Getting Started: Curing Your Oak Barrel

Aging Spirits in a Small Oak Barrel

Our distillery-grade oak barrels are made using premium virgin American Oak sourced from across the US, including California, Missouri, and Kentucky. We char them to medium, which we've found to be the best at aging spirits and adding flavor to them.

We understand you are beaming with excitement; however, before using your barrel, you need to cure the barrel. Skipping this step will result in lost spirits.

STEP 1 - CURE YOUR BARREL

Rinse your barrel 3-4 times to remove any loose charred wood debris. Fill it, cover the holes, shake it, and empty it. Don't worry if it all doesn't come out.

Insert the spigot on the front of the barrel and tap with a hammer firmly to secure it in place, just tight enough to seal it. DO NOT HAMMER THE SPIGOT WITH FULL FORCE.

Insert the spigot in the hole on the face of the barrel head. You can lightly tap it in with a rubber mallet or twist it tightly into position by hand.

Fill your barrel with HOT water from the tap and insert the bung. Bung should be inserted at a 45-degree angle while twisting and pressing against the hole. Place the barrel on the stand with the spigot towards the ceiling while curing. You can use room-temperature water if you need to top it off due to leaking.

Keep it full until the leaking ceases. (All barrels leak when you first fill them). Curing may take as little as a few hours or as long as a week or more. If you get the outside of the barrel wet (either by you or from the leaking), it is good to dry it off quickly to help keep it looking nice.

IMPORTANT: Contact us with pics at Cheers@BlindPigDrinkingCo.com if still leaking after a week. Almost all occurences will be resolved by either put in barrel wax in the affected area or replacing a spigot. The pictures help us diagnose the issue for you.

STEP 2 - AGE YOUR LIQUOR

It's time to start aging your liquor! Remove the bung and pour the water out through the bung hole to empty the water. Open the spigot to assist with airflow.

Place your barrel back on the aging stand and make sure the spigot is in the off position (far left or right).

Aging Store-Bought Brands - Empty your favorite brand spirit bottle into the barrel and insert the bung back.

Making Your Own Spirits - Pour your neutral spirit (flavorless vodka or moonshine) into the barrel with any essence or flavors you like to age. One bottle of essence per 750ml. Give it a shake to mix it up.

Start tasting the spirit after about two weeks. Taste regularly, but once the taste is how you like it, remove it from the barrel, decant it into a bottle to stop aging and maintain that flavor profile.

Make your next batch or store your barrel with the storing tablets!

NEVER ALLOW YOUR BARREL TO DRY OUT. IT MAY NOT SEAL AGAIN! ONCE WET, ALWAYS WET!