A process of aging, clarifying, and smoothening the wine via oak barreling is considered a classic way to enjoy wines. Typically, oak is believed to bring enhanced flavors to the wine.
Whether you’re getting your wines from vegan or organic wine clubs in the US, it’s best to be on the lookout for oaking details first. Read on to find everything about oaking compared to unoaked wines.
Why Oak Wine?
Take a look at the nine key benefits of oaking wines.
- Aging potential: In contrast with steel tanks, oak barrels are a superlative aging option.
- Subpar alternatives: While there are used-oak-barrels that cost less, all oak alternatives such as steel or oak chips are inferior due to a lack of oxygenation.
- Antiseptic: Because oak acts as an organic antiseptic, oaked wines will need less sulfur dioxide than their counterparts.
- Flavor: Due to controlled oxidation, oak barrels reduce the acidity and astringency of wine, helping to stabilize it.
- Aroma: You can differentiate oaked and unoaked wines from their aromas given oaked wines emanate a dusty, smoky, vanilla or nutty aroma, unlike its counterparts.
- Color: Oaked wine is generally darker than unoaked varieties. White wines become intense-yellow while reds grow a dark-brown hue.
- Thickness: At least 10% of the water present in the wine evaporates upon oaking in barrels, thus resulting in a thicker wine.
- Storage and commute: Oak barrels are good to store wine and transport it over large distances.
- Premium nature: While not all premium wines use oak barrels, it’s characteristic of most premium wines today given one oak tree is unable to produce more than two barrels.
What Are The Steps For Oaking Wine?
The wood barrels are sourced from a unique tree called Quercus alba in Eastern American wines, Quercus robur for Italian wines, or Quercus petraea when talking about French wines. The French oak has many varieties and is often considered the best option. Russian oak and Canadian oak are considered the newer and more affordable options.
The following describes the steps for oaking wine.
- Pick the type of barrel based on
- the size of the oak barrel such as a five-gallon barrel for one-gallon wine.
- the age of the oak tree (ideally 100 years) and the oak barrel.
- Set the temperature of the wine cellar/basement and oaking time according to the wine.
- After inspecting the barrel at your destination, fill it up with the wine.
You can also oak the wine with oak chips, cubes, or staves if you’re doing this at home.
Which Wines Are Barreled in Oak?
Oaking brings out the concentrated flavor of the wine. For most white wines, fining will suffice. However, red wines benefit in taste and color from oaking, just like some white wines.
Take a look at the best wines to oak below.
Red Wines
- Nebbiolo wine requires nine months of aging in an oak barrel to develop tannins.
- Pinot Noir gains depth besides rounded-off tannins with oaking for 10 months in French barrels.
- Tempranillo sitting in French/American barrels for up to 18 months develops an orange hue.
- Merlot delivers a smooth structure after two years of oaking.
- Cabernet Sauvignon is almost-always aged in oak and the taste changes from coconut to vanilla, tobacco, and cedar based on the type of barrel.
White Wines
- Chardonnay when American, are aged in oak barrels to develop a creamy taste.
- Pinot Grigio when lightly barrel-aged, produces concentrated flavors.
- Sauvignon Blanc from warmer climates creates notes of vanilla after barrel aging.
- Pinot Blanc from Alsace is typically aged in oak to develop creamy almond flavors.
Is Oaked Or Unoaked Wine Better?
While a large majority of modern wines are aged in oak barrels, differentiating oaked and unoaked wines is not easy. Find out what experts are saying.
- Oak barrels are 20% costlier than usual and the ten-gallon size is priced upwards of $400.
- Wines aged in oak are higher-maintenance than unoaked wines given you need to control sulfites and wetness at all times.
- Over-oaking can diminish the flavor, color, and aroma of the wine while controlling it via processes like toasting the barrel can create distinct flavors. Toasting the wood creates smoky aromas whereas untoasted oak delivers fruity flavors.
Bottom Line
Oaking wine ensures the flavors of the tree are imbued into wines which helps improve the taste, color, aroma, and other characteristics of aged wine.
Whites wines like Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Grigio get creamier with oaking whereas reds like Merlot and Tempranillo develop smoothness. Given their range and popularity, uncovering great oaked options from red wine clubs online or even a vegan wine club is very straightforward.