Where To Find Wine Barrels

Standard Wine Barrel Tops And Bottoms

The top and bottoms of wine barrels are going to be smaller than the belly, though theyre still typically round. The heads of the barrels are smaller to help make them easier to stack and store. Most barrel heads are between 21 to 23 inches in diameter, depending on how much wine the barrel is meant to store.

S Of A Wine Barrel Vocabulary:

• Head: flat circular top and bottom of the barrel. It is generally stamped with the coopers badge and sometimes the winerys logo
• Chime: beveled edge of the barrel made up of the ends of the staves
• Stave: one of the narrow strips of wood or plank that form the sides of a barrel
• Hoops: metal parts around the barrel that hold the staves together
• Bilge: the widest part of the barrel
• Bung hole: hole in one of the barrels staves used to fill up and empty the barrels
• Bung: wooden or silicone stopper used to close hermetically the bung hole

How Much Does A Standard Wine Barrel Weigh

Wine barrels weigh a lot more than you expect them to weigh, well tell you that much. When they are empty a typical wine barrel will weigh between 90 to 115 pounds depending on the specific measurements as well as the type of wood thats used in making it. If you fill the barrel with wine, it can weigh as much as 600 pounds.

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Hotel Vrouwe Van Stavoren Netherlands

In addition to its regular rooms, Hotel Vrouwe van Stavoren boasts 12 original wine barrels that have been converted into accommodation. These include eight 23,000 litre barrels and four 15,000 litre barrels, each equipped with televisions.

The larger barrels include a spacious bathroom with a separate shower, toilet, sofa and as well as bed and sofa. One of the 23,000 litre barrels has also been converted into a wellness wine barrel, complete with sitting room, and a wellness area which includes a sofa, double indoor jacuzzi, shower and steam cabin.

Address: Hotel Vrouwe van Stavoren Havenweg 1 8715 EM Stavoren

Contact:

Everything You Ever Wanted To Know About Oak Wine Barrels

Before theyre ignominiously turned into flower planters, wine barrels have a long and dignified life. Heres what they do and why they matter.

Before theyre ignominiously turned into flower planters, wine barrels have a long and dignified life. Heres what they do and why they matter.

The Benefits of Wood Winemakers have used oak barrels for centuries. Barrels allow tiny amounts of oxygen in to help mature the wine, while compounds in the wood give the wine structure and flavor. Different oak varieties impart different flavorslike coconut from American oak, or spice from French oakas do different levels of wood toasting. These days, many producers are looking for faster, cheaper alternatives to expensive barrels, like oak chips or sticks that can be floated in vats of wine.

Barrel Tech How much technical innovation can a wood barrel really handle? Surprisingly, quite a lot. Instead of using dry heat to soften staves before shaping them into barrels, some coopers are finding that its easier to bend the staves in hot water. Coopers are also experimenting with hybrid barrels that combine French staves with a few American ones, as a way to tinker with flavoring.

California Oak SpectrumNo Oak 2013 Toad Hollow Francines Selection Chardonnay Made entirely in stainless steel, this lively Mendocino white is all about pure fruit.

The Life of a Barrel

2. Seasoning Coopers season long pieces of wood, called staves, by air-drying them for one to three years.

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Quinta Da Pacheca Portugal

A recent entrant to the board-in-a-barrel game, Quinta da Pachecas offering includes a stay in one of 10 giant wine barrels for £219.

Built in 2017, the barrels are made from pine wood and house a double bed, walk-in shower and a toilet. Each property has a private terrace and is fitted with air conditioning and wifi.

As part of the experience, guests can explore the 140-acre vineyard and taste wines from the producer, which has been in operation for 116 years.

Address: Rua do Relógio do Sol, 261 Cambres Lamego Viseu 5100-424 Portugal

Contact:

How We Did It:

Barrel production numbers are elusive cooperages can be secretive, and while governments regulate timber, they often dont track how wood is used. These numbers are educated estimates from the industrys leading experts, including: Jason Stout, sales director at Cooperages 1912 Mel Knox, a barrel broker in California and András Kalydy, managing director of the Kadar cooperage in Hungary.

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Schwarzrinderseen Weindorf Betriebs Germany

Another dedicated wine barrel hotel, this one is located near the Schwarzrinder lakes not far away from Weiskirchen near a newly planted vineyard.

It consists of 16 different units with a separate barrel for your bedroom and bathroom and a terrace that connects the two.

There are also family barrels available and each property comes equipped with heating, electricity and internet access.

Address: An den Schwarzrinder Seen 66709 Weiskirchen

Can You Reuse Wine Barrels

Aside from turning a wine barrel into a table, winemakers regularly reuse wine barrels when theyre manufacturing new batches of wine. The only thing is, there is a limited number of times you can make wine with the same barrel. The most that you can reuse a wine barrel for winemaking purposes is three times.

Every time you use a wine barrel, the wood that helps age the wine loses a little flavor. After the third time, your wine will start to lose a significant amount of flavor, leaving your wine fairly bland. While some might be okay with this, the reduction in wine quality will really grind an oenophiles gears.

