Why These Giant Oak Barrels Are The Key To Making Some Of The World's Most Expensive Wine
Luxury-wine makers, producing some of the most expensive wine in the world, will pay up to $50,000 for a single barrel to age their wine. But not just any barrel: a foudre. A foudre is a massive wooden vat that impacts and preserves the overall taste of the wine. Making a foudre starts with French oak, a tightly grained wood that adds unique flavoring to the wine. Cooperages like Foudrerie François pay close attention to the quality of the wood they source to make the foudres they sell and ship all over the world. The wood is so precious - and so expensive - that the French government heavily regulates its sales through annual auctions of oak forest plots.
Editor's Note: At 7:42, the video incorrectly states that the material placed in between the planks of oak are strips of wood. The material is actually rush, a type of reed.
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Пікірлер: 235
"The French oak is the best of the world" - such a French thing to say
@johnallen7807
Ай бұрын
Didn't do too well at Trafalgar though did it? lol
@spxza
Ай бұрын
I like working with American white and red oak, but French oak really is something special. it doesn't even have to be finished, a rough cut piece of French Oak feels like it wants to be something exceptional.
@jeanpierreragequit1726
Ай бұрын
French oak is more dense than American or Romanian one for instance.
@El_Pollo_Loco
Ай бұрын
Just a Business Insider thing to say. Turns into a clickbait channel with every upload.
@hkpfalldie
29 күн бұрын
Just a fact
“French ____ is the best ____ in the world” -a random Frenchman
@AlbertBormant
26 күн бұрын
I'll take French arrogance over German guilt
@TheMoneypresident
14 күн бұрын
Shipped from Canada 🇨🇦
@NazriB
13 күн бұрын
Lies again? Ass F**ked Alcohol Free
Some confusion by the narrator here ! In spring, Oak lays down large open vessels of low density, then in summer it grows dense wood, the thickness of which depends on the growing conditions. So, slow grown Oak is actually of lower quality, less dense and more porous. The French are experts at managing Oak for timber, carefully controlling the density of plantations for optimum light, interplanting with pine to force them to grow upwards ( because Oak lacks apical dominance and will produce multiple top shoots), and snedding, by cutting off side branches to produce knot free timber.
@CrystalStearOfTheCas
29 күн бұрын
Thanks for the info! It's great to know it's not only the soil and climate producing these great oaks but decades of craftmanship and knowledge as well
This documentary is beautiful. I appreciate their craftsmanship, tradition, and the 120-year-old oak barrels. Now searching for wines aged in these barrels.🥰
@S85B50Engine
Ай бұрын
A wine doesn't need to be aged in oak to be better, and in some cases, it's better when they are not. Most white wines are actually better when they are not aged in such barrels for instance.
@CrystalStearOfTheCas
29 күн бұрын
It really depends on the type of wine and the time spent aging in the barrel. Some grapes actually fare better in stainless steel vats
@S85B50Engine
29 күн бұрын
@@CrystalStearOfTheCas I agree, a lot of people seem to like oak aged Chardonnays, and I personally think it's better to age them in steel instead. The oak flavors and textures get overpowering really quick and it ruins the end product. It's like listening to an orchestra, but one of the instruments plays way louder than the rest.
@BusinessInsider
25 күн бұрын
Thanks for watching!
“Customer asked us for a thermoregulation system, so we gave screwed in a thermometer.” Now that’s modern engineering right there. This serious always makes me chuckle.
The craftsmanship behind French Oak barrels is truly remarkable and showcases the depth of tradition and quality in luxury wine production. Sustainable management and the specific toasting process not only enhance the wine's flavor but also reflect the dedication to excellence in the industry. 🍷
Wow - phenomenally insightful. Loved watching this.
@BusinessInsider
25 күн бұрын
Thanks for watching!
I really enjoy the fancy machine which cuts perfect angles for the staves and once constructed the entire thing is dropped onto some old tires sitting on the floor! Great!!
