The Wine Barrel Economy

 We visited a home store today to pick up some supplies, and I noticed the wooden barrels for sale. I've always wanted to buy one, but even used barrels can be quite expensive. The history of the barrel goes back centuries. Once used for storing and hauling everything, it is now mostly used to age spirits and act as garden decor. Still, that economy is pretty amazing for its sustainability. New wine barrels often go for a first use in wine or spirits and then may go to a second use for another kind of wine or spirit imbuing the flavor of one into the other. When that is done, the used barrels still fetch a hefty price at garden centers where they go on to slowly molder away over decades and return their elements to the soil. The wine barrel is an example of how our whole economy should be designed.