When tasting wine it's common to find aromas and flavours of spice, vanilla, oak and tobacco
Very often these characteristics are due to their oak barrels that the wine is fermented or matured in during the winemaking process
But it wasn't for this reason that wine was initially kept in barrels
Rather, It was a happy accident that dates back to the Roman times
During long sea voyages wine was a staple for the Roman troops and merchants, though clay pots with the original vessel of choice
After discovering the abundance of oak forests in Europe, oak barrels were adopted as the primary means of transporting their precious liquids
Not only was oak abundant and relatively malleable. It was also air tight due to the fine grain of the wood
After some time the Romans realised that the oak barrels were also changing the flavours of their wines adding further complexity and richness
This practice of using oak barrels has become an integral part of winemaking and is routinely practiced all around the world
The wine barrel trade is now a large global industry with decommissioned wine barrels often being sold on for a production of spirits and beer
Wine makers will usually purchase their barrels from barrel makers known as Coopers each of which will have their own style
However, a handful of bordeaux chateau have their own in-house cooper such as Smith Haut Lafitte on Bordeaux's left bank
Fine wines around the world tend to use French oak barrels sourced from forests located in the heart of France
However, California as well as Eastern Europe also produce high quality, oak barrels, which are also used in many regions
What sorts of flavours does this specific type of oak give to the wines?
It's not only different types of oak that can be used in winemaking though as these oak barrels can be recycled and reused
Normally around four times
Newer oak barrels will have much more intensity of flavor and as such will require a more powerful wine to match this
The opposite goes for an older barrel
Wine makers will also choose how toasted they want their barrels to be a
Lightly toasted barrel can have completely different flavours to a heavily toasted one
Wine makers will even request the specific characteristics that they want from a Cooper
Often oak can take time to integrate with a wine
so a wine fermented or matured in a high percentage of new oak will often need time to age and develop in bottle to
Integrate these flavours before being at its prime
So of all the oak barrels you use here at Smith Haut Lafitte's
What percentage and new barrels and what percentage are reused barrels?
Oak barrels are actually used for many different types of wine including sweet wines and even champagne
Stephanie spoke to Aline Baly at Chateau
Coutet in the sweet wine appellation of Sauternes Barsac to understand the role of oak in sweet wine production
I'm gonna take you into the barrel room and this is a very special room for us that Chateau Coutet
Because we have over 800 barrels. And what is one of the longer cellers in
In Bordeaux. seriously? so let me turn the lights on. Oh
Wow
There you go. So now we're in the barrel room
Yes, and you're gonna see a lot of different oak. We use up to ten different barrel manufacturer all French oak
Mostly new French oak because when you're making Sauternes and the coutet were fermenting in the barrel
And we don't want any yeast to be stuck in the barrel. So we need very tight pores
So what would be the difference in flavour if you didn't ferment it in the barrel?
So the oak component will add some vanilla
Characteristics we're not looking actually for a lot of oak characteristics in Sauterns . We're looking for a barrel
That is a safe environment for the fermentation process. We only have one fermentation in Sauternes only the alcoholic fermentation
So if there's anything in the barrel that will encourage a second fermentation, we're gonna have some difficulties
That's the importance of having a clean
Very tight pore barrel. Okay, and that's the appellation of Sauternes that says that you must
venify and...
No so the appellation rules really are how we work the vineyard
There's also some rules in the vinification, but in terms of their barrels, there's no specification choice
Yes, and I imagine it's a costly choice for you. Yes
Absolute barrels are a very big investment every year especially in our case
We're using up to 90 percent a hundred percent new oak barrels
We're gonna keep some of the one-year barrels for for example our second wine
but yes every year we're trying to bring it as many new barrels as possible and we're gonna
Adjust our toast based on the characteristic of the wines. So how much is a barrel cost?
We're looking at a range from 600 euros to over a thousand euros per barrel. Wow. So it's a hefty investment. Absolutely.
Yes, so why is oak more expensive than stainless steel? You have to take into account
raw material so you need to get the wood then there's definitely the
The knowledge of the Cooper, so all those elements come to a piece of artwork if you will
It's no doubt that oak barrels are integral to the process of winemaking and there really aren't any substitutes that can achieve the same
characteristics and complexity that they bring to wine
Wine trends are cyclical. However, and currently the heavy use of oak is diminishing but oak is still a fundamental tool we use by producers
Wine makers are now looking for the most sustainable methods of using oak barrels, so that their wines will taste as good as ever