Flex tank Fermenters?

[Charlie]

Flex tank USA. I am curious if anyone has any experience with this company? Is there other companys simular to this? I also notice the sell aging tanks. How do you think this would be aging spirits in a HDPE tank? Let me know what you think.

Thanks,

Charlie

[will]

Charlie,

Might be worth an experiment, especially if funded by a company with lots of money to throw around.

...and you already understand that you would not be able to call the stuff whiskey, right? (HDPE is not oak - might work for brandy, rum, etc.) Wood added to vessels is flavoring, which must be disclosed on the label, and, HDPE is likely to be more expensive than oak barrels...though it might last longer too.

Good luck,

Will

[Spirit of Texas Brad]

Charlie,

Might be worth an experiment, especially if funded by a company with lots of money to throw around.

...and you already understand that you would not be able to call the stuff whiskey, right? (HDPE is not oak - might work for brandy, rum, etc.) Wood added to vessels is flavoring, which must be disclosed on the label, and, HDPE is likely to be more expensive than oak barrels...though it might last longer too.

Good luck,

Will

Is the rule for disclosure of flavoring on the label less than 2.5% by weight? This of course applies to brandy, rum, etc. Not whisky.

[Copperstill]

Its funny you ask about the flex tanks. I have kept my eye on these for quite some time now. To date they have no data on aging spirits in them although a while back one of their reps told me that Diagio(sp) had bought some tanks (implying that if Diagio bought them I should too). So two weeks ago I asked the rep at the unified wine symposium if they had heard back from the big “D”. He said “no and probably would never hear anything from them being their a big corp. and they keep their secrets”. Also the tanks aren’t HDPE they are a blend of low-density plastics that’s how they can oxidize what ever is in them. Having worked with HDPE and seen what spirit does to it after time I ‘m not sure I would use flex tanks myself. I also know some guys that have bought them to make wine and hated them said they caused all sorts of fermentation problems. Hope that helps. Pure and simple wood is best.

Charlie,

Might be worth an experiment, especially if funded by a company with lots of money to throw around.

...and you already understand that you would not be able to call the stuff whiskey, right? (HDPE is not oak - might work for brandy, rum, etc.) Wood added to vessels is flavoring, which must be disclosed on the label, and, HDPE is likely to be more expensive than oak barrels...though it might last longer too.

Good luck,

Will

[Copperstill]

HDPE is likely to be more expensive than oak barrels...though it might last longer too.

Good luck,

Will

In the last distillery I worked at we had barrels that were still being used that were around 100 years old. Wood is good.