ALINE BALY - oak barrels and ageing

Aline,

Not sure if I read it correctly but how long does Coutet age in barrel? “The winedoctor” states 16 months. It is interesting since, I uncorked the 2007 last night and I really do not sense any oak at all. I assume that you use French oak as well?

Mike

I absolutely love The Wine Doctor! I’ve had the opportunity to meet with him and I am so impressed at the details he incorporates in his posts (his site is my go to reference). What’s even more impressive is that he does this for fun, when he is not busy in surgery saving infants suffering from heart defects!

We age our wines in 100% new French oak barrels for a total of 18 months. I am not surprised by your experience with our 2007. Let me guess: pineapples? Pears? Notes of ginger? Coutet is known/notorious for not displaying strong oaky notes with tropic fruits coming to the forefront of our young vintages. We’ve can also attribute our equilibrium for this result.

Cheers,
Aline