The Badmotivator Bain-Marie and Oak Barrel

[yakattack]

Yeah, screw using wax to fix leaks or seal joints... better to just let everything leak out onto the floor.

ROFLMFAO

[The Baker]

Yeah, screw using wax to fix leaks or seal joints... better to just let everything leak out onto the floor.

Well I wouldn't go so far as to say that. I have tried to repair two small barrels that the cooper said were not very good anyway but it would have been better to pay him to repair them properly, like he did for the two good ones.
I learnt a lot about the cooper's trade, principally that I am no good at it. And if I counted the cost of the time, it would have been better to pay the man or even throw the barrels away.
And yes, on those old, poor quality barrels, I tried wax. But NOT on the good ones.
Geoff

[Badmotivator]

WAX! God forbid.

The idea of a wooden barrel is that there is some interaction with the air.

A waxed barrel is not an effective barrel at all, you might as well use a jar, which is a lot cheaper.

I had a cooper look at a barrel for me and he said, 'Waxed ends. Poor quality'.
Geoff

You're right about fully-waxed barrels, but you may have misunderstood how I'm using the wax. The face of my barrel heads is unwaxed and provides the same oxygenation and evaporation as a standard barrel. The beeswax is only used to minimized seepage between my staves, through the bung, and at the interface between the staves and the stainless steel.

[nerdybrewer]

My 8 gallon Black Swan barrel leaks a bit if I let it.
Just one spot on one end.
It would be good to use wax just on that one spot, that wouldn't have any effect on the rest of the barrel.
It's not all or nothing people, and there's no need to toss a barrel just because of one small leak.
Easy enough to deal with as long as you know what's happening and why just keep that end up or move it around so there's no leak or wax it.

[The Baker]

Badmotivator wrote,'You're right about fully-waxed barrels, but you may have misunderstood how I'm using the wax. The face of my barrel heads is unwaxed and provides the same oxygenation and evaporation as a standard barrel. The beeswax is only used to minimized seepage between my staves, through the bung, and at the interface between the staves and the stainless steel.'

Bad, I have always been comfortable about what you do; and what a brilliant idea!
Have you exported the barrel ends to, say, Australia and were there any problems or costs with our Agriculture people?

Geoff

[Badmotivator]

Have you exported the barrel ends to, say, Australia and were there any problems or costs with our Agriculture people?

Never have. I've sent a few through the mail in the U.S.

I wouldn't want to send just the head, even if we were sure they had the same can, because I like to press the head in and test the whole thing before I send it. I'd hate to give someone a leaky barrel.

My success rate has gone way up, to the point where the last 10 or so have been aces, but I still worry that the next one might be a lemon. It's no big deal if I get a bad one; I can cut the wood out and reuse the hardware on the next one, and my only loss is a few bucks worth of wood and a couple hours of "work".

[WIski]

I have also used Bees Wax with great success. Obviously a natural non toxic product that has been used by barrel menders for centuries. Small leaks in whiskey barrels are not uncommon and most will seal themselves but if you need to stop a leak Bees Wax is one of several proven tools that will work.

Aside; Love this Badmo project......

[aremillard]

Hey,
Thanks Badmo for these!!!
I'm about to make three of these BBOB's. I'm going to do 2 in cherry and one in apple. I bough three spigots on amazon for about 12 bucks each and have notice that they have a small bit of plastic on the inside at the ball joint. It's looks like PTF plastic but I'm not sure. I suppose these can't be used. What do you think?
I'll post some pics when I get em done.

[Badmotivator]

Hey,
Thanks Badmo for these!!!
I'm about to make three of these BBOB's. I'm going to do 2 in cherry and one in apple. I bough three spigots on amazon for about 12 bucks each and have notice that they have a small bit of plastic on the inside at the ball joint. It's looks like PTF plastic but I'm not sure. I suppose these can't be used. What do you think?

Excellent! Please do post pictures when you get them put together.

I believe the ball valve bushing (right word?) is PTFE but I can't remember why I think that.

Let me know if you run into any trouble. I may have a trick or two I haven't thought to put down here.

You might want to try to find some white oak now and start weathering it, just in case you have some success and want to keep going.

[aremillard]

I'm a wood guy! Have have my own sawmill and wood is never a problem for me. I just don't have any white oak at the moment. I'm sure I will be making plenty of these. I plan on making gifts out of them for friends and family. The apple I currently have is quarter sawn and is about 15 years old now. It has not been kiln dried but has been kept indoors. I also have several thousand board feet of cherry right now. Some of it is quarter sawn as well. I should have them done this weekend.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[joeymac]

can you make whiskey out of cherry and apple wood?

[aremillard]

can you make whiskey out of cherry and apple wood?

Only if your burn it to heat your still!

