Impact of bending method and stave thickness on the aromatic profile of tempranillo wine aged in Quercus petraea barrels

Abstract

Barrel manufacturing significantly influences the chemical and sensory composition of aged wines, with bending method and stave thickness playing important roles in modulating the volatile profile. Tempranillo red wine produced by traditional vinification was aged for up to 18 months in French oak barrels. Three bending techniques were evaluated – traditional bending, steam bending, and steam bending after drying – together with stave thicknesses of 22 and 27 mm. Wine volatile profiles were analysed by GC-MS after 12 and 18 months, corresponding to Crianza and Reserva categories. The bending method exerted a greater influence than stave thickness at both ageing times. In particular, barrels steam-bent after drying and constructed with 27-mm staves promoted higher total volatile-compound concentrations after both 12 and 18 months. These findings underline the importance of adapting barrel-manufacturing specifications to ageing objectives and the desired sensory profile. The work provides novel information on the combined influence of bending and stave thickness and supports the optimisation of oenological ageing practices.

References

1. Coelho, E., Lemos, M., Genisheva, Z., Domingues, L., Vilanova, M., – Oliveira, J. M. (2020). Validation of a LLME/GC-MS Methodology for Quantification of Volatile Compounds in Fermented Beverages. Molecules, 25(3), 621. https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules25030621
2. Landín Ross-Magahy, M. Impact of Bending Method and Stave Thickness on the Aromatic Profile of Tempranillo Wine Aged in Quercus petraea Barrels. Recording of the presentation delivered at Enoforum Spain 2026, Zaragoza, 20–21 May 2026. Available soon on Infowine Premium: https://vinidea.it/es/brand/infowine/

Acknowledgements

The authors acknowledge a predoctoral contract from the University of La Rioja and thank Bodegas Ramón Bilbao for producing and ageing the wine.