Stainless barrels ?

Do you have any idea what those co$t? I can buy European oak cheaper than that! If I were you, I'd take a hard look at food grade plastic drums. They're about 10% the price.

Tom S

Coca-Cola receives many products in 55g s/s barrels with a rubber snap-ring lids. When the plant was here I bought several of these barrels for $35 each. They where usually sold to scrap metal places that specialized in drums, or so I was told. The only problem with them is that the bottom is not smooth around the inside edges and that in there you could get a contamination. First I tried to fill the edge with a weld, but after blowing holes in the side, I had mine cut clean and welded new bottoms on them. Because the metal is so thin this was no easy task.

If you feel new s/s tanks are too expensive, and you are close to milk farming equipment, then here is what I would start looking. My primary fermenters a 40g & 75gal s/s came from a dairy that went out of business. You might not get a perfect vessel. There might be holes for other applications. These can be welded up and ground clean. Just try to get equipment that has a rounded edge.

But as some pointed out, you really should use oak barrels for ageing unless the type of wine does not lend itself for this.

SG Brix-

Thank you SGBRIX;

Yours, and comments from TomS and Starfarms1, are greatly appreciated.

As Tom pointed out (new) SS barrels are outrageously expensive and even the used ones suggested by StarF are beyond what I would like to pay. Your suggestion is closer to what I am looking for even though the bottom seam, as you point out, could be a problem. I'll check with our local (Vancouver) Coca Cola bottler and try to find a dairy changing equipment.

I am currently using US55 gallon, blue plastic barrels with removable tops (very convenient for cleaning), as primaries and for outside racking/cold stabilizing, storage until, about, March. By the end of March the wine is usually suitably cleared to rack into 50 & 54 litre stainless beer kegs. The beer kegs are kept in my "cellar" and usually begin to be tapped by the following October/November (year old wine). By two years the wine is usually running out and we begin working on the next vintage. The beer kegs are pressurized with N2 = wine on tap.

I agree about the oak barrel. I have a Damy, French oak, 210 litre barrel, but cannot use it because I moved onto a floating home (two years ago) and there is no place for the barrel except outside on the dock. Not a good place to keep wine - for many reasons. Know anyone who wants one - Cheap ?

I have a 6' X 9' X 4.5' (high) crawl space in the barge of the flaothome that I am using as a wine cellar for commercial wines and for the 400 litres of my own creation - sometimes called Chateau Weaselpiss - often for good reason.

I am considering a smaller oak barrel, if it will fit in the cellar, but there are problems about cleaning the inevitable spills - a winery, even on my scale, needs a hose and a central drain...

Thanks again,

Roger (in the RainForest)