From Acorn to Artwork: the story of a barrel
If you’re planning to ‘roll out the barrel’ or even just have a ‘barrel of fun’ why not stop a minute and think about what has gone into that barrel? No, we don’t mean the liquor, delicious as that might be, but all the things that happened before the drink could be put in there. What kind of journey has that wooden cask been on before it ends up either in a warehouse, behind a bar, or as the basis for an English language idiom?
Of course, some might say it’s irrelevant, that a barrel’s history has no connection with its functionality. But here at VintageOak.co.uk, we disagree. We think a barrel’s history, like the history of many object, has helped to shape its passage through this world – and it’s that very history we try to preserve.
‘Mighty oaks from little acorns grow’
It all starts with a tree: specifically an oak tree (if we’re being pedantic, I suppose we should start with an acorn, but that would take too long – it can take 100–150 years for an oak tree to mature) so we’ll fast forward a few years to a beautiful, full-grown oak, ready to harvest. There’s one about twenty paces from the path that looks suitable: dappled green leaves shimmering emerald, olive, jade; a stout, sturdy trunk; perhaps the hint of new acorns in bud, the promise of the future. Our tree is probably an American white oak, native to eastern and central North America and possessing a good tight grain – perfect for use as a liquid container.
You might wonder why oak is the preferred wood for barrels, as historically numerous varieties of wood have been used including such disparate species as cherry, pine and walnut. Although these alternative woods are equally suited to barrel-making (a process known as cooperage, which we shall discuss in greater detail forthwith), oak’s natural chemical composition endears it to wine- and spirit-makers thanks to its tendency to soften the quality of the alcohol, making it smoother to drink and adding a further depth and complexity that the alcohol cannot develop on its own.
Of course, not all drinks are suited to oak – a few notable exceptions include delicate wines such as Rieslings, which are stored in metal casks to prevent any further flavours infusing with them. The same is true for crisp white wines, whose sharp bite would be excessively mellowed if stored in oak. However, oak is the perfect storage material for many spirits – most famously, perhaps, Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Bourbon.
American law stipulates that bourbon whisky (which is to say, whisky made using corn rather than rye) can only be matured in new white oak barrels. Sadly, this is not particularly environmentally friendly, as a whole white oak tree is required to make just one barrel. Luckily, though, other spirits can be stored in a good barrel up to 3 times and, well cared for, the barrel itself can last 70 years or more – giving a new oak tree plenty of time to grow.
‘I think the bottom of the barrel is where the answers are’
The person responsible for the transformation of our tree from a tall, leafy forest dweller to a sleek yet squat barrel is a magician of the highest order – a cooper. Barrels as we know them have been produced this way for centuries – indeed, the first barrels are thought to be of Celtic origin around 350BC – and therefore the profession of cooper has undoubtedly been in existence for an equally lengthy time.
The name derives from the Latin cupa, meaning cask or barrel, and historically coopers produced a range of wooden containers such as buckets and troughs. There were traditionally four types of cooper: ‘dry’ coopers, who produced casks for transporting dry goods e.g. cereals, vegetables; ‘dry-tight’ whose casks kept moisture out (ideal for the storage of flour and gunpowder); ‘white’ for those coopers whose containers were designed to hold liquids for use, e.g. washtubs and butter churns, but did not allow for storage; and ‘wet-tight’ whose casks transported liquids, even under pressure. It is this final cooper whose work we are most interested in.
The cooper is responsible for splitting our white oak wood into 33 staves (often by hand) which are then seasoned for up to two years before they are ready to be shaped. This allows the majority of the tannins to be released, so they do not seep into the goods stored in the barrel. Our cooper will have trained for years to reach this level of skill, first as an apprentice, then as a journeyman, before possibly progressing to be a master cooper with his own business. Every step of the process is done by hand, with the help of machinery, often using instinctive sight and touch to hone each barrel individually. It is not a process that can be rushed.
