Wood Barrels Research Articles

Changes in Chemical Composition of a Red Wine Aged in Acacia, Cherry, Chestnut, Mulberry, and Oak Wood Barrels

Aging in wooden barrels is a process used to stabilize the color and enrich the sensorial characteristics of wine. Many compounds are released from wood into the wine; oxygen permeation through the wood favors formation of new anthocyanin and tannin derivatives. Recently, polyphenols and volatile compounds released from acacia, chestnut, cherry, mulberry, and oak wood used in making barrels for spirits and wine aging were studied. Here, changes in volatile and polyphenolic compositions of a red wine aged for 9 months in acacia, cherry, chestnut, mulberry, and oak barrels are studied. Mulberry showed significant decreases of fruity-note ethyl esters and ethylguaiacol and a great cession of ethylphenol (horsey-odor defect). Cherry promoted the highest polyphenol oxidation, making it less suitable for long aging. LC/ESI-MS(n) showed the relevant presence of cis- and trans-piceatannol in mulberry-aged wine, a phytoalexin with antileukemia and antimelanoma activities.

Volatile Compounds and Sensorial Characterization of Wines from Four Spanish Denominations of Origin, Aged in Spanish Rebollo (Quercus pyrenaica Willd.) Oak Wood Barrels

The evolution of almost 40 oak-related volatile compounds and the sensorial characteristics of red wines from four Spanish denominations of origin (DOs) (Bierzo, Toro, Ribera de Duero, and Rioja) during aging in barrels made of Rebollo oak wood, Quercus pyrenaica, were studied and compared to the same wines aged in American and French oak barrels. Each oak wood added unique and special characteristics to the wine, and in addition, each wine showed a different ability to extract the compounds, which result in these characteristics from the oak wood. In general, wines aged in Q. pyrenaica wood were characterized by high levels of eugenol, guaiacol, and other volatile phenols. In regards to compounds like cis-whiskylactone or maltol, the behavior of this wood is very similar to that of American oaks. When considering phenolic aldehydes and ketones, the levels of these compounds are intermediate between those of French and American woods and depend greatly on the type of wine. The type of oak, on the other hand, does not affect the chromatic characteristics of the wines. In sensory analysis, the biggest differences are found in the olfactory phase. Among the four DOs studied, wine aged in Q. pyrenaica presented the highest notes of wood, with more aromas of roasting, toasting, milky coffee, spices, or wine-wood interactions. The wines aged in barrels made of Q. pyrenaica wood were highly regarded, and preference was shown for them over those same wines when they had been aged in barrels of American or French oak.

Chemical compounds released from five different woods used to make barrels for aging wines and spirits: volatile compounds and polyphenols

Aging wine and spirits in wooden barrels is an industrial process used to stabilize color and improve limpidity; many compounds are released from the wood and enrich the sensorial characteristics of the product. The main wood species used for making barrels is oak, but in particular cases also acacia, chestnut, cherry and mulberry. In this work, polyphenols contained in the extracts of these wood species obtained by solutions of 50% hydroalcohol as well as a model wine were studied and compared with the extracts from oak. The hydroalcoholic extracts of chestnut and mulberry had higher total polyphenols, followed by cherry, acacia and oak, respectively. The oak model wine extract had the highest percentage of polyphenols extractable by the wine, followed by chestnut, acacia, cherry and mulberry, respectively. Chestnut extracts had the highest percentage of oxidizable compounds, followed by acacia, oak, mulberry and cherry. The GC/MS–EI profile of 50% hydroalcoholic extracts revealed as principal volatiles several benzene compounds containing a guaiacol residue, and high contents of C6–C18 fatty acids. To our knowledge, this is the first study reporting on polyphenolic and complete volatile compounds characterization of these woods for oenological purposes.

Volatile compounds in red wine vinegars obtained by submerged and surface acetification in different woods

Changes in volatile components were investigated during controlled acetifications. The substrates used to perform traditional surface acetifications were two red wines. Barrels of four different woods (oak, chestnut, acacia and cherry) were used. Submerged acetifications were performed at the laboratory scale. Volatile compounds were analysed by Headspace Sorptive Extraction and Gas Chromatography–Mass Spectrometry (HSSE-TD–GC–MS). Out of 57 compounds identified in the samples, 38 were quantified. Of these, ethyl furoate, ethyl benzoate and limonene had never been described in wine vinegars. Acetifications led to an increase in the total quantity of volatile components, which were higher in the surface processes. Acetic esters were predominant in surface culture vinegars, whereas acids were predominant in submerged culture vinegars. Oak-lactones were quantified only in vinegars produced in oak barrels. Ethyl furoate and ethyl benzoate increased in cherry wood barrels. Multivariate statistical analysis supported the influence of the process on the volatile composition of the final vinegars.

