Many of our customers favor steel wine barrels for smaller or experimental wine batches. The ease of sanitizing stainless steel combined with the range of barrel sizes available grants them a freedom to play, to experiment and sample a batch prior to committing to a full stock.
The use of stainless drums in this process can be made more efficient when choosing a smaller container for these initial batches. At about 1/3 the cost of a 55 gallon stainless steel drum, our 5, 10 and 16 gallon stainless drums replicate all the features of their larger counterparts but require less raw materials. These smaller drums also offer the 2″ Tri-Clover fitting located in the body center.
A smaller, reusable container means less waste if the batch doesn’t turn out stock-worthy or if the wine contains more expensive or limited ingredients that the winery can’t afford to utilize in a large scale batch.