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BARRELS of JC Cellars in Oakland, Calif. "We used to wash those barrels as much as we could to get those harsh tannins out of them, but now they're made very well." In addition to better milling and quality control, coopers refined their toasting techniques to provide a spectrum of flavors. Those in the barrel trade say they often stump winemakers in blind tastings of wines aged in French and American oak. "We used to wash those barrels as much as we could to get those harsh tannins out of them, but now they're made very well." —Jeff Cohn, JC Cellars Yet while wine industry demand for American oak is up, many winemakers still only have a vague idea of the American oak forests being in the Midwest somewhere. Wines & Vines recently visited the oak forests of Missouri to gain better insights into the domestic oak industry. Missouri. About a quarter of the trees used for making wine barrels. In the forest Barrels made with American white oak (Quercus alba) will likely always be cheaper than those made with the primary European oaks such as the sessile oak (Quercus petraea) and English oak (Quercus robur), because American oak contains more tyloses or large cells that make the wood watertight. Because more of these cells are present in American oak, logs can be quarter-sawn at the mill and more staves produced from one tree. European oak logs, however, must be carefully split by hand or powerful wedge presses along natural seams to ensure water tightness. In addition to the physical nature of the trees, the American white oak forest is vast, stretching across the central and eastern United States. American oak also contains different levels of flavor compounds and other wood materials that make it season and toast differently than European oak. Kelly Frizzell is a logger and mill owner based near Salem, Mo. He regularly cuts trees for staves purchased by Salem Wood Products, which is owned by Independent Stave Co. (ISC), the parent company of the Napa, Calif.-based Cooperages 1912, which sells wine barrels under the World Cooperage, T.W. Boswell and Tonnellerie Quintessence brands. While the company is heavily invested in American oak, about 40% of the Fourth-generation logger Kelly Frizzel cuts into a white oak tree in Missouri. wine barrels Cooperages 1912 sells are made with French oak. Frizzell is a fourth-generation logger who is certified through the Missouri Department of Conservation, which manages the state's forests. He is also one of the state's few "master loggers." The certification Because of the cellular structure of American oak, about 40% to 50% of a log can be used for staves, compared to only 20% or 25% of a French or European oak tree. Win es & Vin es F EB RUA RY 20 14 33