Barrels of the type used in aging whiskey are well known. Such barrels are typically made of white oak and are held together by double riveted steel hoops. Whiskey barrels are typically around three feet tall and two feet in diameter at their widest point.
By law, bourbon, the only native U.S. whiskey, must be aged in a new barrel. Other countries do not have comparable requirements. Thus, after being used to age one barrel of bourbon, the used barrels have historically been exported from the United States to other countries, where they are used to make Scotch, Irish whiskey, rum, tequila, and the like.
At some point the cost of shipping used barrels overseas began to exceed the price of a new whiskey barrel, effectively eliminating the overseas market for used barrels. Thus U.S. distilleries began to look for alternative uses for the used barrels. One popular use was to cut open the barrel and convert it into a planter. The rustic appearance and sturdy construction of the whiskey barrel is favorably suited for this use.
A conventional prior art whiskey barrel planter has a barrel body comprised of wooden staves. Metal bands adjacent the upper and lower ends of the barrel body hold the staves in place. The metal bands have a thickness such that the upper edges of the bands extend outward from the main body of the barrel.
Advances in plastic injection molding subsequently lowered the price of planters so that the converted whiskey barrel was not financially competitive with molded planters. However, for reasons that will be explained below, it has proven difficult to mold a whiskey barrel planter using conventional injection molding techniques. Meanwhile demand for the rustic appearance of whiskey barrel planters remains.
USPTO Backgrounds
USPTO Backgrounds