Search Results (3)

In recent decades, the use of wood pieces has been promoted as a viable alternative to barrels to improve the quality of white wines. However, most available studies have focused on red wines. Given that white and red wines present significant oenological differences that affect their development and final characteristics, it is necessary to expand research specifically to the case of white wines. For this reason, this study evaluates the impact of using pieces of traditional oak wood (Quercus petraea (two origins: French and Romanian) and Quercus alba), other oaks (Quercus humboldtti and Quercus candicans) and other genera (Robinia pseudoacacia, Acacia dealbata, Prunus avium and Nothofagus pumilio) on the quality of white wine during the short period of contact with the wood. The results show that aging with the different woods has little effect on the oenological parameters of the wine; however, it does lead to a change in the phenolic composition and in the final chromatic characteristics of the white wines. From a sensory point of view, the wines showed different sensory profiles depending on the type of wood used. In general, the tasting panel preferred the white wine aged with French Quercus petraea wood pieces, followed by the wine aged with Quercus humboldtti wood pieces and the wine aged with Robinia speudoacacia wood pieces. This research improves our understanding of the potential impact of using pieces of different woods in white wines, describing the potential interest of some that have not been studied before, such as Quercus humboldtti. Full article

Wood is one of the most highly valued materials in enology since the chemical composition and sensorial properties of wine change significantly when in contact with it. The need for wood in cooperage and the concern of enologists in their search for new materials to endow their wines with a special personality has generated interest in the use of other Quercus genus materials different from the traditional ones (Q. petraea, Q. robur and Q. alba) and even other wood genera. Thereby, species from same genera such as Q. pyrenaica Willd., Q. faginea Lam., Q. humboldtti Bonpl., Q. oocarpa Liebm., Q. stellata Wangenh, Q. frainetto Ten., Q. lyrata Walt., Q. bicolor Willd. and other genera such as Castanea sativa Mill. (chestnut), Robinia pseudoacacia L. (false acacia), Prunus avium L. and P. cereaus L. (cherry), Fraxinus excelsior L. (European ash) and F. americana L. (American ash) have been studied with the aim of discovering whether they could be a new reservoir of wood for cooperage. This review aims to summarize the characterization of tannin and low molecular weight phenol compositions of these alternative woods for enology in their different cooperage stages and compare them to traditional oak woods, as both are essential to proposing their use in cooperage for aging wine. Full article

Contact of wine with wood during fermentation and ageing produces significant changes in its chemical composition and organoleptic properties, modifying its final quality. Wines acquire complex aromas from the wood, improve their colour stability, flavour, and clarification, and extend their storage period. New trends in the use of barrels, replaced after a few years of use, have led to an increased demand for oak wood in cooperage. In addition, the fact that the wine market is becoming increasingly saturated and more competitive means that oenologists are increasingly interested in tasting different types of wood to obtain wines that differ from those already on the market. This growing demand and the search for new opportunities to give wines a special personality has led to the use of woods within the Quercus genus that are different from those used traditionally (Quercus alba, Quercus petraea, and Quercus robur) and even woods of different genera. Thus, species of the genus Quercus, such as Quercus pyrenaica Willd., Quercus faginea Lam., Quercus humboldtti Bonpl., Quercus oocarpa Liebm., Quercus frainetto Ten, and other genera, such as Robinia pseudoacacia L. (false acacia), Castanea sativa Mill. (chestnut), Prunus avium L. and Prunus cereaus L. (cherry), Fraxinus excelsior L. (European ash), Fraxinus americana L. (American ash), Morus nigra L, and Morus alba L. have been the subject of several studies as possible sources of wood apt for cooperage. The chemical characterization of these woods is essential in order to be able to adapt the cooperage treatment and, thus, obtain wood with oenological qualities suitable for the treatment of wines. This review aims to summarize the different species that have been studied as possible new sources of wood for oenology, defining the extractable composition of each one and their use in wine. Full article