Once the staves are ready for use they are placed into a metal ring on the floor, which forms the base, and then gently bent into shape using heat and steam to form the characteristic profile of a barrel. (The unusual shape, incidentally, is intentional, for it allows one man, by careful rolling, to manoeuvre a full barrel that under normal circumstances would require 3 or even 4 men to move.) Metal hoops also help to hold the staves in place. The correct construction of the barrel is paramount, because no sealants are used between the staves – instead they must fit together so neatly as to become watertight through tension alone. This is where the true skills of the cooper are most crucial: no-one wants to see over 40 gallons of whisky all over the distillery floor.
Once our oak tree has assumed the traditional shape of a barrel, the final process is to ‘toast’ the inside with a naked flame, to bring out the wood’s natural sugars. Unsurprisingly this has to be carefully controlled, as the amount of toasting will affect the final flavour of the wine or spirit – not to mention the fire hazard presented by having an open flame inside a wooden product. Jack Daniel’s distillery is so particular about the quality of their barrels and toasting that they have their own on-site cooperage, and produce all their own casks – one of the only distilleries worldwide to do so.
Once our barrel has been toasted, it is sanded down and is finally ready to store its precious cargo. Before we move on to that happy stage in our barrel’s lifetime, however, it is worth pointing out that while we refer to ‘barrels’, this moniker is not always strictly accurate. Barrels are simply a type of cask, and the name is used to denote the quantity of goods that can be stored in it – approximately 190-200 litres, in this case. There are plenty of other cask sizes (and corresponding names) such as Hogsheads, Puncheons, Butts and the titanic Port pipe, storing an incredible 550-600 litres. That said, we shall continue to refer to our wooden containers as barrels for the sake of convenience – and because one of our preferred liquors, the aforementioned Jack Daniel’s whisky, does indeed come in barrels.
For a quick recap and visual representation of the process of barrel-making, take a look at this 6-minute video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3LBGPKgQ2ac&feature=related. Then it’s off to the distillery to find out the use our excellent barrels are being put to first.
‘Too much of anything is bad, but too much good whiskey is barely enough’
Primed and ready, our white oak barrel is in transit and about to undertake its first major performance. If ours is a Jack Daniel’s barrel, the commute is short – just across the road; for other wines or spirits, the journey time is a little longer. Either way, when we arrive, our barrel is one of the first to be filled with the clear, water-like substance that only a connoisseur’s eye would recognise as distilled whisky.
That’s right – the whisky that starts off in our barrel looks nothing like the whisky we see in the bottle. It’s the slow ageing process in our smooth, smoky cask that imparts the golden brown colour we associate with whisky – thanks to the caramelised sugars and charcoal veneer created through toasting. When whisky warms up, it expands far more than wood does, and so some of the alcohol is pushed into the staves – then, when it cools, the alcohol is drawn back into the main body of the barrel, taking some of the wood’s more flavoursome qualities with it. The charcoal also acts like a filter, removing the less desirable flavours and impurities.
Generally speaking, therefore, the longer a spirit (especially whisky) ages in a barrel, the better the flavour will be. By law, bourbon must be aged for a minimum of two years, while Scotch requires 3 years before being bottled and sold. That’s why older whiskies cost so much more – the quality of the spirit in the cask is commensurately higher.
Ageing only takes place in the barrels, though. Small leakages allow oxygen into our own barrel in gradual, miniscule quantities, and oxidisation causes a number of further chemical reactions to improve the whiskey. Once it’s finished its ageing, and is put into a glass bottle, no further oxidisation can take place. The same is true of wines – so there’s no point holding on to a premium bottle of wine in the hopes it will improve with age.
Once our white oak barrel has done its work, letting the intense, rich flavours of the bourbon develop in the gentle, dark cavity of its interior, its role at Jack Daniel’s distillery is done – for as we mentioned earlier, new casks are required by law for each batch of bourbon. But is that the end of the journey for our beloved barrel?
Fear not; there is still plenty of life in our incomparable cask.
