Alongside the bourbon boom of the last decade has come a technological revolution in U.S. barrel making, led by Missouri-based Independent Stave, the world’s largest barrel manufacturer.

Barrel Making. After the wood for a barrel is cut and dried, the cooper heats the wood while shaping it into a barrel. Steam, natural gas, ... (the warming stage) is called chauffage, the bending of ...

High-quality grapes may be the key component to making fine wine, but prime oak barrels are another critical ingredient. Winemakers today trace their the characteristics of their barrels to the ...

If there were thousands of coopers — barrel-makers — in America 100 years ago, enough to have a Coopers Union and a monthly publication dedicated to barrel-making news, it’s basically a vanished art ...

At this point the bottom staves still aren’t pulled side-by-side or fitted with a hoop, and he must put the barrel in a steam oven for about an hour to make the wood malleable, then use a winch ...

Create an account or log in to save stories. Jake Karasch wraps a metal cable around the top of a barrel at Black Swan Cooperage in Osage, Minn., June 8, 2011. Once the cable is in place, Karasch ...

Why the barrel is important to bourbon. The depth of the charring on the inside, the degree of toasting of the wooden staves, even the amount of surface area exposed to the newly distilled spirit ...

Hermès Just Released a $1,125 Dog Bowl Crafted Using Barrel-Making Techniques Inspired by the fashion house's signature motif, the dish is made from oak wood and has two inner stainless steel ...

“60 Minutes” will air a piece on April 6 on Kentucky’s barrel making industry, a key part of the bourbon aging process. Provided The award-winning CBS news show “60 Minutes” apparently ...