So today was the day I was due to take my 4 and a bit litres of bourbon (TPW + HBS essences, don't judge :teasing-tease: ) out of a 5L barrel that has been aging for 6 months, had a sneaky small sample the other day that was tasting great! 4.45L went in and I figured the angels would take a bit of that but should have at least 4L left.
Then out comes 2L :crying-blue:
The lesson here is make sure you do prep your barrels with water for a day or 3 before putting in your spirits to allow the wood to swell. While there were no visible leaks, the barrel most certainly absorbed a good 2L of what I put in there because I very much doubt the angels would be that greedy in 6 months.
oops! 8-}