Oaking Beyond the Barrel
It’s no wonder that oak barrels have a long history in winemaking; oak emparts a rich flavor onto wines, a flavor that, for some palates, is synonymous with wine itself.…
Has Wine Finally Left The Oak Barrel Behind?
Wine hasn’t always been aged in oak barrels. In fact, wine greatly predates the oak barrels, and the advent of the oak wine barrel was primarily transportation-driven (you can read…
Stainless Steel to the Rescue in Wine Country, Earthquake Country
When wine country and earthquake country share a lot of common ground, stainless steel wine barrels are an important ally. In recent earthquakes both at home in Napa Valley and…
The Chardonnay Renaissance
If you consider yourself a wine-lover or if you’ve ever muttered the words “I prefer red wines,” chances are you have rolled your eyes at a Chardonnay before. At the…
Wine Minerality and Stainless Steel
Leading oenologist for the Consorzio di Tutela del Soave, Giovanni Ponchia, ruffled a few feathers at the International Volcanic Wines Forum in Veneto when he chastised the industries over-use of…
Stainless Steel: Does it Age Like Oak?
Oak barrels were not the winemaking standard for centuries just because they look pretty. Early winemakers found that oak barrels were particularly well suited for flavoring and rounding/concentrating. As modern…