The multitude of Hungary’s barrel types is surprising, so we will only list the most well known for now. There was the Abaúj, the Viennese, the Beregszász, the Berény, the Eger, the Transylvanian, the Gyöngyös, the Kosice, the Körmend, the Munkács, the Bratislava, the Somogy, the Sopron, the Szepes, the Szerém, the Sztankóc, the Telkibánya, the Tolna, the Ungvár, the Várad, and the large ‘Túlélő’, the Gönc barrel also achieving significant recognition abroad. The name Gönc was first seen towards the end of the sixteenth century. The barrel’s capacity changed greatly over the centuries, before ending up at today’s 135.75 litres. The other type of barrel known all around the world is not connected to any particular geographical location, but rather to the production method, although clearly a French invention. The Bordeaux barrique is ‘toasted’ or burnt to different colours for different amounts of time. Many flavour and aroma substances are assimilated into the wines stored in the standard 225 litre barrels. These barrels were already used by Hungarian wine merchants in the nineteenth century, although due to their high cost, this method then slumbered sweetly until it came back into fashion in the eighties. In the nineteenth century, a list of regions providing the best raw materials for barrels developed, that is to say wood for staves originating from Stettin and Gdansk near the Baltic Sea, the French Angoulème staves and Slavonic oak. The wood considered most suitable for barrique barrels is found mainly in France, for example Vosges, but American and even Hungarian raw materials are slowly making headway on the market. In Hungary, the Zempléni Hills, the Mecsek and the Drávamente principally provide the best quality wood for staves.
If you want to read more about the history of barrels, click here.
