It's time to pull back the curtain on what our Brewing, Cellar, and Barrel teams have been tirelessly (and secretly) working on since we wrapped up last year's Deep Wood Series. While revealing the beers is not quite drinking-them-right-now good, it comes close when we get to see those first reactions to the new surprises. And we've got some superior ones this year -- apple brandy barrels to finish our lustrous Ryeway, the elevation of Maple Deth (and our partnership with Chicago Maple), and a refined double-barrel stunner we can't wait to start pouring.

Less apparent at first, but more important with each vintage, is the key to everything -- another year spent by our brewers learning, testing, refining, and getting that much closer to their perfect version of barrel-aged beers. We’ve always viewed the Deep Wood Series as a series of stops along a long, winding path. And while we unveil our barrel-aged offerings once a year, each beer in the series is the cumulative result of our years of brewing, aging, and blending different approaches to the world’s finest beverage.

That said, the time is here again to show you what we’ve been excitedly keeping to ourselves for what feels like far too long. It’s almost time to sit down and savor the big, warm beers that make the wait worth it every time. Our team has worked hard to create a curbside release experience that's safe and easy for our friends and our employees, and we're ready to bring that approach to the whole Fall/Winter series. Over the next several months, we'll get these beers into your hands a few at a time so you can appreciate the nuance and thought our team put into each offering.

This year, that amble deep into the wood was more purposeful than ever. There are just north of 1,100 53-gallon bourbon barrels (plus a few fun non-bourbon ones) in our inventory at any one time. They’re in the Taproom stacks, yes, but they’re also in a tarped-off area next to our main cooler, in a few stacks out on the production floor from time to time, and wherever else we can find the real estate for a little more barrel-aged goodness. And while they’re separate in footprint by necessity, they’re more unified in purpose than ever before.

Marty Scott is the Barrel Program Lead for Revolution (though he prefers Secretary of Lumber), and the one tasked with taking the different component brews (some sweet, some dry) and carefully aging them and tracking their progress within the barrels he sources. And he'll be the first to tell you that the popular conception of an "unaged" version of a Deep Wood beer doesn't reflect our production anymore.

"Every single turn from the brewhouse for the Deep Wood program has a purpose. Every time we mash in, we know what that finished product is going to be, whether it's sweet component for extended aging, or a dry component that balances the final product," he said. "That sweet component is the dynamic part of the equation. Barrel selection has ensured that we've constantly got quality barrels with good bourbon and life left in the lumber. And the longer these sweet component barrels sits, the more oak they get, the longer they're oxidizing, the more that increased sugar concentration is going to become evident. They’re like concentrated flavor. We only use enough dry component to hit balance."

In 2019, this approach culminated in a singular vintage of Deth’s Tar that featured four different barrel years. This year's lineup hits with more barrel variety, blend complexity, and stylistic flair than ever – though we’re also bringing back refreshed versions of some of your favorite Deep Wood variants over the years.

"We've really hit lately with traditional beers, engineered for ridiculous amounts of development, complexity and sweetness," Scott said. "Pair that with the improvements we make every year, and this year should be a banner year."

Thanks again for joining us for another relaxing trip into the Deep Wood. We promise you’ll enjoy yourselves.