My names not Cooper, but check me out!

I have a good friend named Jay Cooper… whose mother was my 2nd grade teacher in elementary school. And yes, they had coopers in their history. With a name like that, you’d better.

But I’m not sure I had any coopers in my family. To the best of my knowledge, my father would be the one most likely connected to some coopers. I inherited all his winemaking equipment back in 2001 and in it was several tools used by the Cooper, one who makes and refurbished barrels. Look at that band-banger next to the bucket of beeswax. I promptly put it all to work. I’ve been making wine since 2000, and this cool little 5-gallon barrel that he had needed a refurbish. It was taken care of and it has become a sentimental thing to me now. These pics just show the process.