Origin of brown discoloration in the staves of oak used in cooperage – Characterization of two new lignans in oak wood barrels

Abstract The isolation and characterization of the lignans from Quercus petraea oak wood are described. This is the first report of isolariciresinol and secoisolariciresinol being detected in oak wood. Lignan trimethylsilyl ether derivatives were characterized by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. Lyoniresinol lignans (two isomers) are the major lignan in oak wood; isolariciresinol and secoisolariciresinol were identified as minor lignan components. No lignan glycosides were identified in this matrix. The study of ellagitannins fraction by size exclusion chromatography (SEC) from staves presenting diffuse brown marks, and particularly the presence of polymeric ellagitannins fractions and also the presence of lignans permitted to explain the discoloration origin in oak wood for barrel making.

Avaliação e caracterização dos principais compostos químicos da aguardente de cana-de-açúcar envelhecida em tonéis de carvalho (Quercus sp.)

A aguardente de cana-de-açúcar ou cachaça é muito apreciada por seu aroma e sabor característico, que podem melhorar pelo envelhecimento em barris de madeira. Durante o envelhecimento muitas transformações ocorrem e alguns compostos novos podem ser incorporados ou formados, enquanto outros desaparecem. Este estudo teve como objetivo avaliar os efeitos da madeira sobre a qualidade e composição química da aguardente quando envelhecida em barris de carvalho. Doze amostras de aguardentes foram armazenadas em barris de carvalho e em recipientes de vidro, sob as mesmas condições. As amostragens para análises foram realizadas a cada três meses por um período de três anos. Foram determinados os seguintes compostos: teor alcoólico, polifenóis, acetaldeído, acetato de etila, metanol, n-butílico, n-propílico, isobutílico, isoamílico, acidez e cobre. Houve diferença significativa entre as aguardentes armazenadas em barris de madeira e nos recipientes de vidro. As aguardentes armazenadas em barris apresentaram diferenças significativas para todos os elementos analisados, com exceção do n-butílico. Enquanto que as dos recipientes de vidro não apresentaram diferenças significativas, com exceção do acetato de etila, em relação às épocas de amostragem. Os recipientes utilizados e o tempo de armazenamento interferem nas características químicas e na qualidade da aguardente de cana-de-açúcar.

Use of an array of metal oxide sensors coupled with solid phase microextraction for characterisation of wines

Abstract This paper investigates the behaviour of metal oxide (MOX)-based sensors exposed to wines in the presence of different gas carrier backgrounds including air (oxygen), inert gases (nitrogen and helium) and mixtures of air/inert gas. The influences of the gas on the resistance of the sensors, and on the intensity, kinetics, repeatability and reproducibility of the responses have been analysed. The sensors exposed to nitrogen or helium show a higher conductivity due to the displacement of the oxygen adsorbed on the surface of the sensors. Signals registered in an oxygen background are faster than those observed in the presence of N2 or He, indicating that it is easier to displace the oxygen than inert gases from the sensor surface. In addition, inert gases cause irreproducibility of the responses, particularly in the case of helium that decreases drastically the lifetime of the sensors. A purposely designed system of MOX connected to solid phase microextraction (SPME) has been developed that makes it possible for mixtures of air/inert gas to reach the sensor chamber instead of the pure inert gas. Using such mixtures, a drastic improvement of the kinetics and the reproducibility of the responses has been attained. The optimised system SPME-MOX has permitted to discriminate wines with similar characteristics such as red wines elaborated with the same variety of grape but aged using different types of oak woods. Moreover, the improvement of the stability and reproducibility of the signals has allowed monitoring the ageing of wines. The system has demonstrated its ability in discriminating and recognising among wines after 3 and 6 months of permanence in oak wood barrels. Both the calibration and the validation values obtained by using a partial least squares (PLS2) regression method indicate a good-quality model performance (slope near 1, offset near 0 and large correlation between sensors and categorised variables).

