Hey look what came in the mail today

[west_end]

I got it from barrelsonline.com. I have no reference point for something like this but it seems well made. The 20 liter barrel is $133.00 which included a stand and shipping. I had them not pre drill the spigot and bung. I am pretty sure I do not what a spigot and the bung is so small it's ridicules. They shipped it quick and any email questions where answered quickly


I am going to break it in by fermenting a chardonnay. I will have a second chardonnay that I will oak in it after that. After the chardonnay there will be a series of cabs ready to go.

How may kits can I put through it before the oak flavor is gone?

Thanks

 

[Rocky]

West End, that is a nice looking barrel and a great price. Is that American Oak?

One piece of advice for when you drill the bung hole (and you probably realize this), some of the staves are wider than others. Make sure you find one of the widest to drill. As far as the number of batches that can go through the barrel before the oak flavor is gone, don't be too concerned. My two 23 liter barrels have had 10 or 15 batches through them and I add oak cubes to the barrels now to get more oak flavor. The real benefit in my experience is the micro-oxygenation that improves the wine.

Good luck with your barrel.

 

[tonyt]

Congrats. Great idea starting a chard in it first.

 

[JohnT]

Great looking barrel and what a reasonable price!

Barrels vary, but I would so that you can get viable oak through 5 batches at least. As the barrel see more and more use, you may want to leave the wine in the barrel for longer and longer periods of time..

My suggestion is this...

First two batches.. 4 to 5 weeks,
Next two batches 5 to 6 weeks,
Next two batches 6 to 7 weeks,

(and so on).


Of course your tastes/barrel may vary and the above is not a hard fast rule. I am simply suggesting that as the barrel gives up more and more of its oak, you might want to keep the wine in the barrel for longer and longer periods of time.

 

[west_end]

Rocky are you saying that the hole for the bung should not be so big it is wider then one of the staves. I was going to drill it out to fit a #13 stopper.

 

[ibglowin]

Not sure why you didn't just have them pre drill for the bung unless you have all the right tools and or wanted something different. Looks like a nice barrel from the outside. You will know for sure once you get a bung opening drilled and hydrate it and see how well it seals.

You should get oak for at least 18 months and as far out as 24 months (continuous use). How long the first batches stay in is also dependent on the wine. You would not want to put a Pinot Noir in for 8 weeks right off the bat but a Cab Sauv, Petit Syrah, Merlot etc could go that long. Remember you can always rotate the earlier wines that only get 4-6 weeks back in further down the road to give them more barrel time, micro-ox time, concentration time etc. Do not be in a hurry to bottle!

 

[Boatboy24]

Looks very nice, and you've got some good advice above.

The only thing I will add (and this goes without saying, but you can never be too careful) is make sure that barrel is broken in and sealed up before you put your Chardonnay in there. You do not want a leaky fermentation.

 

[west_end]

well that worked out good

I used a 2" Forstner Drill Bit, it fits a very snug 11.5 Stopper