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Re: Cooperage Tour

Unread postPosted: Wed Jul 08, 2009 1:57 am
by cowdery
Why would walnut be considered any different than poplar or oak? It's supposed to be stored in oak barrels. The bung is not specified. I don't think you can construe a walnut bung as an additive.

Sec. 5.23, Alteration of class and type, is more complicated than it looks. Although "(no) material whatsoever in the case of ... straight whiskey," seems pretty cut and dry, I don't think you can stretch it to include a walnut bung.

Re: Cooperage Tour

Unread postPosted: Wed Nov 04, 2009 6:10 pm
by jvanwilligen
The images were an excellent addition. Very interesting.

Re: Cooperage Tour

Unread postPosted: Thu Nov 05, 2009 10:42 am
by p_elliott
The reason Markers Mark uses walnut bungs instead of poplar is because they frequently remove the bung to sample the barrel. Poplar bungs have to be drilled out, walnut bungs don't swell up and can be knocked out and put back in place.

Re: Cooperage Tour

Unread postPosted: Thu Nov 05, 2009 12:55 pm
by cowdery
Poplar bungs don't necessarily have to be drilled out, but they are soft and don't survive being removed and replaced several times. That's why most distilleries only remove them to dump the barrel and take samples via holes drilled into the barrel head.