How Oak Affects the Flavour of Wine
Understanding the difference between French and American barrels can help point you toward bottles you’ll enjoy.
It’s been said that right behind grapes, wood is the second most important ingredient in making wine, at least for those wines that are fermented and aged in oak barrels. Unlike the hundreds of grape varieties that are regularly made into wine, when it comes to oak, there are two main choices: American and French. And while both types of barrels are indeed made from oak trees, the two countries grow distinct species that bring different qualities to the wine in contact with them.
France is home to two species, Quercus rubra and Quercus petraea, which have a fine grain, while the Quercus alba, or American white oak, features a wider grain. Hailing from forests throughout the French countryside including Alliers, Limousin, Nevers and Tronçais, French oak imparts a silkier texture than its American counterpart as well as soft clove, cinnamon, nutmeg and coffee flavours and light hints of vanilla alongside smooth or polished tannins. American oak, which transmits more profound notes of caramel, toffee, coconut, espresso bean, cocoa powder, a more intense level of vanilla and bolder tannins, is grown in states including Minnesota, Missouri, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Wisconsin.
French Oak
In Burgundy, members of the Latour family were barrel makers before becoming vintners, and today Maison Louis Latour continues that tradition by crafting its own barrels. The only winery in Burgundy to have its own in-house cooperage, Louis Latour uses about half of the 3,500 French oak barrels it produces annually and sells the balance to producers of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay around the world. “French oak’s fine grain and subtle character make it ideal for the balanced, terroir-driven wines of Maison Louis Latour,” says Eléonore Latour, vice president and 12th generation family member. “For our Chardonnays, French oak complements natural richness and minerality. For our Pinot Noirs, it adds depth and a supple mouthfeel while preserving delicate fruit and spice. Ultimately, it enhances what nature provides, never overpowering it.”
French oak isn’t just used to make wines in France; like many of the grapes from that country that are now grown around the world, its barrels can be found anywhere that wine is made. We recently spot-checked the technical details of more than 100 high-end Napa wines, and of those that specified what type of oak they used, almost every single one used barrels sourced from France. At Quintessa, winemaker Rebekah Wineburg says the personality of American oak is too brash and bold for the type of wine she makes. Referring to the sweeter, more pronounced flavours that can dominate the palate, she tells Robb Report, “Those characteristics can be wonderful in certain styles, but for Quintessa, which is all about elegance and a sense of place, they would feel out of step. Our goal is to let the vineyard speak, and French oak gives us the nuance and restraint to do that.”
Italian winemaker Tommaso Cortonesi also employs French oak for his Cortonesi Poggiarelli Brunello di Montalcino, using 500-litre barrels rather than the 228-litre pièce bourguignonne favored by Latour. Cortonesi’s single-vineyard grand cru site imbues his wine with a naturally powerful and refined tannin structure and “French oak tonneaux help to highlight that profile, bringing out Poggiarelli’s finesse and elegance,” he says. He prefers the bigger barrels due to the required two-year aging requirement for Brunello. “The larger volume allows for a gentler exchange between wine and wood, maintaining balance and freshness.”
American Oak
American oak barrels are a mainstay at many Australian wineries, especially those that specialise in Shiraz. “The generous fruit weight and texture of Shiraz can readily absorb even 100 percent new American oak, leading to balance rather than dominance,” says Penfolds chief winemaker Peter Gago. While many of the wines made at Penfolds use French oak, its flagship Grange has been matured in new American oak hogsheads—300-litre barrels—since it was launched in 1951. “American oak contributes a unique aromatic and structural framework that has become part of Grange’s DNA,” Gago says. “It imparts distinctive characters that integrate effortlessly with South Australian Shiraz’s ripe, dark fruit profile.”