[Hillbilly Popstar]

I age on toasted cherry all the time. It makes a beautiful reddish amber color and a delicious whiskey.

[pretender]

Badmotivator, could you show a sample of distillate after aging? I am very curious what color is after some time. What thickness do you use board on decks?

[Stargazer14]

I just wanted you to know I took a liking to your idea and tried it myself, have some rum aging after being in an oak barrel for a few weeks.
Thanks for this thread, I love the idea and will be making a few more soon.

[MichiganCornhusker]

Badmotivator, could you show a sample of distillate after aging? I am very curious what color is after some time.

Stay tuned, I've got one coming up on the one year mark end of May...

[Badmotivator]

I just wanted you to know I took a liking to your idea and tried it myself, have some rum aging after being in an oak barrel for a few weeks.
Thanks for this thread, I love the idea and will be making a few more soon.

Absolutely fabulous. I wish you all the success in the world. Thanks for your note. I look forward to seeing how you like the performance and results.

[Badmotivator]

Badmotivator, could you show a sample of distillate after aging? I am very curious what color is after some time. What thickness do you use board on decks?

Sure! I will take some pictures of some 15-month bourbon tomorrow in the daylight. Stay tuned.

I start with 5/4 quartersawn white oak, and by the time I've planed it down the barrelhead ends up being around 1 ⅛" thick, with some minor variation between barrelheads. Some have been as little as 1" thick.

[Badmotivator]

Badmotivator, could you show a sample of distillate after aging?

Bourbon recipe, 15 months in barrel #2 (toasted and charred), 80 proof

[pretender]

Hello, beautiful view, amazing color. I'm trying to find a similar dish at home, but I found only a stainless bucket. The problem is to attach the oak decoy to the bucket, I did not find the rim, clamp.

[pretender]

How do you attach a wooden cap to a dish?

[Skipper1953]

I should have a couple of five quart and a couple of 6 quart pots arriving tomorrow. I have some nice white oak heart wood to use for the ends. I plan to use one for aging some home made vinegar. I'll age some barley wine in another.
The other two may hold some Bourbon someday. The Honey Bear sounds really appealing. I have a corn, oats and barley recipe that I'd like to age in one of the kegs if I ever get back into running a still. Not sure when, if ever, that will happen again.

[Badmotivator]

How do you attach a wooden cap to a dish?

Forgive me if I'm wrong, but it seems to me that you have not read the beginning of this thread, where I explain in detail how I make my barrels. If you still have questions after doing so, I would be happy to help. Be sure to be as clear and precise as possible with your question. Thanks.

[Opdog]

Badmotivator, could you show a sample of distillate after aging?

Bourbon recipe, 15 months in barrel #2 (toasted and charred), 80 proof

IMG_2851.JPG

Wow! That is pretty. Does it taste as smooth as it looks?

[Badmotivator]

Wow! That is pretty. Does it taste as smooth as it looks?

Thanks! It's nice. It has all of the right notes; the wood sugars, the char, the vanilla, the corn, and so on. It does retain a small amount of the immature distillate flavor, simply because I took it out so "soon". That immaturity is no impediment to enjoying the spirit however.

I only removed it from the barrel because I was concerned that the volume had gone so low after all of my sampling and more sampling that I was in danger of losing significant amounts to the Angels. Had I been more frugal with it I would have left it in the barrel for years to see if I could achieve absolutely everything I want to achieve with a barrel of bourbon. As it is, the compromised spirit leads me to believe that I am on the right track.

[pretender]

Of course, I read your entire thread from the beginning. However, I do not know where I "got" a buckle to attach the lid to the tank.
I found such buckets at home
https://www.google.pl/imgres?imgurl=htt ... mrc&uact=8

[joeymac]

Curious what "bourbon" recipe you went with?

[Badmotivator]

Curious what "bourbon" recipe you went with?

If I remember correctly it was 80% cracked corn and 20% malt. Might have been 75-25. 2 pounds total grain per gallon. Cook corn, lower temp, add malt. 2X pot distilled. As generic as you can get.

[Badmotivator]

Of course, I read your entire thread from the beginning. However, I do not know where I "got" a buckle to attach the lid to the tank.

The barrel head is cut round, shaped a little bit to equal the taper of the can, and then pressed into the stainless steel can with great force. The word "lid" implies something that covers the top of a container, which is different from how these barrels work. These barrel heads go into the barrel and stay there because of the very tight fit. There is no buckle or anything else which holds the barrel head in the can; it stays there by friction only.

I hope that clears up some confusion.

[pretender]

Of course, thanks for the explanation. I am afraid, however, that the dish I have shown is too conical. The lid can slide out, despite tight fit and swelling. But I'm not sure. On the other hand, I would be inclined to cut the lid equal to the diameter of the vessel, to seal it with silicone gasket. And twisting it in "some" way.