THE BEGINNINGS
- Of Bavarian Brewery
THE BEGINNINGS
- Of Bavarian Brewery
ADS - From Newspapers
BARRELS, KEGS, CASKS, VATS, TANKS...
It is believed that wooden barrels or casks may have been made as long as 2,000 years ago by the Celtics. These wooden containers were adopted by the Gauls and then by the Romans, replacing clay and ceramic containers known as amorphaes, which would break more easily and were somewhat awkward to move. In comparison, the barrels broke less often and their round shape allowed them to be rolled, making them easier to move. They could also be stacked. Such barrels or casks were originally used for food, liquids, gun powder and other purposes. The use of tar allowed these vessels to be waterproof. They were used for wine by the Romans, and possibly beer. The oldest surviving beer barrel used in Europe dates from the 1500s, over 500 years ago. The making of barrels is known as cooperage, and people working in this trade are known as coopers.
COMPONENTS OF OAK BARRELS, KEGS...
There are several different parts to a wood barrel or cask. The main component are wood "staves" which are held in place by galvanized metal strips or bands called "hoops." A diagram showing the components of a barrel is on the side. Not shown on the diagram is that there can also be a hole on the head near the croze of chime for a spigot or valve to drain liquids from the barrel when it rests on its side. The head can also contain a hole off-centered on that allows for liquid to be accessed when the barrel is upright (as shown) with a metal tube that extends to the bottom connected to a handle and spout, and with pressure to draw out the liquid possibly from the assistance of CO2 canister or cartridge. An example of this is shown in a photo below.
BARRELS
Often the above terms barrels, casks, kegs, vats, etc., are used interchangeably. They can also be called vessels. Technically, however, there are some differences among the terms as explained below.
A barrel is a standard measurement that can be dry or fluid, and it can vary in size and weight depending upon the product. The size of barrels varies between countries. For instance, in the U.S. the standard beer barrel is 31 gallons, but in the UK a beer barrel is slightly larger. The capacities and sizes of barrels for other alcoholic beverages is greater, with a bourbon barrel containing 52 gallons, a wine barrel ordinarily with 59 gallons and a cognac barrel with 79 gallons. Usually wood barrels in the U.S. are made of white oak, whereas, in Europe barrels are made of French oak. The materials are similar, but the French Oak requires more time to treat and prepare for barrel making. Barrels for bourbon are charred on the inside and never reused for making that liquor. However, micro-breweries often age and flavor beer using these once used bourbon barrels.
Wood barrels were used for beer and ale in America beginning with the first settlers through the early 20th Century. Not until shortly after Prohibition around 1940 were metal barrels more commonly used, and wood barrels were gradually phased out. The larger vats or tanks could be glass lined to make them more sanitary and easier to clean while requiring less maintenance than wood containers.
The accompanying photos show how beer barrels were stored, filled, washed, distributed and tapped at the Bavarian Brewing Co. in the late 1940s.The first photo is of wood kegs stacked near the Wash Room and the next photo shows barrels entering the Wash Room of the brewery. The other photos include an interior picture on the lower left shown the Rack Room where wood barrels being filled in the foreground, along with metal barrels are in the background, a customer buying barrels of Bavarian's that is being rolled out to his vehicle and a photo of a beer tap, which was was inserted on the "head" or top of a barrel. The close up photo of the middle section of the tap indicates it was made for the Bavarian Brewing Co.
The photos below are the heads of wooden barrels for Bavarian Beer. The first barrel lid below is from the barrel below it and was provided courtesy of Dave Gausepohl. Next to it is a bunge stopper from the same barrel. The other two barrel lids are the top and bottom of different quarter barrels, and were supplied courtesy of Gary Schmeh.
The head of the first lid and the bung above is from the first barrel below. The other lids above are from similar, but likely older barrels. The second barrel below, including its head, is of a wooden Student Prince barrel from the late 1930s or 1940s from Heidelberg Brewing Co., which Bavarian Brewing Co. acquired in 1949. The last barrel below is a metal barrel used in the late 1940s or early 1950s, which was when beer barrels of metal were placing those of wood. The photo further above of a man rolling a barrel is one that is similar to the one in this last photo.
Today, beer barrels or kegs are either stainless steel or aluminum, and normally of the former material. To distinguish between the two, a magnet will not be attracted to aluminum, but it will with stainless steel. Neither affect the taste of the beer. If beer does taste metallic, it is normally because of the corrosion of metal pipes used at the brewery. Since stainless steel is heavier and more expensive than aluminum, cans of beer are always made of aluminum.