The phenolic composition of red wine vinegar produced in barrels made from different woods

The presence of phenolic compounds has been extensively studied in Sherry and Balsamic vinegars due to their impact on quality but little work has been done on red wine vinegars. Phenolic compounds were monitored during the acetification of red wine vinegars produced by surface culture in different wood barrels (oak, chestnut, acacia and cherry). A total of 166 samples were analysed for phenolic compounds using LC-DAD, the total phenol index (TPI) and the total monomeric anthocyanins (TA). Twelve phenolic compounds were identified corresponding to phenolic acids, flavanols and stilbens. Most phenolic acids did not significantly change their concentrations in the different acetifications. (+)-Catechin and resveratrol glycoside underwent significant decreases during acetification while gallic acid and gallic ethyl ester increased substantially for those vinegars produced in chestnut wood. The concentrations of phenolic compounds were used to build the functions for discriminant analysis. Samples belonging to two wine substrates (groups F and T) were correctly classified with 98.6% (group F) and 100% (group T) for the four types of wood barrels. During acetification a decrease (∼50%) in the content of total monomeric anthocyanins was observed. According to the results of triangle difference test the panel was able to distinguish most of the vinegars according to the different woods they were made in. The results of descriptive sensory analysis show that oak and cherry gave the maximum scores for most of the descriptors.

Effects of grape variety, harvest date, fermentation vessel and wine ageing on flavonoid concentration in red wines

Flavonols and flavones play an important role in red wine consumption due to their protective effects to human health. The objective of this work was to study the effects of grape varieties (Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot), harvest dates, fermentation conditions and types of oak barrels (50 L and 225 L) on the concentrations of flavonols and flavones composition. Rutin, quercitrin, myricetin, morin, luteolin, quercetin, kaempferol, isorhamnetin and galangin were all detected. The results showed that at the same maturation, flavonoid varieties of different grape varieties could be affected greatly, but flavonoid concentrations did not witness significant differences ( p < 0.05). Although no significant differences were found in other flavonoid concentrations ( p < 0.05), the concentrations of myricetin and quercetin did decline somewhat at 2° maturation. Higher concentrations of myricetin were observed in new wooden barrels and the revolving pots. Barrel volume seemed to have little effect on quercitrin, myricetin and quercetin evolutions. Concentrations of rutin, kaempferol, isorhamnetin and galangin did, however, show significant differences between samples ( p < 0.05). The results support earlier findings showing that galangin has a close relationship with the aging process and oak barrels, although it appears mainly in the latter part of aging (Fang, F., Li, J. M., Pan, Q. H., & Huang, W. D. (2007). Determination of red wine flavonoids by HPLC and effect of aging. Food Chemistry, 101 , 428–433).

Hydrolysis of glycosidically bound flavour compounds from oak wood by Oenococcus oeni

Malolactic fermentation (MLF), which is conducted by lactic acid bacteria (LAB), has a significant influence on the stability and organoleptic quality of wine. Recent studies have shown that when MLF is carried out in oak wood barrels, LAB were also able to interact with wood and increase volatile compound contents such as vanillin during MLF. The release of these compounds indicates that LAB may convert vanillin precursors present in oak wood. In this work, the effect of commercial glycosidases on the released vanillin was firstly studied. This aldehyde is present in wood extracts in monoglycosidic forms where the major glycones are arabinose and xylose. Other aglycons released during MLF in barrels, syringaldehyde and whisky-lactones, can be considered as other sources of aroma. Secondly, strains selected with high activities toward glycoside substrates could hydrolyse vanillin glycoside precursors from oak wood with the same efficiency as commercial enzymes.

Impact of Wooden Barrel Storage on the Volatile Composition and Sensorial Profile of Red Wine

This study determined the influence of the kind of wood (Allier vs Limousin and Allier vs chestnut), the age (new vs 1 year old Allier oak barriques) and the volume (1000 L vs 225 L ) of Allier oak containers on sensorial profile and volatile composition of a red Sangiovese wine during 360 days of ageing. The greatest sensory differences were found between Allier oak wood and chestnut wood barriques. In chestnut barriques, wines were more fruited and tannic than in Allier where wines were less astringent, more vanilla flavoured and well-balanced. Some differences in chemical composition and sensorial profile were observed in wines aged in used containers with different capacities. The use of containers showed that migration phenomena from wood to wine were more intense in new barriques than in used ones. Therefore, wines aged in new barriques were richer in volatile wood compounds than wines aged in old barriques.