That's my dad in the video, hard worker, love you dad 💜
@asadzeethree2726
Ай бұрын
Nice!👍💯🌟
@rustyshackelford4515
Ай бұрын
What cooper does he work at?
@RagnarokGenesis00
Ай бұрын
my mom is the narrator. hooray parents!
@camden_jace
Ай бұрын
you related to everyone in Insiders videos or what ?
@dreamcast3607
13 күн бұрын
Awesome
Beautiful barrels and a fascinating craft. Mistake: The material that goes in between the boards that form the top and bottom isn't wood, but reed - like it has been done since 100s of years.
@BusinessInsider
25 күн бұрын
Thanks for catching! We added an editor's note.
@CD-kg9by
25 күн бұрын
@@BusinessInsider You're welcome. Your videos are still very interesting and well made, thanks to the entire team in front and behind the camera.
I really enjoyed this video, thanks for sharing !
@BusinessInsider
25 күн бұрын
Thanks for watching!
world class content
Always enjoy watching and supporting this channel as the mini docos you produce are very well done so well done to the team who put these together,interesting when they were making the cuts on the french oak logs nobody mentioned x-rays as over here in new zealand one plant we have locally the wood is first x-rayed to establish the best cuts for the wood then an automated cutter follows the rule to cut the best product.
These oak barrels that make wine are great looking! I would like to see them in person!
@toddburgess5056
Ай бұрын
Ive seen some really old humongous ones at the heidelberg Castle Germany that hold 130,000 litres of wine. Simply massive. When the castle was constructed, a 220,000 litre barrel was also installed.
@jonasgeez2140
Ай бұрын
I agree they look super cool and interesting
They could probably find a Furniture maker to buy them trim pieces instead of wasting them by burning them
Here in minnesota they advertize oak as french oak sometimes because of the layer thickness and slowgrowing grain
An Oak Wooden Barrel is just the same as any other oak wooden barrel.
I love this show
I watched with express enthusiasm as I have a winery plan in mind and now I know where to find these barriques🐲🔥🔥🔥 Thanks BI for always producing the most thought provoking subject matters.
So that’s where lord farquad got his barrels
Bravo sir
The dude from old Yankee workshop could have built one for like 100 bucks, and taught us all how at the same time.
Crazy to think to grow those oak trees took centuries my guess or maybe just a century. Heck my neighbor who is 94 years old ,planted the silver maples in front of her house. My guess these oaks are much slower growing and took at least 100 years before it can be made into a giant wine bottle.
Wonder what it would be like to beechwood smoke the inside of the oak barrel. For a weird fusion merlot or for whisky. They make a 50,000 litre timber vessel. That's actually nuts.
Sommelier here, the difference between French oak and other oak is huge. The closest is probably Slovenian. The wines in French oak really do come across softer and more complex.
@12angryrealists
3 күн бұрын
SLAVONIAN oak named after the region in Eastern Croatia and many think it superior for certain varietals that benefit from longer barrel ageing.
Any good for making long bows though ?
I drank wine once, not a fan. What kind of barrel do they keep DrPepper in?
@myboysd5772
29 күн бұрын
Im sure you can find some 5 gallon jugs of soda somewhere in America
@Everythingisgoingtobealright
29 күн бұрын
@@myboysd5772 Any discerning soda/pop enthusiast knows that a 12oz can is the best way to contain what I like to call “liquid gold”. I’m really not even joking, drinking an icy cold pop is one of the best parts of life.
@MrCoco2344
29 күн бұрын
You can buy just the syrup and add your own water
@Neckelism
28 күн бұрын
In Dr Pepper? :-) Enjoy.
I'd sure like to know how they make the joints fit so well that the barrels don't leak.
They're surprisingly reasonably priced. I expected them to cost far more.
@CrystalStearOfTheCas
29 күн бұрын
I guess that's because of the subsidies and the control put into place by the government. If not you'd have only a few families keeping the tradition alive for decades at absurd prices for only a handful of very expensive wineries.
