We all like to be different, to stand out amongst the crowd and be noticed. This sentiment holds true for the beverages we choose to both consume and produce – particularly when it comes to spirits.
Introducing Our Small Batch Toasted Barrels
In 2019, ISC Barrels officially rolled out four toasted barrels in our Small Batch Series. Named after the characteristics they impart, these barrels are; Smoke 1, Spice 1, Sweet 1 and Sweet 2.
New Kentucky Cooperage Visitor Center
New Visitor Center Now Open at Kentucky Cooperage We have been hard at work the past few months improving our visitor experience at Kentucky Cooperage and are excited to announce that the new Visitor Center is now open. Ann Daugherty, Kentucky Cooperage Tour Guide Each year thousands of people tour …
Using Oak Alternatives in Spirits
When used in conjunction with barrel aging, oak alternatives are a natural way to use 100% oak to access a new spectrum of flavors which can enhance and improve the complexity of a spirit.
Bourbon Barrel Aged Wines
Most of you who follow the ISC Barrels blog post are familiar with the use of new charred oak barrels in the bourbon making process. Many of you also know that once the aged bourbon is dumped, the barrel can no longer be used for bourbon production and is sold to another producer to start a new life.
Product Profile: Small Batch Spiral Cut Barrel
After charring, we follow a proprietary process to cut spirals throughout the inside of the barrel, significantly increasing the surface area to allow aging spirits access to alternating layers of char and white oak.
Introducing the High Proof Series from Oak Solutions Group
The spirits industry is on fire. Large distilleries are expanding, the craft spirits industry continues to grow at a rapid pace and consumers are thirsty for knowledge. The innovation and experimentation currently taking place within the industry is unprecedented.
Partnering with American Forests
Independent Stave Company and American Forests have launched a one of-its-kind Oak Restoration Fund to invest in key projects that ensure the sustainability of oak forests.
Independent Stave Company is passionate about sustainable forest management. Partnerships with organizations like American Forests are important to us to continue finding ways to translate this passion into action.
Product Profile: Finishing Products
Whether you’re barrel aging and looking for another oak component or working with a spirit that needs a different oak profile, finishing products can help you achieve your desired results.
Barrels + Beer
I am always surprised how many people are unaware of the role that oak barrels play in the craft beer industry. People often tell me that they thought only wine, or bourbon and scotch aged in barrels.
The Role of Oxygenation in Barrel Aged Spirits Part II
In Oxygenation Part I, we discussed different variables that influence the rate of oxygenation during the maturation period. In this post, we switch gears and focus on what kind of reactions we can expect to see as a product of the oxygenation process.
ISC Barrels Attends 2018 American Craft Spirits Association Convention
From March 4-6 our ISC Barrels team visited the city of Pittsburgh for the fifth annual American Craft Spirits Association Convention and Tradeshow. The convention boasts the largest gathering of licensed craft spirits producers in the U.S. – so we were in good company!
Product Profile: Small Batch Wave Stave Barrel
Offered in limited quantities, our Small Batch barrels combine innovation and technology to bring out the best in your spirits.
Oxygenation Part 1
Flavor development in barrel aged spirits is a complex process. As coopers, our focus is on oak extractives and their role in flavor development. We study the perception of those oak extractives in spirits and what we can do to heighten or mask their perception.
Product Profile: Cooper’s Reserve Barrel
Our Cooper’s Reserve barrel brings creativity to the forefront, allowing distillers to create a fully customized barrel tailored to their spirit. Here, the focus is on flavor, using wood type, seasoning, and an extensive range of toast options to achieve specific goals for each mash bill.
Sensory Panel Introduction
Sensory analysis is a critical aspect of research and development at ISC. Each year we lay down new experimental barrels and our sensory panel provides our team with data to track the performance of each barrel. In conjunction with chemical analysis, we rely on this sensory data to maintain barrel quality, develop new products, and test new flavor possibilities.
Product Profile: Classic Barrel
Our Classic barrel has been around for decades, earning it a reputation as the go-to barrel for distillers around the world. With char and toasting options, the Classic barrel can be customized to your specifications.
Product Profile: Cooper’s Select
Product Profile: Cooper’s SelectOur Cooper’s Select barrel was developed to allow distillers the opportunity to explore additional flavor characteristics for premium spirits. The extended seasoning of the staves used in our Cooper’s Select barrel allows natural elements (light, humidity and fungal activity) to facilitate changes to the oak chemistry. This …
Barrel Profiling – Part I
Historically, the benefits of aging spirits in charred barrels was discovered by accident. Intense heat was used in both barrel construction and as a way to cleanse the barrel after use. Through one or both of these processes, it was realized that storing beverage alcohol in oak containers that had been subjected to heat yielded a much more palatable drink.
Oak Species for Cooperage
Oak is an excellent choice for crafting spirits barrels. Why? It contributes a wide variety of desirable flavors, it is ring porous allowing the oak extractives to be more accessible, and oak is liquid tight when quartersawn (American oak) or split along the grain (French/European oak).