Looks just as I'd hoped! Haven't tried it yet, but plan to use water first to swell the wood and seal gaps. Aside from that, it's a stunning piece to add to our mini bar.

I can only comment on the craftsmanship and sealing of the barrel at this point.

I bought the 10L oak barrel and shipping was pretty fast. Maybe a week or so. After reading some of the comments about craftsmanship and sealing I was a little worried. Let me tell you this. This is a well built barrel. Very solid. The cradle it sits in is well made too. I don't think I would want to stand on it but, it holds my barrel just fine.

It took me a while to get to actually prepping and sealing the barrel. I tapped in the spigot and it seated fine. I put the cradle in a large aluminum pan just in case I had any leaks while sealing it. I then filled it with hot tap water all the way to the top. No leaks what so ever. I was impressed. Maybe it helped to have sit in my house for a few weeks to equal out the humidity like any other wood product you buy like molding for house remodeling. Just a thought. Over the next few days the wood absorbed quite a bit of the water. I would just top it off with more water. After a two days it really slowed down and the wood was less thirsty. I let him after in it for 1 full week. No leaks.

After soaking the wood I drained it into the kitchen sink. Saw some small wood chunks and saw dust come out but, I would think that is 100% normal and didn't bother me. I am sure I didn't get all of the small chunks out. I am good with that too. I immediately filled the barrel back up with approximately 3 gallons of clear un-aged single malt "whiskey" that was at 140 proof and I plan on leaving it untouched in a dark room of my garage for at least 1 year. According to small barrel aging conversion charts that will be the equivalent of aging it for approximately 3 years in a normal sized barrel that distilleries use. I will give it a taste at 1 year and see how it fared.

Just a note: higher proof alcohols do better with barrel aging as they will react with the wood more. Age them at a higher proof and then proof them down to 80 proof or 40% for drinking with a good spring water.

Used for our whiskey blending ceremony on our wedding day. It was absolutely beautiful and everyone kept asking where we got the barrel. Followed the instructions on how to cure it and it has been since Sept. of 2022 and have not had any issues or leaking.

I really like this item, but I followed the instructions to a "T" and my barrel never leaked. Was it cured before the purchase? I don't know. The instructions really need to be more in depth. I mean, the instructions should be called Barrel Curing for dummies because I know absolutely NOTHING about barrels and the curing process.

I gave this 3 stars because my barrel didn't leak, and the instructions are vague. Is the spigot/spout useable once the barrel cures? The instructions were to pour the liquid from the hole in the top of the barrel. I'm guessing the spigot is just for show, or maybe whiskey isn't supposed to be dispensed from a spigot. These are questions that weren't answered for dummies like me :-). Also, I really wish it were bigger. I know, I know, it clearly stated the size, but I still visualized it to be larger. If you want your engravings to show, get the biggest barrel; otherwise, it's not that visible.

All-in-all, I don't regret the purchase. It works for my rustic anniversary party. It will be an expensive decoration.

Definitely way better than I expected from the craftsmanship to the ability to hold liquor.