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Is Wine Aged In Barrels

The short answer is yes, most wines are aged in barrels. However, some may not be the traditional oak ones you picture in your head. Many white wines are aged in stainless steel and there are even other types of barrels you probably have never heard of.

Here are a few of the varieties of wine barrels used in the aging process:

Wooden Barriques And Barrels

In its catalogue, Polsinelli Enologia offers a selection of wooden barrels for wine ageing, as well as for properly conserving oil or brewing beer.

These containers, made specifically for viniculture, are of the highest quality and are also ideal for professional use. In our online store you can find wooden barriques and barrels of various sizes and made with various kinds of wood suiting all type of requirements.

They are available at absolutely amazing prices. As an example, we have highly prized oak barrels, the most classic of the wooden barrels for wine, as recommended by the vinicultural tradition in many countries, including Italy. Nowadays oak barrels are indeed one of the most commonly used containers for vinification and wine ageing, due mostly to the properties of oak that gives the final product a unique and unmistakable aroma.

Ideal for wines and spirits, in our catalogue you will also find chestnut wooden barrels, which have been used since ancient times. In this section of our store you can also buy various types of accessories for your wooden barrels, such as bâtonnage rods for stirring, or faucets for tasting the wine, as well as a draft faucet to pour directly from a beer barrel.

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Wine Barrel History In A Minute

Ancient Egyptians and Romans were using clay amphorae rather than wooden containers. But those were fragile and unpractical.

When the Romans conquered the Gaul just before 100 BC, they noticed the locals transporting beer in wood barrels so they started applying the idea to the transportation of their beloved wine.

Wooden wine barrels were easier to handle, harder to break than amphorae.

Who likes to spill his wine ?!?

It was later discovered than beyond the practical aspect of wooden barrels for transportation, the wood, oak preferably also gives positive characteristics to wines.

This is why today many wines are aged in oak barrels.

Oak barrels are composed of quite a few parts, each of which has a specific name.

Assembling a wine barrel is the art of the cooper.

A coopers workshop is called a cooperage.

If you want to pretend you know your wine, you have to know your wine barrel.

This is why weve gather for you below an infographic including the specific vocabulary used to describe the various components/parts of a wine barrel. The same vocabulary applies to Bourbon Whiskey barrels.

Find below the infographic the list of arts names and their definition, as well as the various capacities of different regional wine barrel types.

Used Top Barrels Ready To Refill

Our white wine barrels are sourced directly from important wineries across France. These were primarily pre-filled with Sauvignon Blanc or Chardonnay. Due to their excellent quality, they are equally suitable for the winemaker as well as for the master distiller and brewer.All of our used barrels are carefully checked, cleaned and prepared for dispatch by our partner cooperage. We always guarantee premium barrels of the highest quality..

EXTRAORDINARY WINE BARRELS FOR ALL KIND OF USE

In addition to our large selection of white wine barrels, we also offer you exclusive Red Wine Barrels from France, Italy and Spain.

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Why Are Wines Aged In Barrels

Now that youve learned the types of barrels that wine is aged in, what is the point of aging wine in barrels, anyways? Barrel aging is the step between fermentation and bottling, which matures the wine and gives it distinct flavors. This process normally takes between 6 to 30 months . Ultimately, wine is aged in barrels for flavor development, maturity, and longevity after bottling.

Here are a few variations of barrel-aging that winemakers use to impact the flavor of wine:

• Barrel toastingAfter an oak barrel is made, it is exposed to fire to toast it. A minimal toast will lead to vanilla flavors and caramel notes, while a more toasted barrel will give smoky aromas.
• Barrel sizeThe larger the barrel, the less flavor your wine will receive. Smaller barrels allow more contact with the wine, thus a more intense flavor.
• Barrel timeThe amount of time you have the wine in the barrel also significantly impacts the flavor. The longer the wine is in the barrel, the more intense the barrel-imparted flavors.
• Barrel ageReusing a barrel leads to diminished flavors, which means winemakers must replace barrels after every three vintages to make sure the wine flavor stays consistent. After approximately three uses, the oak no longer imparts flavor and becomes neutral oak.

Coup 2 Foudres France

Designed by celebrated cooper Seguin-Moreau, Coup 2 Foudres is located at Château Vieux Lartigue in Saint-Sulpice-de-Faleyrens.

Consisting to two wine barrels, each with 20 square metres of living space, guests are provided with a large double bed, kitchenette and walk-in shower.

The barrels are also equipped with wifi and a TV at a cost of 129 per night. Just 10km from Saint-Émilion, tours of the vineyards are also available.

