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HELP CENTER

Sales & Shipping

We offer shipping throughout the USA and Canada. We can offer shipping internationally for bulk orders; please contact us for information about international shipping rates.

Each of our barrels are hand-crafted at the time of ordering. This ensures that you are receiving a fresh product. Please allow up to 7 days to craft your barrel and 2-4 days for Purolator delivery.

Our proudly Canadian cooperage is located in Carp, Ont., where we craft all our 5 and 53 gallon barrels out of Quercus alba, American white oak.


Our goal is to provide you with 100% made-in-Canada barrels and we’re working on it. In the meantime, we’re working with multiple suppliers and manufacturers in Canada, the United States and Mexico to get you what you need — and fast. Depending on the barrel size and type (e.g. bourbon barrels), and if the demand is high, we may source your barrel from our team of cooperages in North America to get you barrel aging in no time.

We accept most major credit cards and PayPal.

Please see our page about adding an image for engraving your oak barrel.

If you need help creating a design, our team can create a design based on your ideas. Our design team will reach out within 1-3 days for approval.

If for any reason you are not happy with your purchase you may return it within 30 days of initial delivery and receive a complete refund. Please note original shipping charges as well as return shipping charges are not refunded.


Faulty barrels and/or parts that are covered under the manufacturer’s warranty will be replaced at no extra cost.


Barrels that have been used beyond the curing process, personalized, or returned later than 30 days are non-refundable.

Yes, see our Manufacturer’s Limited Warranty below.


Barrels and/or parts will be replaced under the following circumstances:


The barrel will not seal due to cracks or holes in the wood. Barrel must first be left to cure for at least seven (7) days in order to determine if in fact it won’t seal; Spigot, bung, or stand arrive broken or if spigot leaks when added to the barrel;

Barrel hoops break during curing process; Engraving incorrect logo or name on the barrel, provided engraving instructions were properly submitted by the customer;


Conditions not covered under the manufacturer’s limited warranty:


Barrels are not made to withstand pressure other than in normal use. If the barrel is filled with contents that build up pressure causing the barrel staves or head to bend, bulge, or pop and result in leaks, it will not be covered under the manufacturer’s limited warranty.

Barrels incorrectly stored without water for long periods of time, causing the oak to dry and shrink and/or the hoops to fall off and/or leaks that cannot be sealed. To process a replacement barrel under the manufacturer’s limited warranty, we require you to email Urban Barrel Company a picture of the issue.

Prep, Care & Aging Spirits

Please review our Prep and Cure an Oak Barrel instructions here.

Regular cleaning will reduce your barrel’s lifespan. Unless you’re switching to a completely different flavour profile for your next batch, just rinse out your barrel until the water runs clear. After that, you’re ready to re-cure and start the aging process again.

The number of times you will be able to reuse your barrel will depend on a few factors. You might find a single barrel will produce 3 or 4 great batches of whiskey or 8 batches of tequila.


The barrel will lose a bit if its effectiveness with over time. If you prefer a strong oak character with each batch you might need to replace your barrel after just a few uses.


Properly caring for your barrel will help to extend its life.

Wood is a porous material so your Urban Barrel will absorb flavors from every batch (this is known as “the Devil’s cut”). For example, when you age whisky in an oak barrel, some of its flavor will carry over to your next batch.


Whether it’s a good thing or a bad thing, that’s up to you and your taste buds to decide.


You might prefer using separate oak barrels for each type of spirit. But we think one of the joys of barrel-aging at home is the ability to experiment with different flavour combinations to end up with something that’s all your own. Just keep in mind that no two batches are the same.


Take a look at our flavor guides to learn more about developing flavor memory.
Take a look at our guide to barrel aging kombucha for more information about prepping a kombucha barrel, making kombucha, and cleaning a kombucha barrel.

Fill your barrel with water and continue to let the barrel sit until it stops leaking. A small amount of barrel wax may also be applied where needed.

You should never let your barrel dry out. If you’re not ready to age your next batch, grab a glass of water and drop in the right number of maintenance tablets based on your barrel’s capacity into the glass. Allow to dissolve. Pour the contents into the barrel and top off with water.. Take a look at our instructions for storing your oak barrel.

It’s easy to barrel-age your favourite wine, beer, liquor or even cocktail mix. We’ve put together a guide to barrel aging spirits here and you can find guides to aging cocktails, spirits and more here.

Make your own spirits! Add the contents of the essence into an Urban Barrel and fill with clear distalite, moonshine or vodka. Use 1 20ml bottle of essence per 750ml of alcohol.

 

The finest quality ingredients available make our essences, including smoothing agents for spirits, to produce the highest quality spirits and liqueurs possible. By using our essence, you will be able to provide more subtle nuances with robust flavor, resulting in a more sophisticated style finish.

 

You can use our essence line to infuse delicious flavor into your virgin white oak cask, think of it as flavor memory whatever flavor that is absorbed into the oak will come through in your next batches.

You can even make your very own unique custom, scotch, rum, whiskey, tequila, or bourbon. Each 20ml bottle can be mixed with 750ml–1L of unflavored vodka or other liquor. You can then age in our Urban Barrel for that great added flavor and oak. Flavor your clear distillate with the distinctive taste of your favorite drink and age it in one of our charred oak barrels.

Recipes and Barrel Aging Guides

Yes, you can barrel age scotch at home! We’ve developed our own guide to developing a sweet scotch in an oak barrel.

Take a look at our Barrel-Aging Rum guide. We cover developing flavors in your barrel and how long to age rums in an oak barrel.

Whether you’re looking to make a specific cocktail in your oak barrel or using your barrel to create a unique twist on a number of cocktails, we’ve created recipes and guides for you.


Barrel-Aging Classic Cocktails (Manhattan, Old Fashioned and more)


Creating Signature Cocktails (Negronis, Tiki Cocktails and more)


You can find cocktail recipes in our recipes section. Including some of our favorites: Jalapeño Whiskey Sour, Barrel-Aged Margarita, Sangria and 7 Year Itch.