New American oak barrel

Last Wednesday 10 March, our new American oak barrel arrived from Tonelería Victoria, based in Haro, La Rioja, Spain.

Barrica 1

This is a classic Bordeaux style barrel, which holds 225 liters (300 bottles). We were offered the choice of number of openings and we opted for just one in the belly (with a silicone bung). We wanted just one because the openings are where there is the greatest risk of unwanted oxygen, bacteria, etc entering.

Barrica from above

For the time being, we've left the barrel at a friend's house just down the road, as we're a bit worried about the leaky roof in the winery.

We now have a grand total of three barrels (2 American, 1 French), which means that we can make 900 bottles of Crianza. Next year we are planning to buy about 15, if all goes according to plan regarding new vineyard, buying in organic grapes from a neighbour, and new winery! And, of course if we find, 15 sponsors for each barrel (we already have about 10 on a short-list). See this earlier post for details of this scheme: http://bit.ly/6ARFkk