Is That a Barrel or a Kilderkin?
It might surprise you to know that shopping in bulk is not a new concept. Many of us probably remember our parents or grandparents talking about a time when they went to the market each day before dinner. People like the Madisons, who didn’t live near the market often ordered and stored large quantities of ingredients at their homes.
Montpelier recently acquired a variety of barrels that represent an assortment of what the Madisons might have kept on-hand. Like many of the objects in the mansion, there’s much more to the barrels than meets the eye. 
Coopers at Colonial Williamsburg and Strawbery Banke custom made a total of eight barrels for Montpelier. Student Education Director Christian Cotz hit the road to pick up the custom orders in early December. Visitors can now see the barrels in the mansion cellars.
Barrels or casks are generic terms that describe ingredient containers during the Madisons’ time. They could have other names, however, depending on the ingredient and amount a given container held. Using these terms, here is what you can expect to see when you visit the cellars:
- 1 molasses hogshead
- 1 salt hogshead
- 2 flour barrels
- 2 port pipes
- 1 kilderkin (often used for beer)
- 1 wine barrel
