WHY WINE IS STORED IN BARRELS
Many of us are unaware that the majority of fine wines are stored or aged in barrels made of oak. The reason for this is less well known. What are the advantages of oak? Are there disadvantages? Does oak barrel come in different varieties? Is there any major thing it does to the wine? How does the whole process work? Once the wine fermentation process is accomplished, wine is frequently racked to eliminate any larger solid particles. This young wine is usually ‘green.’ At this stage, it’s still raw and rough. It needs time to age gradually in vessels or containers that are comprised of inert materials. Old casks, stainless steel, or cement vats are often used for this. On the other hand, unoaked wine can originally be aged in little wooded barrels. These above-listed containers are not neutral because they tend to affect the wine as it ages. Oak Aging Wine As wine ages in wooden barrels, fine flavours from the oak gradually begin to influence its development. American, European, or French oak are some types of wine barrels normally used. Oak barrels are manufactured from staves. These are long pieces of oak wood fitted firmly together with metals made of hoops. The barrels are roasted over a fire to achieve either a light, medium, or dark toast level. Wine experts believe that barrels that are new with a light toast most likely will give lots of caramel and vanilla notes, while a darker toast will produce a roasted smokey, aromas. These barrels are obtained from different regions to impart somewhat different flavours and also affects how long to age wine in oak barrels. As the wine rests inside the barrel, chemical changes begin to react to the wine. The outcome is the softening of the harsh tannins existing in the fermentation process and a more intricate flavor. The different effect of a particular wood is always a captivating subject when discussed by winemakers. The barrel serves two purposes for the aging wine: it allows entrance of oxygen gently into the wine over time and conveys some of the character, or flavour of the wood into the wine. A brand-new barrel with oak chips for wine is always the best for this, and the outcome reduces gradually with repeated use. The Difference between Stainless Steel and Oak Barrel Aged Wines. The core difference between stainless steel and oak-aged wines is the presence or absence of oak flavours and aromas. Some grapes respond better to the various aging regimens. Chardonnay (neutral grapes), which lacks much aroma, will often be aged in oak to for more complexity. Stainless steel aging is more suitable for Riesling which is an aromatic grape whose characteristic aromas would vanish under the flavors of oak aging. An additional difference between stainless steel aged wine and oak barrel-aged wine is the price. Stainless steel aging is considerably less expensive than using oak because unlike oak barrels, steel barrels can be used again forever and are much stress-free to clean. Using a stainless steel aging also takes less time when compared to oak aging, which saves winemakers an essential space in the wine cellar. In conclusion, these outlined factors mean that wines made through stainless steel are expected to be less expensive for the consumer.
HOW WINE IS MADE
The majority of us enjoy wine and adore the flavor, but many people still do not know precisely how to make wine. While virtually any fruit juice can be used to make wine, the substantial majority of wine is processed from grapes. The first phase in the winemaking procedure kicks off with the finest grapes harvest that is ready for picking. To speed up the harvest, several vineyards choose mechanical harvesting while some other vineyards still prefer picking the grapes needed by hand. The harvest is usually carried out at the early hours of the morning because the cool weather will not ruin the grape’s natural juices when picked. Next is to crush the grapes. In recent times, grapes are no longer loaded into a big vat, and the winemaker(s) would softly tread on them to break the grapes’ skins in order for the juice to be released. Currently, this procedure is almost consistently done using a crusher machine. As regards white wines, once the crushing is done, the juice is split immediately from the skin pulp and stalks before fermentation commences. For instance, Champagne, which originates from black grapes, is simply made white by not allowing any contact between the grape skin and the juice. This answers the question of how white wine is made. In the process of making red wines, the juice remains in contact with the crushed pulp for a while to add color, body, and flavor to the juice to be fermented. The separated pulp and the juice now pass through a series of processes to completely display that gorgeous wine taste. For the next step, i.e., production of wine by fermentation, there is an addition of yeast, which will turn to carbon dioxide and alcohol. These two properties must be present in all varieties of wine. This is what distinguishes them from beverages, including simple grape juice. When carbon dioxide and alcohol have formed, the elongated aging process will now set in. Some vineyards make use of stainless steel barrels where their wines are stored for years before the wine becomes ready commercially use. For wine experts, they believe that oak barrels are best for wine aging because they have better quality and taste. This is the reason why the majority of vineyards in different places use oak barrels to age their wine. The aging process of these wine is properly monitored to achieve the desired quality. Monitoring is important because aging them for longer periods may result in the wine turning to vinegar. During the same period, sediments are removed by transferring the wine from one barrel to another to enable the wine to become as clear and pure as it can probably be. The wines are also filtered for the very same purpose. Bottling the wines is the last step. The quality and other environmental factors are checked and controlled—for instance, the sealing mechanisms and temperature. The stainless caps and corks for sealing the wine are also checked. This is to avoid any contamination of any sort by other material. The bottom line Now you know before that lovely bottle of wine reaches your hands, there is a winemaking process step by step that vineyards observe to make sure that you get the same quality bottle that you expect every time. Despite the different wine varieties, they fundamentally follow the same winemaking process flowchart.
