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Las Brisas, Rueda – Spain, 2009
Grapes 50% Verdejo, 30% Viura, 20% Sauvignon Blanc Facts The main characteristic of Verdejo is its freshness and acidity. It therefore makes sense that the majority of Verdejo based wines never see exposure to oak, so as not to detract from the natural flavor of the grape. The Las Brisas was therefore fermented and aged in all stainless steel. Viura (otherwise known as Macabeo) is similar in style to Verdejo in that it’s fresh…
Matt Freeman
Prior to working at http://www.ewoodart.com, I was toasting wine barrels for a cooperage. Many of our customers had strong preferences on the type of oak and toast level. American oak is known for a strong oak taste in the wine. It hits the wine hard with the oak and can sometimes “over oak” your wine. Sometimes that may be what you want, but sometimes you may want more vanilla tannins and possibly a french oak would be better.