Winemaking Part 3: Hangin’ with Mr. Cooper

Our winemaking journey at Vino Tabi recently involved selection of oak barrels for our wine. We have already selected Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petite Verdot as the varietals for our blend. Now we got to experience how French oak, American oak and Hungarian oak added different flavor and complexity to the wine. Cooperage is the age-old art of making wine barrels. Previously unknown to me was the significant behind-the-scenes role of the barrel maker, I’ll call him Mr. Cooper. We experienced Mr. Cooper’s handiwork by trying wine which had been unexposed by oak, and other samples of the same wine which had spent varying amounts of time in oak barrels.

Mr. Cooper makes wood barrels in a variety of ways, with a variety of woods but primarily from white oak. The location of the trees from which the wood is harvested can have as much impact as the terrior in which the grapes are grown. The same wine that rested in French oak will taste completely different from the same wine that sat in American or Hungarian oak (and, yes, within the broad category of French oak are Bordeaux oak, Burgundy oak, and others). Each of the barrel types come in light, medium, medium plus and heavy, and some wineries choose to use a barrel once or many times depending on the level of oak that the winemaker desires.

Wine barrels are constructed with wood planks called staves that are shaped into a bulging cylinder with flat ends. The staves are bulged with wood fire (thereby taking on the toasty attributes, which Mr. Cooper can intensify depending on customer demand), and held in place by metal hoops. Barrel shape allows for easy rolling and storage in racking systems. A typical barrel will weigh between 125 and 150 pounds empty.

In addition to typical wine barrels, many wineries use wood chips or bits in the wine. An old wine barrel or steel tank might add little flavor to the wine, but add new oak chips and the wine will develop the toasted oak flavor without the expense of new wood barrels.

At the end of the meeting, my olfactory system felt similar to the weekend that I installed hardwood floors in our dining room. Our winemaking team had selected American oak medium plus for our wine, thanks to our new friend Mr. Cooper.

Best, Joe Plonk

Click for Drink Plonk Home Page