Tap Handle #407: Dakota Brewing - Double Barrel Red

Tap size:  14.25" (5.75" deep due to handle & hammers)
Rarity:  Scarce
Mounting:  standard 3/8" ferrule on 5/16" threaded bolt

This is a huge tap that required me to push the stage back due to the width...the curved handle of the gun and the hammers that stick out in the opposite direction make it much wider than most taps. The trigger area seems strange with two metal posts that extend from the handle but no real trigger, almost as if something is missing (maybe on purpose so it doesn't look too real?). Although it's not as detailed as the Dark Horse shotgun tap, the size, rarity, and lighted feature make it more desirable. Due to its rarity and lighted feature, it is quite expensive. The last photo I've taken shows the light bulbs at the end of the barrel...I believe the intent was that the bulbs would flash red when a motion detector would detect the tap being pulled. However, mine takes a bit of jarring to light up. The wiring inside is far from perfect as well, as one light will flash bright and the other flashes dim, and which light does which seems to vary. So far I have not found a way to fix this, but it's still a pretty great tap.

Click through to read about Dakota Brewing and to see more photos of this unique tap...

I'm usually pretty good about digging up information on the tap handles I collect, but this tap has me stumped. I can't find any reference to a "Double Barrel Red" or a "Dakota Brewing Company" anywhere. The closest I can find is a Dakota Brewing Roughrider Light on Ratebeer and a Dakota Brewing Roughrider Premium on Beer Advocate; both were brewed by the Cold Spring Brewery in Minnesota and were retired in 2006. There was a Dakota Malting and Brewing Company in Bismarck, North Dakota that started in 1959 but it went out of business in 1965. There could be a tie between the old brewery and the Cold Spring brand, but I can't find it. For now, the origins of this tap remain a mystery.