About Staggemeyer Stave Company

The Staggemeyer Stave Company has an interesting backstory.  Staggemeyer Stave has its roots in Missouri, where H.E. Robertson began his venture and eventually operated a stave mill in Dubuque, Iowa.  In 1958, he moved the mill to our present site near Caledonia, Minnesota because of the abundance of white oak.  Robertson’s original plan was to operate temporarily and leave when the oak ran out, but he underestimated the great wealth of premium white oak in the region.  Fifty-plus years later, we’re still here in the midst of the oaks!

Many of Robertson’s experienced employees from Missouri and Iowa relocated to the new facility, ensuring that the company’s quality craftsmanship carried forward.  One of the employees at that time was Norbert Staggemeyer, who in 1967, purchased the stave mill.

The barrel staves and headings were sent to cooperages solely for use by whiskey distilleries, most notably, for Seagram® whiskey brands and Jack Daniels^®.

As with the history of many mills, a major fire in 1970 destroyed the entire stave operations.  Fortunately, with the help of the Seagram Company and others, the mill was rebuilt and improvements were included into the new plant design.

In 1993, the Beringer Winery from Napa Valley in California reached out to the Staggemeyer Stave Company.  They were in need of high-quality staves and headings for their premium wine category.  Finding a source was no easy task.  Only top select white oak with no imperfections is used.  This was a pivotal year for our company.  From that point on we have been recognized as a top-tier provider of premium white oak barrel staves, and our world-renown reputation has led to us exporting staves to cooperages for prestige wineries located around the globe.

As we headed into the new millennium, in 2000, Staggemeyer Stave underwent a major remodeling project, with a new building and new equipment being added to the operations. The motivation behind this project was grounded upon our on-going commitment to always maintain the highest quality standards.

At this time, the mill produces enough staves and headings to make approximately 70,000 sixty-gallon white oak barrels per year.  And, we have the plant capacity to expand our production as we look to the future.

Today, we continue our proud tradition of supplying exceptional quality barrel staves to the premium wine and whiskey industries.

But our company pride doesn’t stop there.  Being a local family-owned company, we have a home-grown sense of responsibility toward the woodlands we utilize.  The Staggemeyer Stave Company fully supports the sound management of forests for future generations to use and enjoy.  Our commitment to the environment has been ongoing from the beginning, in all aspects of our business.

A forest is a dynamic ecosystem.  Today’s advanced resource management improves aesthetics, increases site quality for tree species and improves ecosystems.   Staggemeyer Stave also strives to reduce greenhouse gases by reclaiming all its stave production byproducts.  There’s no discarded wood material left to emit CO₂ as it slowly decomposes – raising the carbon footprint.  Reclamation reduces the carbon footprint.  When we partner responsibly with forests to enhance their natural dynamics, everyone benefits.