Comments on: Barrel Aged Cocktails

By: Nicholas Casely

Nicholas Casely — Thu, 08 Dec 2011 06:16:27 +0000

Hi guys, some very interesting points, ive just made a 10 litre barrel of Negroni, Tanqueray Gin, Martini Rosso, Campari and Ramazzotti, went for a slightly extra sweetness using the Ramazzotti but already after a month its more tart and the caramel is coming through! Next on the agenda is ageing a old fashioned, so any tips most appreciated! Thanks Nick

By: John

John — Sun, 30 Oct 2011 22:08:01 +0000

Thanks, Jesse. Any suggestions on type of spirit and length of time? this is my first experience – very excited and want to do it right…

By: Jesse Watkins

Jesse Watkins — Sun, 30 Oct 2011 20:22:12 +0000

John, I would def. age a spirit in it first or you will have a very intense charred oak flavor.

By: John

John — Sat, 29 Oct 2011 22:28:59 +0000

I realize that they are a whiskey distillery, but there is no label on the side of the barrel. My invoice from them simply states custom made 5 liter barrel and included an insert from thousand oaks barrel company. Here is the description from the company website…
“Custom made 5 liter barrel. Tuthilltown Distillery logo engraved on front end. Handcrafted from American White Oak the barrel holds approximately 5 liter. All barrels have a medium toast and come with the stand, bung, and wooden spigot. These barrels have not been used. Perfect for aging Tequila, Brandy, Whiskey, Scotch, Bourbon, Cognac, or Wine Vinegar. 9.5″ x 6.5″ x 6.5″ inches”

since this barrel has not been used do I have to age spirits in them before using it to create a batch of manhattans?

By: daniel

daniel — Sat, 29 Oct 2011 22:25:05 +0000

well, i think tuthilltown is now selling new smaller barrels with their logo emblazoned, so you need to figure out what you bought and proceed accordingly.
http://stores.intuitwebsites.com/TuthilltownSpirits/-strse-Barrels/Categories.bok

By: Jeffrey Morgenthaler

Jeffrey Morgenthaler — Sat, 29 Oct 2011 22:21:04 +0000

John – Tuthilltown Spirits is a whiskey distillery. Your barrel has been used to age whiskey. It should say which whiskey on a sticker right on the side of the barrel.

By: John

John — Sat, 29 Oct 2011 22:17:53 +0000

i think my “new barrel” from tuthilltown is “new toasted oak”, not sure as I just received it from them yesterday. Only instructions were to prime it by soaking in hot water to cause the wood to expand. Otherwise I have no indication that it has been broken in…

By: daniel

daniel — Sat, 29 Oct 2011 22:13:14 +0000

no, i think you’d only want to do that if you were starting with an unused barrel as new toasted oak would be too intense.

By: John

John — Sat, 29 Oct 2011 19:24:16 +0000

Just received my barrel from tuthilltown and wanted to start a batch of manhattans. Do I really need to break in the barrel by aging spirits/sherry before actually aging a batch of cocktails? Wanted to get a batch going for Christmas presents…

By: Jesse Watkins

Jesse Watkins — Thu, 29 Sep 2011 18:29:59 +0000

Jeff, does the barrel have to be filled completely for the barrel aging to work correctly? I have a 6 gallon used whiskey barrel and would like to start out with aging only 1 gallon in it. Think this will work?

By: Tom murphy

Tom murphy — Wed, 07 Sep 2011 00:20:46 +0000

Jeff. Making a barrel sazerac. Is it best to use the sugar cubes as called for in the traditional recipe or put in the equivalent superfine sugar? Tom and Carol Murphy

By: Daniel

Daniel — Fri, 02 Sep 2011 19:27:32 +0000

does your caramel syrup have butter or cream in it like a dessert caramel sauce might have? or is it just burnt sugar and water? if it has dairy (or any fat) in it, leave it out until you are making the finished drink. if it is just burnt sugar it will be fine and would be no different than a spirituous liqueur with sugar already in it.

By: ryan

ryan — Tue, 30 Aug 2011 01:57:11 +0000

I am doing an aged cocktail for the first time in an american oak barrel. One of the ingredients is a house made caramel syrup. Would I have to worry about that going bad during the aging process?

