Page 191 - NEWNORMAL_ANIMATED

BARRELS

This aging can be done in neutral containers THE ORIGINS OF BARRELS FOR
such as stainless steel, cement lined vats, old WINE STORAGE
large casks, etc. or it can be done in small rela- Most of us are familiar with museum speci-
tively new wood barrels which are not neutral, mens and replicas of archeologically-recove-
but which will influence the developing wine. red clay pots and amphorae from Greek and
Roman sites: these clay-based vessels predate
OAK BARREL INFLUENCE - THE BASICS wooden containers for storage of wine and
Subtle flavours are imparted to wine as other liquid goods. But the existence of strai-
it ages in the barrel. Different types of oak ght- sided, open wooden buckets, employ-
(French and American being the two most wi- ing the craft of the cooper, is documented in
dely used) from different regions (Limousin, Egypt as early as 2690 BCE (Before the Chris-
Nevers, Troncais, etc.) give differing levels of tian Era). Fully-closed barrels were first deve-
flavour to the wine (most often described as loped during the Iron Age (800-900 BCE), and
vanilla). by the first century BCE were widely in use for
Wine, as it rests in the barrel, goes through holding wine, beer, milk, olive oil, and water.
subtle chemical changes, resulting in grea- As trade and transportation developed, ship-
ter complexity and a softening of the harsh pers discovered that sealed wooden contai-
tannins and flavours present at the end of fer- ners were vastly superior to relatively fragile
mentation. The effect of specific wood on dif- clay vessels, and the craft of cooperage -
ferent wines is the subject of great discussion - barrel-making - was launched, developing
and experimentation among wine makers in direct proportion to the growth of trade.
throughout the world. Wooden casks or barrels had largely replaced
A barrel essentially does two things: it allows their clay counterparts by as early as the se-
a very slow introduction of oxygen into the cond century CE.
wine; and it imparts the character of the wood The most significant advantages of wooden
into the wine. (This diminishes as a barrel gets barrels were, first, their strength: being made
older. You usually get 50% of the extract that a of wood and set round with hoops (first also
barrel has on the first use, 25% the second and made of wood, later of metal) that bound the
less after that). joints of the barrels into a double arch; second,

Vega Sicilia, Valbuena de Duero, Spain
191