Wood & Beer by Dick Cantwell & Peter Bouckaert

Author:Dick Cantwell & Peter Bouckaert [Cantwell, Dick]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: CKB007000 Cooking / Beverages / Beer
ISBN: 978-1-938469-38-1
Publisher: Brewers Publications
Published: 2016-05-17T04:00:00+00:00

Rehydration of Foeders

Foeders should be kept filled at your brewery. This will keep them hydrated and in good shape. When emptied of beer they should be filled with KMS (potassium metabisulfate) solution. Given the seasonal nature of wine production, foeders in wineries are often kept dry for months between uses. Ambient humidity in such situations should be kept above 70%. Even so, rehydration is undertaken a couple of weeks before harvest, with good, chlorine-free water at 20–30°C. This applies, of course, to your own rehydration prior to the introduction of beer.

A few years ago New Belgium took delivery of several used foeders in April, but the area in which they were to be installed would not have floor drains until November. In the meantime they were stored empty in a dry warehouse nearby that also had no drains. By the time they were ready for installation they had each lost a thousand pounds in weight due to drying. Colorado is drier than many places, of course, but the fact is striking, nonetheless. As a side note, New Belgium blender and cellarman extraordinaire Eric Salazar has since observed enhanced oak character in beer aged in these foeders, due, no doubt, to new surface having been exposed during drying and subsequent contraction.

As observed, putting vertical foeders up dry can be risky. Tank bottoms can shrink to an oval as wood shortens inconsistently as it dries. Support of the bottom is also critical, and the fit of the bottom into the staves can be compromised, as greater shrinkage will occur along the year rings and medullary rays than along the length of the stave. This can also create a dangerous situation, as the weight of the foeder is not evenly supported. If the fit is not sound when rehydration occurs, and the lower hoop is tight, the expanding bottom has nowhere to go. One possible solution is the placement of a car jack—or two, across from each other—along the side staves to take the weight off the bottom sufficiently to allow the bottom to pop back into place. This two-jack method is also used at Rodenbach to shimmy tanks incrementally into place. Better to keep foeders hydrated and everything where it belongs.

Not surprisingly, the ceiling of the foeder is liable to be its driest place, and in drying these staves, too, may come out of the top croze. It may be possible to push upward from inside to get the head/ceiling to reseat, or if there are bolts or eyes installed on the top, to pull upward to the same effect.

When hydrating, close all manways, doors, valves, and ports. Fill the foeder as best you can with some water and recirculate with a pump and top sprayball so that all walls are covered—two hours on and two hours off until the bottom holds liquid. At Anchorage Brewing they run a hot water (180°F/82°C) CIP loop overnight. When the bottom no longer leaks, fill the foeder to somewhere below the side manway. Check the croze for leaks.

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