Craft barrel-aging breweries sometimes use wood barrels (or casks) that were previously used for either whiskey or wine. Aging beer in former wood whiskey barrels to flavor the beer is usually done only once or twice. Whereas, wine barrels can be used for flavoring beer much longer. In order for craft breweries to use such barrels, it is normally necessary to obtain them directly after they are used by whiskey or wine makers and before the barrels "dry out." The normal cleaning process for the interior of barrels by craft brewers can involve steam or soaking them in hot water, which may also reduce some of the flavor the barrels impart. The aging process for beer can take a couple months to up several years. Barrel beer can age with different taste characteristics, and is sometimes blended with other barrels for fuller and more balanced qualities, as are whiskey and wine. Craft breweries using wood barrels do so to obtain more varied types of beer with different characteristics. This is a major difference between craft breweries and the largest breweries. Even though the large brewers continue to mostly produce a standard tasting lager beer, they are providing different variations of their main beers, and new varieties, in order to better compete with microbreweries and to satisfy the more varied tastes of beer consumers.
KEGS
A keg typically a half barrel containing 15.5 gallons in the U.S. However, a A European Keg (Import or 50 Liter Keg) contains somewhat less than an American Keg, with 13.2 gallons.
There are other smaller containers as noted below, which can also include the term keg.
A Tall Pony Keg (Slim Quarter or Tall Quarter Keg), contains 7.75 gallons.
A Short Pony (Stubby or Quarter Keg) has a rather short height, but also contains 7.75 gallons.
Incidentally, a Pony Keg is also a colloquial term for a drive-thru liquor store, primarily only in the Cincinnati area.
A Torpedo (Sixth Barrel or Sixtel Keg), contains 5.16 gallons.
A Cornelius Keg (Corney Keg or Soda Keg) is just slightly smaller with 5.0 gallons.
This keg is also used by soda companies, and reflected by one of its names.
A Mini Keg (or Bubba Keg) is the smallest of the kegs with only 1.32 gallons. (It is not shown below.)
The diagram above is supplied courtesy of Barfly Staff Monitoring Service.
BARREL & KEG CAPS
To protect the connection on a metal keg with a tap, and to indicate the alcoholic content, a keg cap was used. The Bavarian's Old Style cap in red on the right was used from around 1950 until 1957. The Bavarian's Select caps below were used from 1957 until 1966. The different color caps apparently differentiated between the two different taxes (and alcohol content) for Ohio and a another tax (with with only one alcohol content) for Kentucky.
CASKS
There are numerous sizes of casks, and they can be larger or smaller than a "standard" barrel. Standard size English Casks are shown on the side.
Regarding the reference to "cask ale," it does not mean a size. Rather, it means the ale has not been pasteurized as it has in kegs, and it actually still in the process of fermentation. Consequently, cask ale normally has less carbonation. Such ale is much more common in Britain than in America.
VATS and TANKS
Large vessels used for storage or fermentation may be called barrels or casks, but they are often called vats or tanks in order to differentiate their larger size. For example, fermenting vessels (FVs) are also often called fermentation tanks. Before and shortly after Prohibition, such larger vessels were made of wood. Storage vats containing 300 barrels from photos taken around 1900 are shown below.
The first photo above contains workers in the Storage Cellars at the Bavarian Brewing Co. alongside the barrels of the same size as in the next photo, c. 1900. The following photo shows beer storage tanks with a capacity of 300 barrels each after they were made at the J.M. Schott Cooperage Co. c. 1900. J.M. Schott is on the far right and his two oldest sons Chris and John. (For more photos of this firm see the Schott Family.) The last photo above was take a few decades later, around 1940, and shows the wood fermentation tanks in the Bavarian Brewery.
Similar as with beer barrels, the larger fermenting tanks and storage vats also began became metal and glass lined in the 1940s, replacing those made of wood. Metal tanks used at the Bavarian Brewery, including one that was being installed, are shown in the accompanying photos
The first photo above shows metal glass lined beer storage tanks with a capacity of 210 barrels each in the Bavarian Brewery Stock House. The other photo shows the installation of one of five 240 barrel tanks that was being installed in the Government Cellar of the Bottling House in the 1940s. (For more photos of this installation see 8A. Brewing Equipment.)
