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WINEMAKING Making the Right Barrel Choices Artisan winemakers value diversity, quality and wood source By Andrew Adams "A cooper that has been fantastic with a vineyard in Walla Walla ...may not show well with a vineyard that's 100 miles away." quality or by conducting barrel trials. For this story, Wines & Vines surveyed winemakers at North American wineries that produce up to 15,000 cases of wine per year, with an average bottle price higher than $30; then we inter- viewed several of them about their oak programs. Based on survey results and interviews, winemakers exhibited a mild interest in new barrel features but almost universally described their oak programs as "traditional." A few mentioned they were interested in new products such as Cooperages 1912's "fusion designer" barrel, which was released last winter and can be built using a blend of French, European and American oak. Tonnellerie Radoux's OakScan process—a relatively new technology that uses spectrometric analysis to determine the oak tannin content of wood, also earned praise. Most, however, were primarily concerned with maintaining a consistent level of quality and said they employ a range of bar- W 30 WINES & VINES OCTOBER 2012 —Winemaker John Abbott, Abeja Winery "You want some oak influence because that's what you're paying all this money for." —Winemaker Kristy Melton, Clos Du Val Wine Co. and Varozza Vineyards inemakers at premium wineries evaluate their barrel programs every vintage, just like their wines. While most have favorite coopers—often sourced through trusted brokers—many still view their oak programs with a critical eye, looking each year for any changes in barrel "We don't like smoky. We are looking for barrels that really focus the fruit...to extenuate the structure of the wine." —Winemaker Michael McNeill, Hanzell Vineyards rels from different coopers to match the varying flavor profiles of different wine lots. Winemakers named barrel leaks and blisters caused by the toasting as their chief issues with barrel quality. A multi-layered approach Erich Bradley is the winemaker at Sonoma Valley wineries So- journ Cellars and Repris Winery, two separate companies with small annual productions. Bradley prefers to employ about 40%- 50% new oak in his wines, but said finding the right barrels is a major step. "The oak program is a huge tool for me to differenti- ate my wine from everyone else's," he said. In the caves of Repris Winery, the new name of the former Car- menet Winery high atop Moon Mountain above Sonoma Valley, Bradley is conducting barrel trials related to forest of origin, differ- ent toasting regimens and staves. The vineyards are planted to six different clones, and to accommodate and highlight the diversity Bradley said he's been experimenting with a mix of barrels. "I've found that by using Tronçais mixed with Jupilles I can temper the tannins a bit and push the fruit forward," he said. "I'm just trying to have some fun with it." He uses Tonnellerie Darnajou, Taransaud, Trueil, Saury, Bel Air and de Jarnac to provide a mix of finesse and structure. TRACI SEVILLE