Some beers were meant for the barrel
Most of the beers we brew are best enjoyed fresh. But for others, hibernation in a barrel can bring out a completely different beast.
During the barrel-aging process, a spent wine or spirit barrel is filled with beer and laid to rest in a cool, dark place for months or even years. The combination of time, oxidation, and exposure to the wood—and whatever spirit lived in it before—transforms the beer into something else entirely.
“I don’t think of it as aging, so much as maturing,” says Nick Ison from our barrel-aging team. “It does something we can’t do in a modern brewery, which is this micro-oxidation that allows the right kind of beer to mature.”
What is “the right kind of beer?” We’ve experimented with barrel-aging all kinds of beers, from big imperial stouts aged in wine barrels to sour beers aged in tequila barrels to hop-forward IPAs aged in whiskey barrels. Each brings out truly unique flavors and characters.
But when you want an all-star of a barrel-aged beer to kick off the reimagined Trip in the Woods series, there are two names that rise to the top.
“Narwhal and Bigfoot are our barrel-aging superstars,” says Nick. “Both of them really lend themselves to that extended aging.”
Indeed, our Narwhal Imperial Stout stands up to the barrel with its black-as-night flavors of espresso and baker’s cocoa. And Bigfoot Barleywine-Style Ale’s massive malt and hop character make it a beast of a beer for aging.
So, back in 2020, Nick and his team hand-selected bourbon barrels, and filled some with Narwhal and others with Bigfoot. Then, they waited…for years.
“It was a lot of patience on our part,” says Nick.
But good things come to those who wait, and five years later, the beers were ready. The team opened the barrels and tasted the aged beer.
“In Bigfoot, there’s a big burnt molasses character that became a rich caramel flavor,” says Nick. “With Narwhal, the young beer had a bitter baker’s cocoa flavor that progressed to a milk chocolate character in the barrel. The two beers paired very nicely together.”
Next came the blending: a matter of striking the right balance.
“We ended up with a blend of about sixty percent Narwhal and 40 percent Bigfoot,” explains Nick.
Today, Barrel-Aged Narfoot, brewed for Friends of the Family, is a rich, round beer, with deep flavors and balanced sweetness.
“It’s a perfect sipping beer,” says Nick. “We’re really excited to get it out and have you guys try it.”
For those of us with our tasting glasses ready, we’re excited, too.
