my cask

[Uncle Jesse]

has 7 gallons of cooked sour mash corn whisky in it.

[Guest]

nice

[The Chemist]

Cool! The oak leaves scattered about are a nice touch. Did the cask come from that cooperage in Arkansas? Is it charred inside? WHEN WILL IT BE DONE (can I visit ).

[Uncle Jesse]

It's Hungarian Oak. Just looked so much higher quality than the American Oak they had on hand and the smell was far better inside as well. I know there are high quality American Oak barrels out there but my local brew store didn't have any

It's out on my back porch, thus the leaves. It's lightly charred inside - I know it's not quite right for Tennessee style but it'll be nice anyway. It's about 13 months in the cask now and taking on nice character.

[swpeddle]

ok, I am very jealous now. I asked my wife for a cask for xmas, and all I got was the response: "There's no way I'm getting that for you! What am I supposed to tell people when they ask what I got you?!? I can't tell them I got you a cask so that you can make rum!!!!!" Apparently, her asking me what I wanted was just being polite.

[The Chemist]

Here's a website from the Arkansas place I mentioned: http://www.gibbsbrothers.com/index.htm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow. The biggest difference in european and american oak is the yield of vanillin and oak lactone. If that bothers you, (and "additives" don't) you could add a smidge of vanilla extract (highest quality, of course) and coconut flavoring. Another interesting difference is that because of the structure of the wood, european oak must be split in the traditional manner to make tight cooperage, american oak can be sawn.

[tarheel]

i got a rum wash going and was considering doin a little aging but i was curious to know the length of time you age a rum and if american oak is the choice cask, also what would be an expected proof, after aging, for a spirit dilluted to 40% before aging?

[Uncle Jesse]

you get a lot of flavor after 6 months, but more as you go, to a point. the larger the cask the longer it must go. i did a 2 gallon cask for a year and it came out great, this 7 gallon cask is taking longer. simple wood to alcohol ratios.

also, the proof depends where you live. in a humid area you're going to lose more alcohol and therefore proof will drop in the cask. in a dry area you'll lose more liquid and i hear proof can actually go up in the cask.

the volume lost is referred to as the angels share.

[The Chemist]

Most "good" aged rums are aged for three years in used bourbon barrels. But the re-use the bourbon barrels until they fall apart! So there is no consistency, blending is everything. Bacardi Silver is aged for six months, by law, then carbon filtered to remove the color. Here at work, I have the opportunity to taste many rum--from the raw distillate, through the aging process, to the finished products (one we have is 27 years old). There seems to be a big change between two and three years (more than between one and two). So, where's all this going? Use american oak, but if it's a new cask, watch it very closely after three or four months. Don't dilute to 40% before aging. Better rums are aged at around 70%. Add a little (2g/L @40%) sugar at the end of aging. Age it till you like It!

[The Chemist]

re: my post above-proof

What is your proof in the cask, Jesse? Most whiskies now are aged at about 63%, to use fewer barrels. But the old practice was to age at 55%. Have you tried different proofs? Results?

[Uncle Jesse]

It's 62.5%, 125 proof, so if it was commercial I could legally call it "straight".

I've not yet had time to experiment with different proofs in cask. I experimented with different proofs with wood chips but I prefer the cask.

[DBM]

Uncle Jesse;
Did you use anything to seal the bung & how do you get it out?

[Uncle Jesse]

i just tapped it in with my rubber mallet. when i need to get it out i tap the side with the same mallet.