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30 Wines&Vines February 2015 BArrelS wine barrels, so they've been able to ensure a steady supply of wood. He said in the past mills regularly had excess wood available for wine barrels, but now that excess is being snapped up for whiskey barrels. "If you're buying from a broker you're in trouble," he said. The spirits demand was a pleas- ant surprise for Tonnellerie O, said James Herwatt, the compa- ny's chief operating officer. He said the cooperage had purchased a large amount of American oak a few years ago and has been able to use that inventory to support demand from distillers looking to age their products in premium American oak. At the cooperage in Benicia, Calif., coopers give Tonnellerie O's American oak wine barrels a deep char, which is what the spirits pro- ducers want. "We were actually lucky and fortunate to have sourced quite a bit of wood quite a few years ago anticipating our growth," he said. That business from distillers gave the company a very success- ful 2014, and Herwatt said he doesn't anticipate any slowdown in demand for spirits barrels in 2015. Prices for French and American oak went up 3% in 2014, and Her- watt said he expects a similar in- crease this year because of supply and operating costs. The company recently opened an office in China to serve the growing number of premium wineries opening there. He said it's great to see global demand for premium barrels to age high-quality wines returning to levels not seen since the 2008 recession, and the United States is leading that demand. Herwatt said he believes the United States has been the largest barrel market for three to five years. "People want and expect high-quality bar- rels, and demand them, and are willing to pay for it," he said. Barrels used for whiskey are charred rather than toasted.