neutral barrel

[Barrel Aging]
A Neutral Barrel is a barrel in which lost much of its flavoring ability from prior repeated use of the barrelwhich draw out much of the wood’s raw character before it accepts the Beverage. Furthermore, wood is porous and admits a slow trickle of oxygen over time. That oxygen, along with certain sugars within the wood itself, provides a cozy environment for Brettanomyces. Beverages may still be fermented or aged in such barrels, which allow the slow introduction of oxygen into them. Such aging tends to soften the beverage, without adding the usual wood flavor, but it can introduce a wild yeast taste.