Craft Beer & Brewing Course
The Mechanics of Barrel Aging with Avery Brewing
In this pro course, Avery Brewing Barrel Herder Andy Parker walks you through the ins and outs of receiving, preparing, filling, and emptying barrels with practical tips and equipment recommendations throughout.
Sign in to check your access · or buy this course for $29.99
This course is intended for operating or aspiring commercial breweries.
Avery Brewing (Boulder, Colorado) is known for its “extreme” barrel-aged beers, such as its 19 percent ABV 5 Monks “Quintuple,” so it’s no surprise that the man behind this madness, barrel-aging guru Andy Parker, has the knowledge to teach you how to:
- Evaluate and treat new/used barrels
- Reuse barrels
- Select barrels
- Rinse, prepare, and fill barrels
- Select your bung
- Deal with leaks
- Determine aging times and conditions
- Taste your barrels
- Debarrel and blend
- and much more!
About the Instructor
As “chief barrel herder” for Avery Brewing Co., Andy Parker oversees one of the more expansive barrel-aging programs of any brewery in the US, producing both clean and sour hits like the bourbon barrel-aged Uncle Jacob’s Stout as well as their new widely-distributed Raspberry Sour. Parker is well-known among professional brewers as a consummate brewer’s brewer, with a deep knowledge of mixed-culture fermentation and a finely honed palate. Despite his penchant for brewing 15%+ barrel-aged stouts, Parker consumes more pilsner than any other style of beer.
Course contents
6 chapters, 22 lessons, 57m of video
Chapter 1
Course Introduction
- Avery's Barrel Program10:44
- Course Introduction1:18
Chapter 2
Receiving Barrels
- Evaluating and Treating Barrels4:30
- Reusing Barrels 3:01
- Receiving Barrels Wrap-Up2:23
- Fresh Is Best
Chapter 3
Filling Barrels
- Rinsing, Preparing, and Filling Your Barrels6:23
- Selecting Your Bung1:57
- Dealing with Leaks2:12
- Aging In Barrels6:53
- Topping Off Barrels1:16
- Tasting Your Barrels3:37
Chapter 4
Debarreling
- Debarreling9:21
- Example Setup2:09
Chapter 5
Barrel Aging Tips for Homebrewers
- Where to Get a Barrel
- What’s Good for the Goose
- Taste It, But Be Patient
- Getting the Most Out of Fruit Additions
- Preventing Infection
- Blend It
Chapter 6
Wrap Up
- Takeaways1:07
- Thank You
What students say
Great Course!
Really educational information on so many things that are important with barrel aging. Procurement of barrels, screening barrels, hydration, sampling, filling, de-barreling, minimizing O2, and just general storage/aging recommendations with humidity and temp. Great job!
Everything You Need to Barrel Age
This class did not disappoint. I find that the best classes on Craft Beer & Brewing are taught by those brewing beer on a commercial level. This one was no exception. I feel like I can go out and barrel age anything right now after this class.
LOVED IT!
Thank you so much. This course was wicked informative and I greatly enjoyed it.
Show all 22 reviews
This class did not disappoint. I find that the best classes on Craft Beer & Brewing are taught by those brewing beer on a commercial level. This one was no exception. I feel like I can go out and barrel age anything right now after this class.
Great Class
Our brewery is interested in learning to barrel age and this class gave us many valuable things to think about and remember.
Very Useful Course
Avery Rocks
Andy Parker is a great tour guide of the barrel aging process. Very practical, step by step instruction on how to get beer into barrels, manage them properly, and debarrel into tanks.
Great starting point for anyone thinking about a barrel program
Good job at covering the basics as well as a bunch of lessons learned and practical advise.
It all makes so much sense
This really got our heads around the whole process, Great!
Very usefull
Very clear and helpfull
I Learned a Lot
Thank you for this course, I'm only beginning my barrel aging journey and this course was very helpful.
Very Informative and Fun
I really enjoyed this course because of the knowledge Andy Parker has. I have been tasked with taking over the barrel aging program at my current brewery and I was a little rusty. I feel more confident moving forward. Would love to see other videos with him. Unrelated: Great sense of humor
Aging does not mean long
Love the tips. When its ready , keg it and drink it.
Lots of good information
Amazing course with step-by-step explanation for starting or scaling up your BA-projects.
Barrel Aging, an excellent desciption.
Avery's Andrew is dedicated in describing the mechanics of utilizing oak barrels in beer brewing.
Awesomeness
Great stuff!
The Mechanics of Barrel Aging with Avery Brewing
Great video! Andy is so natural in front of the camera, keeps it moving and flowing with great knowledge pouring all over the place. Love the organization and pace. I feel much more confident in barrel aging after watching this course.
The Mechanics of Barrel Aging with Avery Brewing
very good
good piece of information
Love the forwardness of this course
Most Breweries wont talk about the mistakes and things they learned from, and I love that Avery Brewing did this. Great course and great things to learn from!
Brewski
I have never barrel aged my self so this was very helpful