New to Barrels..Now Have Some..Advice Please!

[FourSonsBrewing]

I did a lot of research on barrels usage prior to getting some, and think I understand the whole process of steaming, leak testing, filling, etc. Now that I actually have some barrels in front of me, I have a few more questions, mostly about the bungs. The first thing I noticed is the red wine barrels I got do not have bungs, and have masking tape over the hole. Any recommendations on places to buy bungs for this? Secondly, on this bourbon barrel, there is a bung at the top and it appears on the side. Both are in there extremely tight. I assume both of these are supposed to pop out? I tried for a few minutes to pop them open with a screwdriver but was worried about digging into the wood too much. Any advice for this?

[beermkr]

http://www.gwkent.com/catalogsearch/result/?q=barrel+bung

I like these. They have one that has a little captive plug that will allow pressure release and then push in to seal.

I say get a slide hammer and pull the wood ones once you get the new bungs

[enickohasan]

For the stuck in bungs, it's hard to explain exactly but drill a hole through the center of the bung (to release any pressure), then hammer your screwdriver with the grain through the hole. Pry sideways and use the bung itself as the fulcrum. The bung might split into two with the first half popping out, but the second half should come out easily. The bung in the side is an oddity that shows up occasionally. As long as it's in tight, I wouldn't mess with it. But if you pop it out, you can hard hammer a wood bung in the side and you can stand the barrel up and save yourself some space by using the top bung as the new side bung.

The wine barrels I purchase frequently come without bungs. I believe this is because the brokers or whoever pull them to use sulfur sticks on the barrels.

For bungs, I've gone 100% with silicone fermentation bungs from http://www.alasco.com/bungs.htm . They can be hammered in hard, but can still pop up safely if necessary. And they work well for any barrel ferments you plan to do.

[BMan1113VR]

On a side note, that bourbon barrel with a side bung most likely is not a bourbon barrel (well at least not its most recent fill). I'd guess that it is a brandy barrel. We have received quite a few over the years. Originally bourbon barrels, but the brandy producers tend to drill bungs into the head of the barrels as they store them on their heads.

[kabrewku]

Breck Bourbon uses head bungs, their barrels are all second fills from kentucky as well. So this "Bourbon" isn't a true Bourbon. Still delicious though. I personally don't like drilling the bungs since you then have shavings dropping into your barrel if you're not careful, I just hammer my flat head screw driver straight into the bung and pry.

One disadvantage to using your head bung is that it's more likely for the head to dry out as the liquid level drops.

I get my replacement bungs (wood, and solid silicone) from Country Malting Group.

[Chet Sterling]

I agree the bung on the head says nothing as to what the previous contents were. I've seen plenty of bourbon producers store barrels on pallets, rather than racks, and use bungs in the heads. Just leave the head bung in there if it's tight.

As for getting the bungs out, just get a big screwdriver and a dead-blow mallet. Hammer the screwdriver in the middle and pry it out. As mentioned, it may split into two pieces. I have done this many thousands of times.

[tjc27]

A little off topic but do not burn sulfur in the burbon barrel. The fumes from the spirit can ignite.

[MikeS]

As to getting stubborn wooden bungs out of barrels:

I have had success drilling a pilot hole into the bung. (Put a piece of tape around the drill bit as a marker to let you know how deep you can go without going all the way thorough the bung - eliminating the concern of shavings falling into the barrel.) Screw a wide head screw into the hole. Then put a piece of 2x4 or other scrap wood next to the bung to act as a fulcrum, and pull it out with a crowbar.

I often just leave the screws in the bungs and reuse them.

Good luck- Mike

[BMan1113VR]

Breck Bourbon uses head bungs, their barrels are all second fills from kentucky as well. So this "Bourbon" isn't a true Bourbon.

Forgot about the Colorado Distillers as we don't see their barrels too commonly out here. I was talking about first use, new char barrels from traditional bourbon producers, who have their barrels made for them. Very little point in having a brand new barrel made for you with both bungs. Heaven Hill (and Old Fitzgerald stamped), Four Roses, Buffalo Trace, Makers Mark, Wild Turkey, Willet, Jim Beam, Brown-Forman, all the MGPI made products, ect.