Barrel Aged Bieren

What exactly is a Barrel Aged beer?

The beer ferments further and therefore has less sweetness and more alcohol. Peter Kolber said about beer and wine transported to the East Indies:

‘…zoo als hier in Europa door het vervoeren van diergelyke waren ge∫chied, veel beter, als zy voorheen geweeƒt zyn; gelyk dan bier en wyn, welke men naar Ooƒt-Indie voert, klaarder en veel ƒchoonder en helderder van verƒ zyn, als ze hier ooyt zouden zyn.’

Kegs were taken in large quantities to provide the crew with beer on long sea voyages, and there were often around 300 crew members on a ship in those days. Each crew member carried a cask of beer with a volume of approximately 150 litres. In the more recent history of craft beer, breweries also use barrels to give extra flavour and complexity to beer. Flavours of oak, for example, give hints of vanilla to the beer. But also the liquor that sat in the barrel before the beer, such as cognac, bourbon, rum or whisky, contribute to the flavour, aroma and character of barrel-aged beers.