What happened? Help!!

[Sailman]

This was my first time at trying to age for any length of time (6 months). I'm using a 1/6 Barrel ss beer keg. I put in about 4 and 1/2 gallons at 114 proof sitting on 94 square in of Oak 9/30/2020. I just pulled everything off and I only got about three gallons 98 proof. What happened? I did open the container about once a week and let it air out for about 5 minutes or so and it was kept in a temperature-controlled room except for about 3 weeks where I stored it outside to get a large temperature fluctuation. Everything was sealed up good and tight each time that it was opened and it was sealed with a PTFE gasket and ss cap. I wouldn't think that that amount of wood could soak up this amount of liquid nor would evaporation account for this much loss. On a few occasions I did Lay The Keg on its side to submerge all of wood, I don't believe there was any leaks. It's obvious that there's a leak somewhere but what could it be I don't want this to happen again.

[tiramisu]

Let me see if I understand.
a) You left a wood keg on its end.
b) Didn't rotate it
c) Are surprised that is wasn't sealed?

It is the moisture in the oak that keeps it sealed.
Keg should be aging on its side so that both ends stay sealed.
You should give it a spin occasionally so that none of the staves dry.

.... more important question ... How does it taste

[Sailman]

Let me see if I understand.
a) You left a wood keg on its end.
b) Didn't rotate it
c) Are surprised that is wasn't sealed?

It is the moisture in the oak that keeps it sealed.
Keg should be aging on its side so that both ends stay sealed.
You should give it a spin occasionally so that none of the staves dry.

.... more important question ... How does it taste

No this was not in a wood barrel it was in a 1/6 barrel ss beer keg.

[tiramisu]

Sounds like you have mice.

[Saltbush Bill]

Clearly states at the begining of the post SS beer barrel.

[Butch27]

You must have some sneaky angels around your place.

[tiramisu]

Clearly states at the begining of the post SS beer barrel.

Yup... You are right. My brain just couldn't accept that alcohol would evaporate in a corny keg.
The obvious alternative is mice.

[nerdybrewer]

How dry was that wood?
Was it chunks or sticks? What size LxWxD?
It would be a good idea to weigh the wood when it goes in and again when it comes out so you can have an idea how much liquid it is retaining.
Also I'd recommend reusing that wood quickly, seems like it may have been absorbent.
Another question, you said it was 114 proof going in, what was the proof coming out?

[River Rat]

You must have a slow leak, maybe too slow to notice unless you were really looking for it. Like you said, that ain't evaporation and the wood can't hold that much. When you laid it on it's side with 4.5 gallons in it, the liquid level inside would've been well above the cap. I would check the cap and gasket really good for leaks.

[Sailman]

How dry was that wood?
Was it chunks or sticks? What size LxWxD?
It would be a good idea to weigh the wood when it goes in and again when it comes out so you can have an idea how much liquid it is retaining.
Also I'd recommend reusing that wood quickly, seems like it may have been absorbent.
Another question, you said it was 114 proof going in, what was the proof coming out?

The wood that was used was an old Jack Daniel's Barrel that have been cut in half I picked it up from Lowe's Home Improvement. The wood was sanded toasted and recharged. I did the math on the wood when I stuck it in there and I believe it was about 94 square inches . I just checked the proof and it is 98 proof temp corrected coming out of the keg.

[NZChris]

Have you got teenagers?

[Butch27]

Have you got teenagers?

Like I said, sneaky angels. LOL

[HDNB]

Have you got teenagers?

Like I said, sneaky angels. LOL

exactly where my thoughts went. sneaky badgers.

[Sailman]

Have you got teenagers?

Like I said, sneaky angels. LOL

exactly where my thoughts went. sneaky badgers.

No I don't have any Rugrats running around here lol.

[nerdybrewer]

It dropped from 57% to 49%.
Normally in a sealed container that wouldn't happen in 6 months.
This lends credence to the "leak" hypothesis.
Have you checked with compressed CO2 assuming the keg still has the connectors?
I've had good and not so good seals with corny kegs, it really sounds like you had evaporation and probably some soaking up into the wood.
BTW measuring your wood in terms of cubic inches is more informative, also does your measurement take into account all sides of the pieces of wood?

[Sailman]

It dropped from 57% to 49%.
Normally in a sealed container that wouldn't happen in 6 months.
This lends credence to the "leak" hypothesis.
Have you checked with compressed CO2 assuming the keg still has the connectors?
I've had good and not so good seals with corny kegs, it really sounds like you had evaporation and probably some soaking up into the wood.
BTW measuring your wood in terms of cubic inches is more informative, also does your measurement take into account all sides of the pieces of wood?

Its a beer keg not a corny keg and all sides of the wood.

[MichiganCornhusker]

sitting on 94 square in of Oak

.75"x16"x4 = about 48 sq in per stick, closer to 200 sq in total. Not that that's necessarily bad, not far off from what I do with quart jars.

I wouldn't think that that amount of wood could soak up this amount of liquid

No. By my maths you have about 42 cubic inches of wood there. Even if the wood was replaced by the whiskey it would only amount to less than a fifth of a gallon.

I'm using a 1/6 Barrel ss beer keg.

With a Sanke top? How are you opening and closing the keg?

except for about 3 weeks where I stored it outside

Hmmm...
How guarded was it outside? Open to neighbors and passers by?

[shadylane]

Sounds like a leprechaun infestation.
By chance, have you been having better luck than normal?

[nerdybrewer]

It dropped from 57% to 49%.
Normally in a sealed container that wouldn't happen in 6 months.
This lends credence to the "leak" hypothesis.
Have you checked with compressed CO2 assuming the keg still has the connectors?
I've had good and not so good seals with corny kegs, it really sounds like you had evaporation and probably some soaking up into the wood.
BTW measuring your wood in terms of cubic inches is more informative, also does your measurement take into account all sides of the pieces of wood?

Its a beer keg not a corny keg and all sides of the wood.

( tomato tomahto )
It's a stainless steel beer keg then.
So is a corny keg, unless you are storing something else in it I guess.
You mentioned it has a seal, do you know the seal does it's job?
How did you determine the container doesn't leak?
Usually I use CO2 in my stainless steel containers that have seals at the top, once you pressurize the vessel it's easy to tell if there's a leak.

This is all besides the main point, the Angels share escaped somewhere and you are left with some spirits.
Is the product any good? Do you enjoy what you've created?
To me this is the point of the hobby, sure we learn and we have fun making the product but at the end we hope that what's left after aging is good and we enjoy it.

[Twisted Brick]

Ok, here's my hypothesis (and that's all it is). When you filled your stainless steel vessel, it was september. Fairly warm and given the humidity in your lovely home state, there was a fair amount of moisture in the air. You also dumped 4.5gal of spirit into a vessel with a capacity of 5.2gal. My guess is that the humidity enclosed in the vessel infused into the spirit, diluting it a tad. Over time, the lighter volatiles escaped into the headspace and were lost to the atmosphere when you opened 'er up.

What happened to the other 90% of missing hooch is really perplexing. Perhaps a measurement anomaly?