I believe this as a Jack Daniel fan ❤❤❤
Alcohol barrels are the unsung heroes in the industry
If you want less contact with the oak use a stainless barrel with a couple of oak board in it
Yo, that job would be so cool and weird at the same time😂😂😂😂
I hate music in educational videos.. destroys the sounds of the WORK being done.
Holy shit 50 grand a barrel
Super yanliz muzik biraz rahatsiz edici😊
How many times do they typically use a single barrel?
@S85B50Engine
Ай бұрын
Usually, up to 3 to 5 times, though depending on what wine, you can stretch to 7 depending on what the winemaker is going for (quality, "oakyness", strain/s being used, etc.).
the cost of the 1000l sounds high, but i expect you earned it back if you filled it 2 times hahaha.
I think French oak is more expensive than American oak because of the quality controls and not only the tighter grain. Does the US have a similar quality assurance system?
@a.mathis9454
Ай бұрын
American oak is more abundant, than French oak.
@a.mathis9454
Ай бұрын
US customers have control over the quality of the wood for they use, they usually inspect it before they purchase it. Who needs more government agencies and taxes for it, that is another reason why French oak is more expensive other than the availability.
@Dysgalt
Ай бұрын
Naval forests comes to mind
@bmay8818
Ай бұрын
I strongly doubt that there is much of a difference. French oak is expensive because they say it is. After all, they're just trees, and as long as the final boards have the grain structure they're looking for, it shouldn't matter where they come from. This is mostly just more foofy wine snobbery.
@shack12319
Ай бұрын
Prob more so tradition/reputation than French oak actually being that much better, good old classic wine snobbery
Business Inside should do a video called: "Why living in America is so expensive - So Expensive"
Wine goes good with Christmas turkey.
with my grilled ribeye potato grilled onions and English Blue Stilton slice i pick up a California Zinfandel or Cabernet Sauvignon at TJ's for $4.49 pre tax and deposit, breathe it for 40 mins while i get set up and it drinks like $12.00. Why would i strive ? for the most expensive wine in this world. Last year i went crazy on a $30 bottle of California Pinot Noir for that meal and it drank like $30.00. My life is good.
Just wonder how many barrels they make in a year ??!!
Here's an idea. Use airtight glass containers and throw in a small piece of the fancy shmancy toasted french oak
@Noneofyourbiz123
29 күн бұрын
Why dont you start a company making them.
@Nova_Needle
29 күн бұрын
That is what home winemakers do. French oak chips, cubes and spirals are sold online and at brewing shops.
@altxyz
29 күн бұрын
The french barrel maffia wants to know your location! :D Joke aside, not glass but stainless steel barrels for wine aging are exist. They are airtight and are reusable as many times as you want.
@EscCtrl4452
29 күн бұрын
Rolling Rock
@Neckelism
28 күн бұрын
I think that is what they do when they use metal barrels.
Imagine you dry your wood for 4 years but it rains so you have to do it all over again That would be frustrating
I love how at the end they're talking about oak but pan over some soft coniferous like spruce or hemlock... editing team malfunction 😂 its at the complete opposite end of the spectrum from oak
Is it really suppose to be called wine grower instead of wine maker?
why? source of wine is plant so barrel to store wine has to come from plant also
A load of snobbery about the French oak being so superior. The uk grow the same white oak tree so therefore its the same wood. Except in uk they call it English oak. & They do use it for making excellent barrels too.
@joewoodchuck3824
11 күн бұрын
I think the advantages of French oak have been adequately explained.
@motog4-75
10 күн бұрын
@@joewoodchuck3824 Those same species of tree in the UK have the same advantages then because it's the SAME tree 🤷♂️
@joewoodchuck3824
10 күн бұрын
@@motog4-75 I can easily see that any given species of tree can grow differently in various climates and growing conditions. Maybe small differences, but differences nonetheless. Let people do what they believe in. Everyone is happier that way.