Closer to home, one of California’s most renowned wineries, Ridge Vineyards, holds steadfast to the commitment to American oak first championed by original head winemaker Paul Draper. Current head winemaker John Olney explains that in the 1960s when Ridge began, very few producers were aging their wine in standard 225-litre barrels. “Most wine was stored in large upright wooden tanks frequently made from redwood,” he says. Although many of Draper’s contemporaries began sourcing French barrels, fearing that American oak could be too aggressive, “Paul felt strongly that using French oak with the American Cabernet could leave a wine looking like an imitation Bordeaux,” Olney says. “The belief that Montebello could stand on its own aged in American oak solidified Ridge’s position.” A leader in sustainability, Ridge’s use of American oak barrels also limits its transportation-based carbon footprint.
Why Choose?
Due to the different qualities imparted by the two types of oak, many winemakers worldwide mature their wine in a combination of French and American barrels. Esteemed Rioja winery Muga ages its Prado Enea Gran Reserva in 80 percent French oak and 20 percent American sourced from northern New York and Ohio. While historically many modern Rioja producers use only American oak, winemaker and technical director Isaac Muga Palacín points out that the oak he buys from central France and the Loire Valley “provides a finesse and elegance that no other oak in the world offers.” With an on-site cooperage, Muga makes its own French oak barrels and buys its American barrels fully formed. “We believe that a Gran Reserva aged in 100 percent American oak would be more rustic, and we would lose some of the complexity we have today,” Muga explains.
“The choice of oak depends entirely on the desired stylistic outcome,” Gago says. “Oak choice is a winemaking tool enabling greater stylistic separation and character.” Both have their place in the world of winemaking, and whether you prefer the elegance of France or the bold assertiveness of American, a well-oaked wine is always a treat for the senses.
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Omega’s latest watch is in a universe of its own.
The Swiss watchmaker just unveiled its new Constellation Observatory Collection today, the next step in its Constellation lineage and the first two-hand hour and minute timepieces to ever earn Master Chronometer certification. And if you were paying attention to any of the dazzling watches spotted at the Oscars this year, you would’ve caught a glimpse of the new line already: Sinners star Delroy Lindo rocked one of the models on the Academy Awards red carpet, giving us a pre-release preview of the collection.
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On a sun-bleached corner of Brisbane’s New Farm, where the scent of frangipani mingles with the clink of coffee cups, stands a building that has lived more lives than most people. Once a premier’s residence, an orphanage, a hospital and a private school, the 160-year-old stone structure now finds itself reborn as Miss Midgley’s—a boutique stay that teaches a masterclass in how to make heritage feel modern.
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Even the picket fence, a heritage requirement, has been reimagined in corten steel—a sly nod to regulation turned into sculpture. It’s this blend of reverence and rebellion that gives Miss Midgley’s its edge: heritage without starch, nostalgia without sentimentality.
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At the heart of the property lies a solar-heated pool hemmed with tropical greenery and fringed umbrellas—more mid-century Palm Springs than colonial Brisbane. Around it, guests share a petite laundry, a communal library and that rarest of urban luxuries: a car park per apartment. The atmosphere is quietly collegiate—a handful of travellers who might nod to each other on the stairs but otherwise inhabit their own creative bubbles.
The hotel’s namesake, Annie Midgley, lends the project both its name and its spirit. An ambidextrous artist and teacher, she famously instructed two students at once, writing with both hands simultaneously—a fitting metaphor for the dual vision the Whites bring to the building: one hand rooted in history, the other sketching toward the future. “Not famous, yet known,” goes the property’s understated tagline—and indeed, Miss Midgley’s has quietly become that most desirable of addresses: the one whispered about by people who know.
Sustainability isn’t an accessory here; it’s structural. The adaptive reuse of the heritage building is its boldest environmental act. Solar panels power the property; an electric heat pump warms the pool; recycled decking and tiles frame the courtyard. The metre-thick tuff walls regulate temperature naturally, and the amenities follow suit—refillable bath products, biodegradable pods, Seljak blankets spun from textile off-cuts, and compendiums wrapped in Australian-made kangaroo leather. It’s slow luxury in the truest sense.
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