Identification and Sensory Evaluation of Dehydro- and Deoxy-ellagitannins Formed upon Toasting of Oak Wood (Quercus albaL.)

Traditionally, spirits such as whiskey are matured in toasted wood barrels to improve the sensory quality of the final beverage. In order to gain first insight into the puzzling road map of thermal ellagitannin transformation chemistry and provide evidence for the changes in sensory active nonvolatiles in oak wood during toasting, the purified oak ellagitannins castalagin and vescalagin, their corresponding dimers roburin A and roburin D, and 33-carboxy-33-deoxyvescalagin were thermally treated in model experiments. Besides mouth-coating and golden-brown colored melanoidin-type polymers, individual major reaction products were produced as transient intermediates which were identified for the first time by means of LC-MS/MS and 1D/2D-NMR spectroscopy. Depending strongly on the stereochemistry, castalagin is oxidized to the previously unreported dehydrocastalagin, whereas its diastereomer vescalagin, differing only in the stereochemistry at carbon C-1, is most surprisingly converted into deoxyvescalagin. Comparative model experiments with 33-carboxy-33-deoxyvescalagin revealed castalagin, vescalagin, dehydrocastalagin, and deoxyvescalagin as typical reaction products, thus indicating decarboxylation as a key step in the thermal degradation of that ellagitannin. Similar to the ellagitannin monomers, LC-MS/MS analyses gave strong evidence that the corresponding dimer roburin A, containing the vescalagin configuration at C-1, was converted into the deoxyroburin A, whereas roburin D, exhibiting the castalagin configuration at C-1, was oxidized to give the dehydroroburin D. Human sensory experiments revealed that the ellagitannin derivatives imparted an astringent mouth-coating sensation with threshold concentrations ranging from 1.1 to 126.0 micromol/L, depending strongly on their chemical structure.

Influence of oak woods of different geographical origins on quality of wines aged in barriques and using oak chips

Wine ageing in wood barrels is a traditional practice in quality wine-making areas. It is generally believed that the organoleptic characteristics of wines aged in barrels are deeply influenced by wood geographical origin, as well as by age of barrels (new or used). The main purpose of this work was to investigate the variation of some qualitative characteristics of a local red wine aged in medium-toasted barrels made of oak wood from four different French forests: Allier, Never, Tronçais and Limousin. A second target was the evaluation of the persistence of the influence of the wood geographical origin on wine characteristics with the use of old barrels and wood-shaving chips. Therefore, we chose the mostly appreciated wood typologies in the wine barrel making industry.

Characterization of Volatiles in Extracts from Oak Chips Obtained by Accelerated Solvent Extraction (ASE)

Sixteen commercially available oak chips, differing in origin (French or American) and toasting level, were extracted by an accelerated solvent extraction method and characterized by their volatile composition. About 80 compounds were identified and quantified, a great part of them from the thermodegradation of lignin and cellulose. One furanone (solerone) and two C-13 norisoprenoids (3-oxo-alpha-ionol and a 3-oxoretro-alpha-ionol isomer) were also tentatively identified and reported for the first time in toasted wood. Quantitative data demonstrated the oak chips to be not so different from the composition of light- or medium-toasted wood barrels, which was reported by other authors. The same data suggest that toasting level had the strongest influence on the volatile composition of chip samples. Phenyl ketones, volatile phenols, and some furanic compounds were the most influenced. On the other hand, the influence of wood origin was found to be weaker.

Influence of wood origin in the polyphenolic composition of a Spanish red wine aging in bottle, after storage in barrels of Spanish, French and American oak wood

In this paper, the changes in the composition of a red wine obtained from Tempranillo grapes (Vitis vinifera L.), stored from 12 to 24 months in bottles were studied. The wine was previously aging for 21 months in barrels made of Spanish oak wood (Quercus spp.). The changes of chromatic data, global polyphenolic families assessment (polyphenols, catechins, proanthocyanidins and anthocyanins) and individually polyphenols by HPLC during their storage time in bottles were studied and compared with these of the same wine aged in barrels made of French oak and American oak and stored in bottle for 24 months. Samples of wines obtained after 12 months in bottle were also compared with those after 24 months. The stepwise discriminant analysis with data of chromatic parameters and global polyphenolic families indicates that the wines aged in Spanish and French oak wood barrels, after 24 months stored in bottle, have similar characteristics, but they are significantly different to those of wines aged in barrels made of American oak wood. Regarding the analysis of individually non-anthocyanic polyphenols, discriminant analysis shows that wines stored for 24 months in bottle, aged in barrels made of Spanish, French and American oak woods, show overlapping results, while those from wines after 12 months in bottle are more dispersed. The discriminant analysis carried out on anthocyanidin concentrations of wines stored 24 months in bottles has shown three groups according the kind of wood used, indicating that wines aged in Spanish and French oak barrels are much more similar in anthocyanidin concentrations than those aged in the American barrels.

