I acquired a 5 gallon bourbon barrel from a local distillery. Been taking care of it to make sure there was no leaking. So far so good. I'm water tight.
Anyway, filled it with a Golden Strong and will let it sit for a couple of months (tasting every 30 days) minimum. What I noticed was that 5 gallons doesn't fill the barrel to the top. There's some head space here. My question is, should I be rotating this barrel so all staves are in contact at some point?
Right now I have a whole bung on and no airlock. It's my understanding that the moisture should maintain the stability of the staves. Just seems weird to have a portion of the barrel not in contact.
Anyway, filled it with a Golden Strong and will let it sit for a couple of months (tasting every 30 days) minimum. What I noticed was that 5 gallons doesn't fill the barrel to the top. There's some head space here. My question is, should I be rotating this barrel so all staves are in contact at some point?
Right now I have a whole bung on and no airlock. It's my understanding that the moisture should maintain the stability of the staves. Just seems weird to have a portion of the barrel not in contact.