A little bit of history about us
Janneane (founder) and her husband Brad have always had a passion for western and antique decor. Throughout the years, they have acquired numerous antique, unique, and eclectic items from in and around Alberta.
In 2016, Janneane started a business partnership selling consignment wine barrels with Westcoast Barrel Company out of Abbotsford BC. Initially what started as a backyard project to make a little extra money blossomed into a full-time business. Westcoast Barrel Company has since expanded to include multiple consignment partnerships across Canada selling wine and whiskey barrels.
What really sets Cowtown Barrel Company apart from other barrel retailers in the Calgary area is our ability to create custom barrel designs for our customers. We pride ourselves on the historical knowledge of barrel making and the unique history of each barrel. We strive to ensure that each one of our customers feels they receive exactly what they are looking for!
If you want to know more visit our products and gallery pages to see some of our unique creations. Hopefully you find something for your home, office, or yard!
Types of barrels we sell
The barrels we have in the picture - whiskey (center), wine burgundy (left front), wine bordeaux export (right rear), wine bordeaux chateau tradition (rear left) and wine bordeaux chateau ferre (right front).
These barrels are all created to serve a different purpose - for the wine barrels, the type of barrel used will affect the wine contained within in different ways. Burgundy barrels are shorter and wider than bordeaux barrels which allows spent yeasts to settle more easily. Bordeaux barrels, which are taller and narrower than burgundy barrels, tend to lend a bit more creaminess to the wine.
Whiskey barrels most often start life as bourbon barrels and will often see any where from 5 to 40 years or more of service. Another thing to note is that wine barrels are made from the heart wood of an oak tree while whiskey barrels may or may not be made from an oak tree's heart wood - as such, one may notice imperfections in the wood used to create a whiskey barrel to the point where whiskey barrels may be patched to prevent leakage while wine barrels always have perfect straight grained wood, we have never seen a patched wine barrel.
In the end, all barrels are eventually retired from the industry and we get to offer them to others to be repurposed in a variety of ways.
Tales of a Whiskey barrel
The history found on some of our whiskey barrels when the paint is removed is amazing! This barrel was first filled on February 28, 1958 by the Fleischmann’s Distilling Corporation in Owensburg, Kentucky. The wood in this barrel is at least 140 years old and came from an oak tree that would've started growing in the 1880s.
We were going to cut this barrel into a planter, but couldn’t bring ourselves to do it after we discovered its history!
Many of the whiskey barrels we sell have been used by a multitude of distilleries, and this info is only uncovered once the white paint on the barrel head is removed.
Want to come see our stock?
Fill out a barrel purchase request and we will connect with you to schedule a time for you to come view our stock. Alternatively you can also send us an email or call to request a viewing.