_Ryan

By: Dave

Dave — Sat, 27 Aug 2011 07:27:04 +0000

I’m going for my RSA, which will legally allow me to serve alcohol on monday. I’m a big fan of your work, Jeffrey, and I really enjoy your writing style.

Also: one of those photos has a picture of an Australian beer! Cooper’s Pale Ale. Cool. That’s a nice beer.

By: Talita

Talita — Sat, 13 Aug 2011 21:55:14 +0000

Hi!
I have a very simple question!
When you get the barrel do we have to burn it in side before using it?
How much alcohol do i loose from the absorvation of the wood?
Cheers
Talita

By: Christopher Carlsson

Christopher Carlsson — Sun, 31 Jul 2011 00:11:38 +0000

Sorry make that a 1 liter – not 1.5

By: Christopher Carlsson

Christopher Carlsson — Sun, 31 Jul 2011 00:09:15 +0000

Just saw the article in the Wall Street Journal ( with recipes) that use a 2 1/2 gallon barrel from Tuttletown. I’m still playing with the charred 1.5 Liter barrels from 1000 Oaks (hyperlink in a earlier post)
I’m aging Finger Lakes 100 % corn whiskey and Wasmunds Rye in mine to season them ( and age the whiskey a bit) then proceed with the cocktails once I’ve got them broken in properly.

By: J. Paquin

J. Paquin — Sat, 30 Jul 2011 22:41:12 +0000

OK, so I purchased a 6g barrel….can’t wait to get started. Should I still experiment with the 53g vessel or just turn it into planter!

Thanks.

By: db

db — Sat, 30 Jul 2011 01:16:13 +0000

so… What are thoughts on using new light-toast oak barells instead of retired whiskey barells? I imagine that the drinks will age that much quicker, and also yield a few extra uses before the barell needs retoasting or retirement. but experience of others will be the true indicator. is a new barell too intense for the subtleties of most cocktails? thanks.

By: Jeffrey Morgenthaler

Jeffrey Morgenthaler — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 23:58:47 +0000

Holy moly that’s a big barrel. I haven’t tried anything close to that size, but my first thought is that you’re going to be at risk of over-oxidizing anything containing wine-based ingredients before you benefit from the barrel’s effects.

You’re going to be a trailblazer here, so proceed with caution and be sure to report back with your findings.

Good luck.

By: J. Paquin

J. Paquin — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 16:28:48 +0000

Jeffrey, I jumped the gun, being overly excited to barrel age cocktails, I went and picked up a 53g Buffalo Trace barrel. What effect would a 6gal or 9gal batch have w/in a 53g barrel?

By: Ryan

Ryan — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 22:07:12 +0000

I’ve heard of 2 ways to clarify citrus.

1) Fastest: Use a kitchen grade centrifuge to separate the solids from the liquids

2) Use a bonder like Agar that will adhere to the solids and seperate them and then strain out the remaining liquid through cheesecloth

I have not tried either method so I can’t speak to them. Obviously one of those is cheaper and easier to do at home than the other though. In a bar environment I’d imagine you’d want the centrifuge if possible.

By: Randy

Randy — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 21:55:52 +0000

How does one clarify lime juice?

By: Ryan

Ryan — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 21:39:47 +0000

Regarding Aging Cocktails with Citrus:

It can be done in a barrel if the citrus has been clarified first.

The volatile solids are the part prone to go rancid, not the acids themselves.

The head bartender from Compose here in New York (which unfortunately just closed) did this just recently with a Daiquiri using clarified Lime.

Avery Glasser from Bittermens also served me a “Clarified Daiquiri” at Amor Y Amargo just recently. I don’t think he had aged it but was talking about doing it.

At any rate, clarifying the citrus changes the cocktail in a fairly dramatic way to start. I quite liked it, and it tends to be a “cleaner” drink if you know what I mean. I imagine aging it for a few months would add some complexity and roundness that would be very satisfying.

By: Lee Potter Cavanagh

Lee Potter Cavanagh — Mon, 20 Jun 2011 02:31:51 +0000

Hey guys,

Regarding the fresh juice, what do you guys think of barrel aging the cocktail sans juice then adding it fresh to taste once removed.

Once it’s in the bottle it seems to go pretty quickly anyway!