Oak Barrel Sizes

Until I began looking further into oak barrels, I was totally unaware of the fact that barrels come in a variety of sizes as shown below:¹

I also learned that there are specific sizes and shapes to age or ferment Burgundy versus Bordeaux wine. The Burgundy barrel called a piéce is shorter and fatter than the Bordeaux barrel called a barrique and usually holds a few liters more (228 L vs. 225 L) than the Bordeaux barrel.
American barrels are 225 Liters (59 gal), 65 and 70 gallon barrels are also available. Puncheons (hogsheads) can also be used and they can hold 120 gallons.² My husband is looking into getting us Puncheons or 500 L barrels for our fermentations and aging.
The various barrel sizes have traditional and specific uses.²

Name	#Liters	#US Gallons	Uses
Firkin	41 L	11 gal	Taking its name from old Middle Dutch for “fourth” implying a quarter of the size of a British Barrel. Traditionally used for dispensing cask ale.
Quarter Cask	50 L	13 gal	A quarter of the size and proportion of an American Standard Barrel generating a higher wood to liquid ratio. Used for rich oak finishes in Scotch and American whiskey
Rundlet	70 L	18 gal	Roughly half the size of a British Barrel. Traditionally used to transport wine.
Tierce	160 L	42 gal	Closest cask in volume to that of a modern oil drum and one third of a Pipe. Traditionally used to transport wine, mature rum or store salted goods.
British Barrel	160 L	43 gal	Roughly half a Hogshead. Traditionally used to store ale or lager
ASB Barrel	200 L	54 gal	The American Standard Barrel is used throughout the US whiskey industry after which most are exported for reuse in maturing other spirit types including rum, tequila, Scotch and Irish whiskies.
Hogshead	250-300 L	66-79 gal	The most popular cask used in maturing Scotch and Irish whiskies commonly consisting of re built ASB’s from the US which have already held American whiskey. With a slightly smaller oak to liquid ratio, it’s believed that Hogsheads react better to the cooler Scottish climate. Twice the size of a Barrel, half the size of a Butt, quarter of a Tun. Also used in wine and beer.
Barrique	cognac 300 L wine 225 L	cognac 79 gal wine 59 gal	Standard barrel used for old French wine and cognac although at two different volumes. Traditionally coopered with wooden hoops instead of metal.
Puncheon or Tertian	450 L	120 gal	Also known as a Tertian from the Latin for “third” implying a volume roughly one third of a Tun (330 litres) although modern day puncheon’s are closer to 500 litres. The modern rum industry favors a short, fat puncheon with thick staves known as a Machine Puncheon while the sherry industry prefers a more traditional tall, slim puncheon with thin staves called a Sherry Shape Puncheon.
Butt	500 L	132 gal	Twice the size of a Hogshead, tall and narrow with thick staves and a nice set of hips true to its name. Commonly used for sherry.
Pipe	650 L	172 gal	Tall cask yet stockier and rounder than a Butt with thick staves. Commonly used for port.
Drum	650 L	172 gal	True to its name, short fat and dumpy with wide staves. Common cask for Madeira wine.
Gorda	700 L	185 gal	Commonly used in North America for the marrying or vatting of different whiskies.
Tun	982 L	250 gal	Roughly twice the size of a Butt and equal to four Hogsheads. Traditionally used for the fermentation of beer or marrying of spirits. Designed to represent one perfect imperial ton of liquid.

Fun Fact: The original use of tun meant a barrel of a particular size, the space that such a barrel would occupy, and a ship's capacity to carry a given number of such barrels. Therefore the use of the term "tun" was originally a figure for space--not weight. To the English, it meant a wine barrel with a capacity of about 252 gallons. When Parliament imposed duties on the wine entering England in these barrels, the duty imposed on each tun eventually led to the use of tunnage in describing a ship's capacity to carry such barrels.³
An interesting read about the world's largest cask can be found here: Slate: From Taxes to Ax Marks: The Story Behind the World’s Largest Wine Cask.
References:
1. Drinking Cup: Understanding Maturation – Part 1: Know Your Casks.
2. Excellent slide presentation at: Barrels & Ageing, Santa Rosa Edu.
3. Shipboard Measurements.
4. Embracing Old Oak Barrels.