@motog4-75
10 күн бұрын
@@joewoodchuck3824 Yes agreed
These things only represents the insatiable ambition and imposing will of human, what we actually need was reflected to us during covid pendemic
The smaller the barrell, the more the wine contacts the wood giving more of the oak notes in the wine. To much oak and the oak dominates the wine masking the fruit in the wine. The barrels are scraped out over time to allow the wine to contact the wood
Honestly that’s super cheap for how much effort goes into it
Carling black label 🏴🇬🇧
These guys never heard of American red woods
Ja nee, ons wyn is maar lekker
Where is the other narrator?
Most wine tastes like some form of metal nozzle or tin because of neutral level oxidation between the iron in the metal and wine they add that much oak to it to mask it. They should just have 25kl tanks made from oak and not use metal or use a machine with the compatible metallurgy to neutralise it instead of new garbage.
@balls9420
24 күн бұрын
Tin is the best material. KERNOW BYS VYKEN!
"It takes 4 years for the wood to dry." Maybe it takes that long because they store them out in the open where it will inevitably rain and snow.
@mikefresca2758
27 күн бұрын
While that sounds off, it’s a lot more stable for the wood. Otherwise you would have to kiln dry massive quantities of wood.
I'll take French arrogance over German guilt
Imagine doing a video to educate people on a topic and getting the pronunciation of the object wrong. The final e should not be pronounced but instead make the r longer with a soft landing. Also the plural form that ends with a s, written, is completely mute.
You challenge any one of these "connoisseurs" to a blind taste test of the best French wine and a generic $100 bottle of box wine found in American grocery stores and they will shit their pants trying to figure out which is which.
@S85B50Engine
Ай бұрын
You can tell the difference, I do this sort of thing professionally. Also, $100 is a lot for wine, you can get some really nice bottles for that money, the fun part is when you look for bottles that are just as good (preference-wise of course) but cost way less.
Wine
Nothing beats German Oak! But nowadays it’s all about the chemical mix for the specific wine. Unfortunately!
Feels like a waste to burn the scrap french oak if it's so expensive. It can be made into small wooden items for another craft business. Then just use american oak for the toasting, if it still has to be burning oak for the flavor.
@trebor000
28 күн бұрын
Ur so dumb. It’s in France… why would u import American oak just to be fuel. Use the scraps.
First Kenyan to watch. Mnipee likes
@emmanuelwekesa976
29 күн бұрын
tumeishi huku miaka.
Ooohh lala French oak! 😆
How many lives will be lost, how many families will be broken, how many injuries, how many people will develop heart failure and other medical conditions due to alcohol. There are 1000 harms for each so called benefit for alcohol consumption yet people and governments deny it each day
@KrisRyanStallard
23 күн бұрын
And how much harm and how many lives lost were caused by organized crime or improperly produced alcohol during prohibition? People want to drink, the answer isn't prohibition. It's the long process of changing people's opinion and the difficult process of addressing the societal illnesses that drive people to drink problematicly
I'm sure that they can afford a voice over translation.🤦🏾♂️🤷🏾♂️
People drink too much. 🤕🤕🤕
Why is this done as such a manual process in today’s time with equipment, those rings for example could be precisely positioned very efficiently and effectively using machines to exact standards with laser calibration, and save the impact and physical repetition injuries to those workers!
@j0rD3n_
27 күн бұрын
my guess is that since every foudres is custom made, it would require specialized equipment and/or calibration for each one. It would take the same amount of time, if not longer to do it by machine than hand. Plus, machines are not always reliable, there could be technical malfunctions and the machine cannot adapt on the spot. Doing it by hand allows exact customization, a lower chance of the wood getting damaged by a machine and vice versa, maintains the reputation, and is probably cheaper.
As someone that works with wines, you can tell the difference between American, French and no oak (one of the things you do in training is a blind test of those). There's no 1 size fits all, all wines have a different requirement for this. Some are better with used barrels, different toastiness... And some are better with no oak at all (the oakiness can be overpowering and ruin the balance in white wines for example).
Just think how less expensive these barrels would be if the government was not involved in regulating it.
Can AI do this lol 🇬🇧
i prefer wet wine than dry.
