The effect of atmospheric drying of oak stave on the composition of aged wine distillates

Brandy and cognacs represent a special segment of alcoholic beverages, the demand for which is increasing every year. Wine distillates for the production of brandy and cognacs undergo mandatory aging in contact with oak wood, which is one of the key factors determining the organoleptic profile of aged wine distillates. An urgent task is to study promising nature-like, economically justified methods of preparing wood for aging. In the presented work, an atmospheric method of drying wood before aging distillates was studied. The kinetics of accumulation of the expanded composition of phenolic and furan compounds of aged wine distillates, as well as their organoleptic evaluation, are analyzed. It has been revealed that prolonged atmospheric drying of wood for several years contributes to improving the quality of oak stave used for aging wine distillates in the production of brandy and cognacs.