In early wine history, the amphora was the vessel of choice for the storage and transportation of wine. Due to the perishable nature of wood material it is difficult to trace the usage of barrels in history.
The use of oak has been prevalent in winemaking for at least two millennia, first coming into widespread use during the time of the Roman Empire. In time, winemakers discovered that beyond just storage convenience, wine kept in oak barrels took on properties that improved it by making it softer and, in some cases, better-tasting.
Wine barrels, especially those made of oak, have long been used as containers in which wine is aged. Aging in oak typically imparts desirable vanilla, butter and spice flavors to wine. The size of the barrel plays a large role in determining the effects of oak on the wine by dictating the ratio of surface area to volume of wine with smaller containers having a larger impact. The most common barrels are the Bordeaux barriques style which holds 225 litters followed by the Burgundy style barrel which hold 228 litters. Some New World wine makers are now also using the larger hogshead 300-litre barrel. Larger barrels are also traditionally used in parts of Italy such as Barolo, as well as the south of France.
New barrels impart more flavors than do previously used barrels. Over time many of the oak properties get “leached” out of the barrel with layers of natural deposits left from the wine building up on the wood to where after 3 to 5 vintages there may be little or no oak flavors imparted on the wine. In addition, oxygen transport through the oak and into the wine, which is required for maturation, becomes severely limited after 3–5 years.
