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Just a few years ago, when someone said the word “concrete,” wine was the last thing that came to mind. Construction, a mix, or these days, even goalkeeper gear …
Nowadays, concrete containers (concrete eggs—the name probably won’t surprise you if you look at the first photo) are a popular option for aging wine.
When it comes to wine aging, concrete represents a compromise between stainless steel and wooden barrels. Unlike stainless steel, micro-oxidation occurs in concrete, allowing the wine to age similarly to how it would in a wooden barrel. However, concrete does not impart an oak aroma to the wine, which is not to everyone’s liking. Thanks to the thickness of the concrete vessel, which insulates very well and maintains a stable temperature, artificial cooling—as is necessary with stainless steel tanks—is not required. Concrete also releases minerals into the wine, which not only affects the wine’s flavor profile but also helps stabilize the wine naturally through the release of silicon, for example. Concrete is thus a natural and highly eco-friendly technology in winemaking.
You can do a comparative tasting of various Rieslings aged in concrete (Welschriesling and Riesling) or compare our signature variety— Welschriesling —produced using different methods (stainless steel, wood, concrete). So many parallels, yet so many differences. And so much pleasure. Cheers!