French oak isn’t better than American oak. It just tastes different. It’s the same as substituting limes for lemons. They’re so similar, yet so different. That doesn’t mean limes are better than lemons. It means limes are better at these particular flavors and lemons are better at those particular flavors. French oak is better at some flavors and American oak is better at others. The high price is because it is meticulously managed and carries the legacy of French refinement.
Let me get this straight. They buy tree trunk for 50k USD and then use max 20% of the tree to make the barrel, the other 80% is used as firewood? They cut down their forests, i bet this tree took 200 years to mature. All that so some French snob can sniff wine :D.
I dont know why but this whole wine business just looks a bit over the top and exxagerated fancy stuff i know some connesiuers will come running and say you dont know shit and all and iam no sophisticated or gentleman like drinking expensive wine is a representation of a sophisticated person sure there is a huge difference between a 10 -15 dollar wine bottle and a bottle worth thousands of dollar but if you compare a nice quality wine worth a couple hundred to the thousands one there is absolutely no difference so much so that you have to be a wine connesuier with decades of experience in wine tasting to spot the difference and still many connesuiers can't tell difference between them not a person like me It is just a way to boast wealth and showing purchase power like buying a gargantuan yacht, art peices worth millions and trying to decipher that every single stroke by artist had a thought behind it, pizza made in italy is the best no matter even if a similarly experienced chef makes and sells the pizza in other part of world with similar climate conditions similar ingredients and similar techniques just because it is being sold at a bar in goa(india) it cant be as delicious as it is in italy It is just like the stanley cup phenomenon in usa but it has been going over for hundreds of years
Great videos but it will be better if you can just narrate the whole video so we do t have to read subtitles. You can pay attention to the subject if we are reading subtitles.
@honchosixtysix2190
Ай бұрын
You do know you can turn subtitles off on youtube?
@Conway7
Ай бұрын
@@honchosixtysix2190 you do know it’s edited in the video right?
@honchosixtysix2190
Ай бұрын
@@Conway7 Not where I'm at, right....
❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤😂
English oak is the best ask lord nelson
leave it to the french govt to control the oak tree market so many rules and regulation in the EU, UK etc wonder how many barrels the 450 year old oak tree in my front yard would make...oh wait its not as good as french oak...pfft
Glad I don’t drink vinegar!🏴
Foudre making is so respected in France that the biggest compliment you can give someone is to tell them to make their own. Just tell the next French person you meet "Va te faire foudre"
Frenchoak wood
French ant no better than American white oak. I make my own whiskey,I've experimented with both French and American as well as many other charred woods. The reason French oak coasts more is because there is faaar less of it to be purchased. Just ask the distillers of Scotland witch oak they prefer!
France baise ouais !
I love the grounded reality of this channel!!! *Retirement took a toll on my finances, but with my involvement in the digital market, $15,000 weekly returns has been life changing. AWESOME GOD* ❤️.
@Mark_11798
29 күн бұрын
I feel sympathy and empathy for our country, low income earners are suffering to survive, and I appreciate Wayne. You've helped my family with your advice. imagine investing $30,000 and receiving $95,460 after 28 days of trading.
@ValentinaYepes-tj2eo
29 күн бұрын
I'm in a similar situation where should I look to increase income? Do you have any advice? What did you do ? Thank you
@sman8yogyakarta909
29 күн бұрын
Well I engage in nice side hustles like inves'ting, and the good thing is I do it with one one of the best(Michael Wayne), he's really good!
@lodowyka.nanariain2231
29 күн бұрын
Did someone just mention Mr Wayne!? Damn! You just made my day; what a coincidence.. I've worked with him for over 2years and I can tell how good he is
@Lincoln1177
29 күн бұрын
It's great to see you guys talking about Michael Wayne, This man changed the game for me. Good Man ❤️
As a misophonia sufferer, I can't stand the vocal fry. I'm out.
All the things they say makes the french oak better, are in the UK like limestone and they have finer grain because of colder weather. Just saying 🤷🏻♂️🤣
@honchosixtysix2190
Ай бұрын
And you know that because....?
