additionally use oak chips or French oak segments. This simple and economical solution will make barrels Russian production suitable for cognac aging.

When Age Matters

How old should an oak be for a good cognac barrel? Some sources advise taking barrels from 200-year-old oak. In some places they write that it is enough to take an oak barrel over 40 years old. Let's clarify this issue.

Oak is a long-growing and long-living tree. It may well grow a thousand and two years, and the average age of oaks is 400-500 years. In a year, he adds about 40 mm in girth (average value). It is easy to calculate that in 50 years the increase in thickness will be about 20 cm. Therefore, for the manufacture of barrels, oak is used at an “adult” age of 100–150 years and older, when the tree reaches the desired girth and thickness. So cognac barrels made of 200-year-old oak are not such an impossible requirement.

White oak grows faster than European oak, so it can be used even at a younger age - 60-80 years.

There is one more nuance. The wood of young trees is more saturated with tannins, but there are less tannins and lignins valuable for the taste of cognac. This is another reason why cognac barrels are made from mature trees.

Why is the barrel fired?

For cognac barrels, firing plays a huge role. This process changes Chemical properties wood.

Complex compounds during roasting break down into simple sugars and esters. When aging the distillate, these compounds enrich the bouquet of the drink.
Roasting destroys unwanted aromas of raw, untreated wood, in particular, an excess of mushroom, earthy, metallic notes.
Roasting contributes to the formation of the color range of cognac, gives a more saturated color when infused.

There are several degrees of roasting barrels.

Roasting.
Charring of various stages.

Cognac is suitable for containers that have undergone moderate to severe charring. In such barrels, the decay products of lignins and hemicelluloses enrich the distillate during infusion with a whole bunch of aromas: caramel, vanilla, fruit and spicy.

Is a new friend better than the old two?

A barrel for cognac aging in our realities can and should be taken new. IN industrial production vintage cognacs use barrels in which wines have been aged for several years. In particular, sherry or Madeira. It is quite difficult for a Russian craft lover to get such a barrel, so it is quite enough just to buy a good new cognac barrel.

How long will she last?

The service life of a cognac barrel depends on the type of oak from which it is made. A good container made of Caucasian or Slavonian oak will last 15–20 years. If you take imported barrels, then you can keep distillate in them for 30-50 years.

It is important to correctly understand the term "service life". After its completion, the barrel will not fall apart. It's just that wood contains a certain amount of tannins, which are washed out over time. For Russian barrels, this process takes about 15 years due to the lower density and lower concentration of tannins in the wood. European barrels have a longer tannin "washout" time. After most of the tannins leave the wood, cognac alcohol can no longer be kept in such a container.

But this does not mean at all that the barrel should be thrown away. Oak staves or chips are placed at its bottom, which give the drink the necessary tannins. As I said above, even new Russian-made barrels are often supplemented with oak chips to improve the quality of cognac and the containers have been used for decades, updating the staves or chips as needed.

How to prepare a barrel for cognac aging

You have purchased a brandy barrel made of good oak of the required degree of toasting. Congratulations! Now you need to prepare it for aging the distillate. If you skip this step, then expect unpleasant surprises: the barrel may leak, the finished drink will acquire unnecessary hardness and sharpness of taste. Step by step training new barrels start a few weeks before filling.

Examination

First, the barrel must be filled with water to check for leaks and cracks. Water should be clean and warm, fill the barrel with it by 90% of the volume. If drops seep in, it doesn’t matter, over time the wood will swell and close the micro-slits. If the water flows in a trickle, then this is bad. Barrel with marriage, it needs to be changed.

Verification takes a day. You need to keep an eye on the water level. If it decreases due to seepage, then water is added to the original volume.

Soak

After a day, the water is drained and fresh is poured. A day later, repeat the operation. And so on until the water stops changing color when draining. The purpose of the stage is to draw out the excess surface tannins that have formed during firing. Slavonian or French oak barrels are macerated for about a week. Russian barrels may require up to 1 month. Soak the barrel with warm clean water to 90% of the volume.

Steaming

At the final stage, the container must be rid of too active microflora. To do this, the barrel is steamed. Effectively do this with a kind of steam bath. Heated clean stones are loaded into the barrel. Water heated almost to a boil is poured onto them so that it fills the barrel by 1/3. Then close the lid and leave for a while. The water is poured out while still hot.

You can also use a simplified steaming method. Water heated to a temperature of 85–90 degrees is poured into the barrel. Enough to fill the dishes for a quarter. Then you should put the barrel on its side and roll it so that the water is distributed over the inner surface. Drain the water.

Your barrel is ready for cognac aging.

Features of cognac aging in a barrel

After you have placed the distillate in an oak barrel, take care of its proper storage.

The best temperature for cognac is considered to be from 14 to 20 degrees, ideally - 16 degrees.

Maintain room humidity around 80%. Too much moisture will ruin the taste, and too much dryness will cause the alcohol to evaporate too much.
Humidity and temperature must be maintained constant, without fluctuations.
The room should be completely dark, without the penetration of sunlight.
Drafts are unacceptable, but good ventilation is needed. Air stagnation will adversely affect the taste of the future cognac, and will also reduce the rate of distillate oxidation.

The minimum aging period for cognac spirit in a barrel is 6 months, but I recommend taking your time and waiting at least a year.

During this time, the drink will acquire the characteristic color, taste, aroma. If you hurry with bottling, you can lose quality. With an insufficient shelf life, the drink will not have time to oxidize under the influence of oxygen, which enters through the pores of the wood. And if alcohol is not allowed to oxidize, then it will have a high content of tannins, which give excessive astringency and roughness to the drink.

What to do next?

After a year of aging, you can bottle the drink. If you wish, start blending cognac. To do this, a certain amount of fresh cognac spirit is added to the barrel every year and again left for a year of aging.

Firstly, it does not allow the barrel to dry out, since the alcohol evaporates during the aging process.
Secondly, the bouquet of the drink is enriched with young spirits, deepens, and an original and rich taste is obtained.

It may happen that in two identical barrels filled with the same spirits, you will get cognacs of a different bouquet due to the difference in proportions during the blending process. Blending opens up unlimited prospects for craft creativity.

Practical part

In the practical part of the lesson, we will get acquainted with the process of making a real cognac barrel.

Homework

Send photos of the barrels you use to age your cognac. If you are only thinking about craft cognac, then I am waiting for a photo with the barrels of your dreams.

In today's lesson, you learned how to choose a barrel for cognac aging, learned about the features and properties of different types of wood, and learned how to prepare a barrel for filling with cognac spirit. You have learned how long a barrel will last you and how to prolong its use.

The bell rings - the lesson is over! Thanks for attention. Good luck in the noble art of crafting!

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