Hey all, just wanted to post and let people know about a dangerous experience that occurred. Barrel aging is new to many of us and nobody has really "written the book" on the subject ( I wish they would! ). We research and experiment and see what happens. We just had a JD barrel explode on us and luckily nobody was injured. I thought it prudent to share the experience. The barrel was filled with unfiltered beer and a hard, wooden bung was used. It was not doused with any wild yeast, just trying to impart some oak and whiskey flavor. I assumed the weakest point was the bung, if pressure was too high the bung would blow, right? No, the bottom blew, sounded like a bomb, and put a hole in the wall.
Needless to say we are switching to soft bungs, never hard/wooden and never taking an aging barrel for granted. So if you are new to barrel aging, like many of us, consider the fact that these can develop high pressure and need relief.
Needless to say we are switching to soft bungs, never hard/wooden and never taking an aging barrel for granted. So if you are new to barrel aging, like many of us, consider the fact that these can develop high pressure and need relief.
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