VISITING MY #1 (as in oldest) son the other day I thumbed through a book on potent potables — just to get into the “spirit” of things. (Book Information below line.)
I discovered that the old saw that “all Bourbons are kosher” ain’t necessarily so.
Turns out there are several Bourbons aged in casks formerly used for wine.
Worse, there are a number of beers that also are “matured” in barrels formerly used to age wine.
It turns out that there are a few Bourbons that are aged — a questionable term since the “minimum age” for a potable to be classified as a “Bourbon” is measured in a months; three year old Bourbons are, alas, the norm, even for many “name bands” -- in containers other than specified by U.S. law.
The question is: Can “Bourbons” aged in former wine casks really be called ”Bourbon” given that U.S. law requires Bourbon to be aged in new barrels from the U.S.
Flavored Bourbons — “adulterated” Bourbons — always needed a good kosher label. (Standard caveat: “Check with your rabbi if a label is acceptable in your community.”)
The Whiskey Wash web site lists and describes eight Bourbons aged in barrels that once held port wine. The site describes each product and its availability. Included are, alphabetically:
- Angel’s Envy
Ascendants Spirits
Barton 1792
Big Bottom
Breckenridge
Litchfiel
Luxco (Blood Oath)
Traverse City
Similar to flavored Bourbons, flavored beers need a good kosher label (ibid.)
“Regular” — unadulterated — beers, ales, stouts, et al and etc. — generally are kosher. Add a flavor or color and a problem has been added to the fluid.
Adding to the beer confusion — assuming there is confusion — is that some new (since 1990s) beers are aged in former Bourbon barrels. Since most “adulterated” Bourbons — that is, Bourbons aged in casks formerly containing wine — are first aged in barrels confirming to U.S. law and only later transferred to the former wine casks, the should be no problem with beer aged in former Bourbon barrels. “Should” being the operative word. Find a rabbi who likes beer and Bourbon — not necessarily at the same time — and get his opinion.
Some beers are aged in former wine or scotch barrels, making their kashrut questionable. Was the scotch cask used to age the beer a kosher scotch? What authority is followed — a lenient one who might allow a scotch cask to be used if it was unused for “n” years? Did the 1/60th rule apply to the scotch? Does the 1/60th rule apply to the beer even though the use of the former scotch cask is intended to give the beer a unique taste, color, or smell?
The “key words” for beer aged in formerly used — by any potable — barrel are Barrel aged. Modern “name” beers, stouts, ales, etc., are aged in metal.
According to the Serious eats web site, "These days, brewing equipment made of metal is commonplace. From efficient copper kettles to stainless steel fermenters." This was not always the case; "for thousands of years, beers were not only aged in wood but brewed, fermented, and transported in wood, too. Oak was durable and portable, but it also came with its share of downsides. Wooden barrels are expensive and labor intensive to make, so brewers needed to reuse a barrel multiple times. They're incredibly difficult to clean and because of oak's porous texture, barrels make a great home for spoilers like bacteria and wild yeast" the site relates.
The Beer Advocate contains a user-provided list of beers known to the users to be aged in former wine casks.
The list probably is not “all inclusive,” new “craft” beers appear almost daily.
The Men's Journal lists The 25 Best Barrel-Aged Beers to Try - by definition, all are aged in barrels formerly used by other beverages. Of the 25, the following samples are aged in former wine casks:
- Melange a Trois (chardonnay)
Harvest Ale (various wines & scotch)
Hair of the Dog (rum and brandy)
Firestone Walker Brewing (California wines)
Go to the Men's Journal web site (ibid) for additional beers.
The following beers are aged in barrels never used for wines or other whiskies.
- Cask Aged Tripel (a wheat whiskey)
Lost Abbey (Bourbon)
Allagash's Curieux (former Jim Beam barrels)
Backwoods Bastard (Bourbon)
Hair of the Dog (American oak)
Bourbon Barrel Quad (Bourbon)
Go to the Men's Journal web site (ibid) for additional beers.
Book information
American Whiskey Bourbon & Rye by Clay Risen
ISBN-13:9781454916888, Publisher: Sterling Epicure, 10/27/2015
Wine barrel Bourbon web sites
(In no particular order)
Port Barrel Finished Bourbons: The Tasty Treats They Are
Amador Whiskey Co. Double Barrel
Parker’s Heritage Collection (Heaven Hill): "The barrels selected for this series include Bourbon, rye and wheat whiskeys, among others."
Wine aged beers web sites
(In no particular order)