@jamm8284
Ай бұрын
@@honchosixtysix2190 because the UK has limestone and oaks. 🤦🏻♂️🤣 You should know, even without it actually saying it in this video, that colder weather makes trees grow slower and gives them a tighter grain 🤣🤣
@honchosixtysix2190
Ай бұрын
@@jamm8284 you do know there are a different types of oak? Somehow prolly all the buyers of french oak must be mistaken then. Oh wait, brexit benefit of making all oak barrels at home, sorry.
@jamm8284
Ай бұрын
@@honchosixtysix2190 yes. Do you care to tell me the difference between the oak in the video and the oak I am referring to? Baring in mind I didn't specify, nor did they from what I recall. Have a look, the western France oak is the pendunculate oak which is derived from the english oak and where is Bordeaux and other popular wine making regions? That's right, western France 🤣 Get this, I know it's crazy right but hang in there. French people like using french wood, English people like using English wood, same goes for every nation in the world, for the vast majority of use 🤦🏻♂️ Is someone sour about losing their 2nd biggest economy and if it doesn't bother you then you wouldn't feel the need to make an idiot of yourself bringing up Brexit when we are talking about wood 🤣🤣🤣 But while we are on the topic. Which region had a recession before the UK had and after the UK left the EU? Oh yes Europe 🤣 and believe it or not, when you join a free market, trade goes up and when you leave trade goes down, but don't tell anyone, it's a secret 🤫 what's Europe's excuse that you couldn't stop your biggest economy from going into recession?
@honchosixtysix2190
Ай бұрын
@@jamm8284 You are not referring to any specific oak tree. You are insinuating that somehow your english oak trees are the same. Which somehow they are not, as else they would be sold for the same as the ones the french make. And I have yet to see any offering of english wine barrels for sale this side of the channel. As of Brexit: Britain has by far the highest rate of homelessness in the developed world .Britain has by far the highest rate of homelessness in the developed world Rate of homelessness per 10,000 people (2023 or latest year) Sources: OECD, National statistics agencies of England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland Footer logo Financial Times 17. May 2'024
"this machine" is a planer...
Why make a drink that tastes like a tree? Just have customers pay to lick the tree and avoid cutting down the tree in the process.
wine is for the FILTHY RICH, we need more food less wine.
American oak is better. WW2 said so.
@honchosixtysix2190 I was waiting for you to say something about the emojis 🤣 They are used to emote and give greater context to how ridiculous your so called arguments are 🤷🏻♂️ So during a conversation about french and English oaks you have gone on about Japanese wood, Brexit, homelessness, when this account was created and the use of emojis on an online chat 🥴 Any chance you want to talk about french and English oak for once? Other than you having the attention span and conversational ability of two short planks of oak 🤣🤣
foutre
First comment
In French, you usually talk about talk about a "fut de chene" or a "tonneau en chene".. never heard about "foudre" that is the terme used for a lightning. It is hardly used. The worst is that since the voice off does not prononce it well, it sounds like "foutre" that is a very derogatory way talk about sperm and that could be translated as "sc*m"
@ThatManWithAHammer
27 күн бұрын
Bonjour bonjour, j'me permets de répondre vu que j'suis un des gars qui tambourine à la masse dans la vidéo : les fûts et les barriques c'est en tonnellerie, passée une certaine contenance et en fonction du format c'est bien foudre ou cuve l'appellation. Nous sommes d'ailleurs tous "foudriers" dans l'atelier filmé ici. :)
@jerem972
27 күн бұрын
@@ThatManWithAHammer merci de la précision, beau travail
French this & that is the best in the world 🤡🤡🤡🤡
0:38 Hehehuhaha. That's what anybody would say about a product they are selling. If you ask me, the wood of an olive or fig tree from Turkey is not only better, it's unbelievable. And I'm not advertising a product I'm selling; I'm just telling the plain truth: Obviously, you can't cut down olive or fig trees. But the wood these trees produce is incomparable.
French oak is the best except it always surrenders