Oak barrels for sale come in many shapes and sizes. While white oak from the Quercus genus is most often utilized, other species from around the world offer plenty of choices when selecting their wood type – which will have an impactful influence on wines aged within an oak barrel.
French or American oak barrels are widely used in winemaking. An oak tree typically takes 80-90 years to fully develop, making it the perfect material for barrel production. Coopers use this characteristic of the tree’s growth as a basis to cut precise staves for creating the ideal barrel shape.
Before creating a barrel from oak wood, stringent quality standards must first be met. Oak trees used in winemaking tend to be planted in dense forests where their growth can be forced straighter and taller, thus creating tighter pores with greater flavor integration. Once harvested, skilled vignerons carefully oversee its transformation into different types of barrels.
One cubic log of oak harvested specifically for winemaking produces two 225-liter barrels on average due to the wood being smaller with a greater surface-to-volume ratio and also because smaller barrels tend to absorb more oak flavor than their larger counterparts.
Oak barrels may be costly and time-consuming to prepare, as well as potential sources of microbial contamination. But oak aging is essential in many wines’ maturation process – and worth your effort! Before using, brand-new barrels must be soaked to hydrate their wood and prevent leakage. This can be accomplished by filling it up with water and placing it vertically for several hours before use.
1. Select High-Quality Oak
Used oak barrels are an integral component of winemaking, imparting both flavor and aroma while allowing a small amount of oxygen to interact with the wine, affecting both its color and taste. Selecting high-quality wood for your barrels is critical in creating beverages with optimal flavor and aroma. There are various varieties of oak available; each has its own set of unique qualities. European oak (Quercus robur) is widely used, while American oak (Quercus petraea) is also an extremely popular option.
Barrel quality is especially vital when purchasing used barrels. If a barrel was previously used to store beer or rum, its residual hop oils can taint your finished product and alter its flavors. To avoid this problem, select a barrel that has only ever been used to store wine or spirits. Furthermore, if you plan on using the barrel for more than one liquid at once, ensure it has been treated with an antimicrobial solution prior to being reused.
2. Toasting and Charring
An oak barrel’s wood is cut into long pieces known as staves that are then either seasoned outdoors or in a kiln to remove some of its water-binding properties and harsh tannins, softening its edge for more effective infusing wine or spirits with their flavor profiles.
Once the wood has been seasoned, it must then be toasted and charred, which adds extra flavor compounds to the wine or spirit being aged in its barrel. This process takes place in a rotary kiln where temperatures and times vary to heat different staves – giving rise to different colorations and levels of charring; light toast gives a toast-like hue; medium is darker in hue, while heavy toast takes on a dark chocolate hue.
Heat exposure causes wood fibers to break down into sugars that produce delicious barrel flavors such as caramel, toffee, maple syrup, brown sugar, and nuts. Lignin fibers also become disjointed during this process and contribute to flavors such as vanillin (vanilla), eugenol (clove), or oak lactones with subtle coconut aromas.
3. Proper Barrel Maintenance
Barrel aging has become an increasingly popular technique for creating wines with complex aromas and unique complexities. But winemakers should remember that oak barrels for sale are breeding grounds for spoilage organisms; therefore, proper barrel maintenance can prevent these organisms from damaging the integrity of the barrel or imparting foul flavors into the wine.
Barrels should be regularly cleaned to eliminate copper deposits, powder fouling, and carbon residue from their barrel riflings. Allowing these compounds to accumulate can severely diminish accuracy potential while negatively affecting the pressure, velocity, and function of your rifle.
As an alternative method for cleaning the interior of a barrel, we advise soaking it in hot water. This will not only clean it thoroughly but will also avoid potential damage caused by using a cleaning rod. Simply fill up about one-tenth of your barrel with hot water, insert the bung, and slosh the water around so that all surfaces inside of it come into contact with it – then soak for at least 30 minutes before taking steps to drain and cool off afterward.
4. Use Barrel Liners
Lining your barrel with insulation or another barrier material is essential to both protecting your spirits from degradation and preventing bacteria or microbe growth that could compromise the final product. Homebrew shops carry these liners, which can easily be installed. They may even help mitigate temperature swings that can harm wood. When installing a liner, food-grade vinyl should be chosen as this will prevent leaching into the spirits and leading to off flavors. Furthermore, having a liner helps preserve its shape over time.
New barrels should be submerged in hot water before filling them up to ensure tight bands and help prevent leakage until the barrel has fully expanded to its desired size – this may take several days, depending on its size. If it does leak, simply keep adding water until it stops dripping; if that doesn’t do the trick, then other solutions exist, such as barrel sealing wax, which consists of equal parts of distilled water and unbleached flour (usually 1:4) for sealing purposes.
5. Rotate and Roll
Barrel rotation can serve multiple functions. First and foremost, it ensures an even oak aging process; secondly, it promotes oak flavors to be integrated into the wine; thirdly, it reduces oxygen uptake, thus helping minimize the need for additional sulfite additions.
6. Temperature Control
Once a barrel has been filled, it must be disinfected prior to its first use in order to minimize microorganism populations that could potentially lead to sensory flaws and stability issues. A common technique involves filling it with chlorine-free water for 48 hours of vertical storage before checking for leaks.
Water treatments dissolve tartrate deposits that may interfere with stave integrity and increase wine’s tannin absorption from its barrel. A high-temperature soak has proven successful at eliminating viable Brettanomyces yeast from barrel surfaces, combined with using special chitosan, which significantly decreases them and stops them from re-infiltrating barrels.
7. Regular Inspections
Barrels are very sturdy structures and should last decades with proper maintenance, but it is still important that they be regularly inspected. This should involve emptying the barrel, using a brush with hot water, scrubbing thoroughly with this solution, and then rinsing thoroughly afterward. You should also take advantage of this time to clear out any debris or dirt that has been collected on its exterior walls and top.
At first glance, oak barrels for sale may appear uniform, but this is not always the case: each species of oak has different permeabilities, which result in unique aromas and flavors, and the aging process alters the wood cell’s composition significantly. Unfortunately, their lifespan is often limited due to unwanted yeast strains (Bretanomyces sp.) entering via sanitation measures during batch changes. Therefore, their exact characteristics vary considerably depending on their origin, aging time, manufacturing method, etc.
8. Cooperage Expertise
Coopers must acquire high-quality oak for barrel production, taking into consideration its location, terroir, age, and shape – with its staves fitting tightly together while being properly toasted and charred.
Coopering is a highly specialized profession that takes years of experience to master. Coopers must possess both technical expertise and in-depth knowledge of oak aging processes and flavor development processes; additionally, they should possess creativity and patience when developing innovative barrel designs.
Conclusion
Enhancing the quality of oak barrels is essential for achieving exceptional flavor and character in aged beverages. By selecting high-quality wood, toasting and charring effectively, maintaining barrels meticulously, and implementing proper aging techniques, you can unlock the full potential of oak aging. Remember that cooperage expertise can also play a vital role in optimizing the quality of your oak barrels for sale.
