Brandy Foudre

[nickfl]

I am looking at a foudre that was used for aging brandy/grappa. As I understand it most foudres used in breweries are ex wine industry rather than having been used for aging spirits and I'm wondering how much of a difference I would see in practical use. Has anyone out there had any experience with foudres used for spirit production, good or bad? Am I correct in assuming that the difference will be much like the differences I have seen between wine and brandy barrels, just on a larger scale?

I am not particularly interested in imparting brandy, much less grappa, character into any of the beers that I am contemplating aging in a foudre, so I am thinking I would end up trying to neutralize the character by repeatedly filling and soaking the tank in hot water, possibly with some mild additives like baking soda. Any thoughts on this?

Thanks,
Michael