The tradition in the wine sector It is an important grade in various aspects but innovate it is usually synonymous with success. That obtained in 2017 by the Galician company Ànforum Stone Barrels with the launch of its first ovoid tank model manufactured with Granite. Currently they are already on the fourth barrel that offers improved performance compared to the previous ones and is that the idea of age the wine in these vessels it is succeeding. One of its positive characteristics is related to the circular economy that it promotes in a world that needs to be more and more sustainable financing model but it also has other advantages. Here we reveal them to you!
Sustainable philosophy of Ànforum
In the small Galician town of Valga (Pontevedra) is located the company that revolutionized viticulture three years ago thanks to a groundbreaking invention: stone barrels. Wineries have always used the traditional ones made of wood, in many cases oak. However, in forum they wanted to go one step further by making a reality what no one had yet dared to achieve. The founders of the company ventured to achieve an ambitious, innovative goal based on a growing philosophy.
Wineries Santiago Rome y Cayetano Otero Winemaking Advice were behind this project to make barrels following a sustainable economy and circular instead of linear. It was clear that both parties wanted to put aside the more traditional aspect in both senses to offer the sector a deposit with a lot of future. Thus, advocating for the evolution towards the maximum use of resources, this Galician firm obtains barrels with the leftover granite of other constructive uses. This reduces waste as you use it.
What are the advantages of this barrel?
That project of I + D + i pretended, already entering wine-making terms, some more intense wines with some return to the past, when the Greek, Roman and Phoenician peoples used the amphoras. They fermented the grapes in those tanks, made and even kept the resulting liquid in them. Therefore, the objective of forum -whose name already reminds us of those times of yore- is to offer the possibility to wineries to obtain some wines unparalleled.
That is the first advantage that stone barrels for aging on fine lees. After chemical and oenological tests, the Galician company achieved its optimal container. Also to allow micro-oxygenation, as well as maintaining the suitable temperature of the wine without abrupt variations that diminish its quality. The granite itself is what, naturally and without any necessary coating, provides its mineral essence to the wine product that is aged inside.
On the other hand, these granite barrels are mechanized to avoid leaks and possible contamination. Its cleaning is simple. Each container has a top lid equipped with a safety valve, a thermometer and two taps. Now, the most relevant are their benefits for the product, as it favors a unctuous wine with volume, without sulfur aromas. The first example was starred in 2018 by the first albariño made in this barrel, the pedranai from the DO Rías Baixas, marketed by the Santiago Roma winery itself.
Fourth model of stone barrels
Throughout these three years in operation, forum has successfully created up three different models of stone barrels (B500, B700 and B1700). They had some characteristics in common, such as their ovoid shape or the granite material used for their manufacture, of course. All three types of deposits have been such a success in this time that customers asked for one with greater capacity. They have already satisfied those requests with the new B3000. It promises the same excellent result of the aged wines in its predecessors but now with enlargement of size.
Thus, this latest model has room for 3.090 liters, its weight is 4.600 kilograms and its dimensions are 2,55 meters high by 1,85 meters in diameter. However enormous these figures may be, their transport and installation in any wine cellar it's simple thanks to a forklift.
Therefore, here the important thing is not that but that this type of stone barrels are already present, with their use already in the 50% of all Spanish DOs and export to countries such as Switzerland, Germany or Slovakia. Also future in a wine world that is committed to innovation. Everything is for the sustainability, but without losing quality or guarantees.