Address: Coup 2 Foudres, EARL Vignobles Fournier Château de Bonhoste, 33420 Saint Jean de Blaignac

Contact: 0557841218

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How Much Wine Can A Typical Barrel Hold

Barrels are often made with specs geared towards a specific capacity. Heres a quick run-through of the most common specs you might find for a typical barrel:

• Demi-Barrique. This translates to half-barrel in French and is about half the size of a standard barrel. This can hold up to 30 gallons of wine.
• Bordelaise + Bourguignon. These are two barrel types that are typically seen as standard. Theyre also known as Bordeaux and Burgundy. Both hold roughly 60 gallons, though Bordeaux barrels are slightly smaller.
• Hogshead. These are not wine barrels, per se. They are usually used in the production of cognac, and hold a hogshead of wine.
• A Demi-Muid. This is nowhere near the typical barrel measurements and is actually the largest size you can possibly find in a private home in most cases. This holds 159 gallons and is far more common in actual vineyards.

Standard Wine Barrel Height

Believe it or not, wine barrels dont really have much deviation when it comes to their height, even if their widths vary greatly. The standard height for a wine barrel is 34.75 inches, though some just round it up to 35 inches. Bordeaux barrels will have a height of 37.5 inches, but its more of a traditional issue than anything else.

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Find Out More And All Of Social Vignerons Wine Infographics

This wine barrel infographic was designed and developed by Fernanda Franco on an original concept by Social Vignerons.

Fernanda Franco is fine artist and designer, she finds inspiration in her travels and in nature and in color, recent art/wine trips include France, Italy, England and Spain. Her ever-growing body of fine art includes monotypes, blockprints, drawings and watercolors on paper. Fernanda has worked as a senior graphic designer for JPMorgan Private Bank, MoMa, the Whitney Museum and several design studios in New York.Find more about Fernanda and her work at www.fernandafranco.com

Common Projects Involving Wine Barrels

If nothing else, wine barrels are hot items for home improvement projects. They actually offer a bunch of different ways to add a French country look to your home, and can act as a highly versatile medium for a number of different projects. If you got a brand new wine barrel in your home, consider turning it into one of these hip, trendy, and functional projects:

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How Much Clearance Do You Need To Move A Wine Barrel Into Your Home

Part of the difficulty of getting a wine barrel into your home is getting the clearance to push it through doors and through tight corners. In order to get the barrel into your home, you will need a clearance that is at least an inch wider than the belly of the barrel. This gives you just enough space to push the barrel through doorways.

When planning out whether or not you will be able to make your barrel fit through the door, its a good idea to take a measurement of your doorway. Remember to add a little leeway to make sure that the actual door doesnt snag on the barrel!

Wine Village Glamping Slovenia

Visitors to the town of Ptuj in Slovenia can go wine barrel glamping from March through to October, choosing from one of eight different barrels housed on a campsite.

Paying tribute to the towns winemaking heritage, the dwellings just house a bed but the deal gives access to wifi, breakfast and dinner, a communal fire, and two pools and saunas.

Address: Pot v toplice 9, 2251 Ptuj, Slovenija

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Become A Barrel Expert

Investing in quality used oak barrels for your brewery is only the beginning of you barrel-aging journey. What happens when there is a problem with a barrel? Can you maintain and repair the barrels you have? Do you know how to spot problems before they start costing you product? Barrels Direct is here to help.

Barrels Direct is part of the River Drive Cooperage & Millwork family as a result, were not only experts at barrel brokerage and logistics, but also at maintaining, repairing, and building custom barrels. Were now offering a new series of educational cooperage classes to share our knowledge and teach your team to keep your barrels at their best.

Standard Wine Barrel Belly Measurements

Were going to talk about the bilge of the wine now. Though the bilge is the proper term for this, were going to call it the belly because thats what most people call it casually. The belly of the wine barrel is the widest part. The belly of the barrel also happens to be one of the biggest concerns you should have if you want to repurpose a barrel for decorative purposes.

It will take up most of the width and its also the most varied of the measurements. A typical barrel belly will be around 25 to 27 inches in diameter and will have a barrel head of 21 inches. If you have a larger barrel, then you can expect the belly to be closer to 28 or 29 inches in diameter. While 28 inches is pretty big, its still not the largest.

Unusually large barrels can have a diameter as big as 32 or more, with head diameters up to 25 inches. With that said, those are not the norm and should not be expected to be standard.

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Barrel Shape Construction And Parts

Barrels have a convex shape and bulge at their center, called bilge. This facilitates rolling a well-built wooden barrel on its side and allows the roller to change directions with little friction, compared to a cylinder. It also helps to distribute stress evenly in the material by making the container more curved. Barrels have reinforced edges to enable safe displacement by rolling them at an angle .

Casks used for ale or beer have shives and keystones in their openings. Before serving the beer, a spile is hammered into the shive and a tap into the keystone.

The wooden parts that make up a barrel are called staves, the top and bottom are both called heads or headers, and the rings that hold the staves together are called hoops. These are usually made of galvanized iron, though historically they were made of flexible bits of wood called withies. While wooden hoops could require barrels to be “fully hooped”, with hoops stacked tightly together along the entire top and bottom third of a barrel, iron-hooped barrels only require a few hoops on each end.

A barrel is one of several units of volume, with dry barrels, fluid barrels , oil barrel, etc. The volume of some barrel units is double others, with various volumes in the range of about 100200 litres .