‘Often when you think you’re at the end of something, you’re at the beginning of something else.’
And so it is with our barrel. Its white oak is charred, and now perhaps a little discoloured from the smooth bourbon blend that’s been whiling the hours, days and weeks away inside. It might even have suffered a few knocks and bumps; but it’s still perfectly functional. So why should something that still works be discarded?
The simple answer is, it shouldn’t – and it won’t. Like many distilleries, Jack Daniel’s make sure their barrels experience a new lease of life once their time in Tennessee is over. They’re sent far and wide – to Scotch distilleries to harbour yet more tantalising whisky; to beer brewers, who infuse their hopsy beverages with the lingering taste of our bourbon blend; and even to hot sauce manufacturers, who again rely on the delicate whiff of whisky to polish off their latest picante offering. In each case, the barrel may be used and reused several times over a course of years or decades, perhaps by the same company or sometimes shipped across the world, each time to enjoy a new lease of life.
Of course, being refilled with other liquid goods is not the only way to breathe new life into these trusty old vessels. Take our barrels for example where we have created something altogether more intricate.
The cylindrical shape of a barrel lends itself to so many other uses, it’s hard to remember them all. This simple video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0TPq7WQnnWw) encapsulates a lot of the various ways in which barrels can be reused, reinvented and upcycled to create something totally new and unique.
From chairs carved out of the rounded belly of the barrel, to elegant cross-sections mounted on the wall as unusual shelving, barrels suddenly become storage accessories for everything from photo frames to bottoms. Even the garden can be enlivened by the presence of an unusual table, or perhaps a twist on a traditional planter. Even the idea of pet hidey holes, beds or play areas means a humble barrel can find its way into every household with ease, and find new purpose in almost any aspect of life.
After following its adventures at the cooperage and thence a Tennessee distillery, though, we are most interested in what destiny awaits our white oak barrel, waiting patiently for its turn. This barrel, smooth and slightly warm to the touch, as all good wood should be, will surely be used for something where its pale golden grain can be enhanced and shown to best effect.
Its journey has brought it, after many years, to Vintage Oak. But its history is not over and done with – we are simply writing the next chapter. Here in our little workshop, we do indeed make every effort to maintain the integrity of its exquisite texture, the charm of its gentle glow. The lid, emblazoned forever with Jack Daniel’s distinctive brand, must surely take pride of place – sanded and waxed to bring out the natural highlights of the wood, it becomes the focal point of one of our stunning wall clocks.
Each clock is lovingly designed to work with and enhance the existing features of the original barrel – for what better parallel could be drawn than that of a timepiece displaying its own experiences of the passage of time? Our clocks, therefore, tell their own stories.
We only select the best barrels, those who reach us in excellent condition, and preferably those who have been used for unusual or distinctive purposes. Bourbon barrels always carry the distillery mark, a fantastic symbol of their pedigree; port casks infuse their wood with the typical rich, burgundy purple of the port itself, leaving the grain beautifully stained in a way no man-made colour could reproduce.
The hoops are not forgotten – remoulded into intricate designs for candle holders, they add a splash of sophistication to any sideboard or mantlepiece. Every last part of the barrel can be reworked and remodelled, often into several different items.
In this way, the barrel’s final journey is one of comfort and domesticity. It travels back in your car, or on the bus, to the home you’ve picked out for it – whether on the wall of the dining room, a side table in the sitting room, or in pride of place in the hallway – and there it will continue to bring years of happiness and – we hope – at least as much, if not more, enjoyment than its original contents would provide.
So there it is – the history of our barrel, two centuries of existence distilled into a single page. That is the unforgettable heritage of the timber that we use to craft our products. After all the work and care that has been lavished on it over the years, we feel that it is only fitting that it should finally be transformed into a thing of beauty yet still remain true to its functionality. It bears the scars and imperfections from its former lives – but that simply adds to its appeal. Farewell, little white oak barrel. It has been a pleasure knowing you.