OAKED or UN-OAKED? That is the question!

There are many preferences regarding oaked verses un-oaked wines, but most of them in my experience are based strictly on the robust flavor of OAK itself. Did you know that a wine can be aged in oak without really having any “woody” characteristics at all? Would you associate the delicious flavors of dark chocolate, butterscotch, or molasses with an oaked wine? You should, because that’s one of the only natural ways a wine maker can manipulate those layers of complexity into their product. You can usually tell if a wine has been aged in oak by its aromas and flavors.

French Oak and American Oak are the most common types of barrels used for aging wine. French Oak is more commonly used for higher quality wines as it adds elegant flavors like vanilla, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg. American Oak typically adds more aggressive flavors of vanilla, toasted coconut, and dill. The more a barrel is used, the less effective it is in contributing to the wine in terms of flavor; consequently, most barrels are only used once or twice before being discarded or sold for other uses.

Here are some barrel aging associations you can relate flavor to the next time you’re characterizing a wine:

General wood flavors include the obvious: oak, cedar, sawdust, and even cigar box (which is a fairly common characteristic found in Pinot Noirs and Cabernet Sauvignons).

Less obvious wood flavors include vanilla, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, toasted coconut, dill, and even black pepper (which is a fairly common characteristic found in a Red Zinfandel).

Charring on the inside of a barrel can produce flavors of smoke, toasted bread, and campfire, as well as coffee, dark chocolate, and nuts.

Oxidation aromas from barrel aging can also reflect caramel, butterscotch, honey, and molasses in the wine.

FYI: The buttery flavor characteristic of many domestic chardonnays is NOT typically a result of oak barrel aging, but rather of Malolactic Fermentation (which is a secondary fermentation process where malic acid is converted to lactic acid via Lactobacillus bacteria).

So the next time you’re tasting a wine and someone asks if it has been barrel aged, you’ll be able to make a more accurate and worthy assumption, be able to explain theoretically why you’re leaning one way or the other, and your friends will marvel at your wisdom and skill!