About Us
We’re the Gardner family, Paul & Sara, Jeremiah (Jay), Joshua, Johanna, Jerusha and Jacob. Try saying those names 10 times fast!
Barrel no.51 was developed from a desire to do something together as a family. So often, when kids grow up, everyone splits off and goes their own way. That’s a fact of life. But we wanted to stay involved in each others lives in some way, so we decided to take our love of BBQ a step further. We wanted to start a business that would allow us to have a retirement income, something we could all be part of and at the same time, support some organizations that do great work for disabled children, care of the elderly and provide support for our military personnel and their children.
We’re not any different than any of you. We squabble over who finished the last of the milk and put the empty jug in the refrigerator, and who left the wet towels on the bathroom floor. We’re a typical American family. We trust in God, love our country and feel that we have an obligation to help others as much as we can. We decided from the first to share our profits with responsible charities and to do our part in our community to assist where we can.
As to our name, Barrel no.51 came out of a brainstorming session that we had around the kitchen table. 51 comes from the year that Sara, matriarch of our family, was born. The barrels on the label all show the birth years of our kids and Paul.
It’s been a fun adventure, and we’re just getting started. Please continue to check our website for new product updates, news, and a bit of fun. Thank you for considering our BBQ sauces, and we hope that they will delight you as much as they have done so many others.
As Mom says, “It’s not the most expensive sauce you can buy, but it is the best”
Our Newest Crew Member
On September 2, 2007, the Gardner family gained another Barrel no.51 crew member! While Riley Paul is still too young to hoist sail, stand watch or serve as cabin boy, he knows what's coming. Just look at his smile! He knows he's got a family of love around him, and is looking forward to joining us, be it in the bottling factory or in the kitchen helping develop new products. Please welcome him to our crew!