Wine barrel wood

[yelonutz]

I just picked up some 1/2 oak wine barrels. They were used to hold a dark red wine. As I was cutting them up (for smoke wood ) I noticed that there appears to be a coating on the outside. It is very thin but there none the less. I lit my propane torch and chared it and couldn't smell any thing bad but I am currious if it will give an off flavor. It works out to $13.00 for fifty lbs of wood and would hate to loose out on this. Any experence? Thanks in advance, John.

[yakman]

I'm fairly confident wine makers do not treat their barrels with anything that would be harmful if used for smoking. We live in wine country and all the barrels I've seen appear to be in their natural state....that is, untreated. However, to be sure, it would be best to see if you can trace the barrels back to the winery and talk with the wine maker directly. Another concern you need to consider is what treatment, if any, was applied to the barrels after they left the winery. Many barrels are used as planters and other decorative pieces. Might be that someone thought the application of some kind of treatment would enhance the look or durability of the barrels. If you can't verify the barrels are chemical free, you gotta ask yourself if the possible exposure to unknown chemicals is worth the risk.

Good luck.....

[HockeyDad]

My neighbor had a bunch of leftover pieces of used wine barrel that he gave me. I've used alot of it and have not had any problems at all. The only smell/odor I've sensed is from the infused wine.

[Pitmaster]

I picked up 5 barrels a few weeks ago from a winery in Calistoga, CA. I have done a couple of bbq's with it. It is really good. They were made from American oak. When I broke down the barrels, one of the staves had markings of "TX USA". These barrels aslo had a brass label on them that I traced back to a cooperage in France. No wonder they cost so much. Anyhow, I picked them up for free because they were at the end of their wine barrel lives. This is some good smoking wood!