Flavour and odour profile modifications during the first five years of Lourinhã brandy maturation on different wooden barrels

The same Portuguese brandy from the region of Lourinhã was used to fill 63 different wooden barrels. These barrels were made according to a two factorial experiment (7 woods × 3 toasting levels × 3 replicates). Samples of the brandies were taken after two, three, four and five years of maturation time. The flavour and odour profile of these 63 samples were evaluated each year by a panel of judges, previously selected and trained, using a structured scale for 20 attributes. The results obtained showed a significant effect of maturation time on several sensory attributes, namely alcohol, fruity, vanilla, woody, burned/toasted, dried fruits, smoke, tails, glue, smooth, caoutchouc, burning, astringency, bitterness, body, flavour complexity, retronasal aroma and flavour persistence. The panel also evaluated the overall quality of the brandies, which was also strongly influenced by the maturation time. The intensity of many positive brandy attributes (vanilla, woody, dried fruits, toasted, smoke, body, flavour complexity, retronasal aroma and flavour persistence) increased over the time, as well as the overall quality. Conversely, the intensities of other attributes, such as alcohol, astringency, fruity, glue, bitterness and burning, decreased over the time. In addition, the results showed that the brandies presented significant differences on flavour and odour profile, resulting from different wooden barrels and from different toasting levels of the barrels used for the maturation.

A Chemometrical Approach for Vinegar Classification by Headspace Mass Spectrometry of Volatile Compounds

The volatile fraction of ninety-eight different vinegars was analysed using a head-space analysis instrument assembled in our laboratory. This instrument is formed by an automatic sample introduction system, directly coupled to a mass detector without performing any chromatographic separation. The aim of this research was to classify the vinegar samples according to raw material (white or red wine, Sherry, malt, apple, alcohol) and production process (with or without ageing in wood barrels). The information contained in the measured signals was analysed by different chemometrical techniques. Linear Discriminant Analysis was used as classification method, after applying a feature selection technique. The 100% of samples were correctly classified and predicted, by cross-validation procedure, according to raw material and according to the ageing process in wood barrels.

Endowment versus Finance: A Wooden Barrel Theory of International Trade

This paper develops a theory of international trade in which financial development and factor endowment jointly determine comparative advantage. We apply the financial contract model of Holmstrom and Tirole to the Heckscher-Ohlin-Samuelson (HOS) framework. A key result is what we call the law of a wooden barrel: if the external finance constraint is binding, then augmenting capital stock would have no effect on output and returns. On the other hand, if the external finance constraint is not binding, the standard HOS predictions are resuscitated.

Determination of ageing time of spirits in oak barrels using a headspace–mass spectrometry (HS-MS) electronic nose system and multivariate calibration

The aromatic composition of sugar cane spirits and, in general, of alcoholic beverages, is mainly influenced by the ageing process in wood barrels. There are several factors that affect the quality of the final aged product, but the time of the storage in the barrel is perhaps the most important one. Ageing time must therefore be controlled in order to detect counterfeits; however, this parameter is very difficult to control and, at present, there is no analytical method available to determine it. We propose a quantitative method for determining the ageing time of sugar cane spirits in oak barrels by using an electronic nose based on coupling directly a headspace sampler to a mass spectrometer (HS-MS), and multivariate calibration. The method developed is simple and provides, in 5 min, the ageing time of spirits with an accuracy of about 1 month.

Endowment Versus Finance: A Wooden Barrel Theory of International Trade

This paper develops a theory of international trade in which financial development and factor endowment jointly determine comparative advantage. We apply the financial contract model of Holmstrom and Tirole to the Heckscher-Ohlin-Samuelson (HOS) framework. A key result is what we call the law of a wooden barrel: if the external finance constraint is binding, then augmenting capital stock would have no effect on output and returns. On the other hand, if the external finance constraint is not binding, the standard HOS predictions are resuscitated.