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Although oak Barrels have long been used by Winemaker s, many Wineries now use oak wood chips for ageing wine more quickly and also adding desired woody aromas along with butter and vanilla flavors. French oak barrels are very expensive and their use adds several dollars to the cost of producing a 750 ml. bottle of wine, compared to only a few cents if wood chips are used. Their use by many New World producers has made their wines highly competitive in the marketplace. Oak chips can be added during Fermentation or during ageing. In the latter case, they are generally placed into fabric sacks and placed into the ageing wine. The diversity of chips available gives winemakers numerous options. ::Oak chips come in a variety of different types, varying in their forest of origin, in their size, the amount they are toasted, and whether they have been water pre-soaked. All these factors impact on wine character. Toasting chips gives them a smoky, bacon and caramel character. Due to their greater surface area, smaller chips give more character per unit weight added, and water pre- soaked chips are lower in astringent Tannins " (Gawel, 2002). Less common is the use of oak powder, which is an alternative if the "oaking" occurs during fermentation. Many winemakers believe that the oaking occurs during that period of wine production. The use of oak powder is also less common than chips, although they are a very practical alternative if oak character is to be introduced during fermentation. Oak Planks are sometimes used, either during fermentation or ageing. Some people believe that wine ages better in oak barrels. This may be because barrels permit small amounts of Oxygen enter and leave the wine over a long period of time. For this reason, some winemakers who don’t use barrels now employ a process called micro-oxygenation in which precise measuredamounts of oxygen are added to the wine over a period of time. This is also a cost-effective substitute for oak barrels. Because of the cost savings of producers who use barrel alternatives, they are able to be formidable competitors. Britain is the world’s largest market for exported wine. In 2000, it imported more wine from Australia than from France for the first time in history. By 2005, its share of that market rose to 24% whereas France’s share dropped to 19%. In view of France's declining share of export markets around the world, it has introduced a number of changes in rules and restrictions. A major such change is to permit wineries to use oak wood chips in order to be able to compete more effectively. The French Agriculture Minister has called for a "wine revolution" that would abolish some of the "volumes of century-old rules" that stifle creativity in the production and marketing of wine. SEE ALSO SOURCES Gawel, Richard. Oak barrel alternatives in winemaking. ''Wine Tutor'', august 2002 (available at {Link without Title} Edwards, Verity and Bremner, Charles. French wine to split chips. ''Sunday Mail'' (Australia), March 3, 2006. |
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