It Takes 150 Years to Grow a Barrel. Let’s Make It Count It takes French oak trees 120 to 150 years to mature. American oak? Around 80 to 100. That’s how long it takes nature to produce the raw material.  Each tree doesn’t go far- it only yields one or two barrels. American oak = 2 barrels per tree French oak = 1 to 1.5 barrels per tree And yet, many barrels are used for only a few vintages—then discarded, chipped, or burned. We believe something that takes a century to grow shouldn’t be single-use. Reusing barrels is better for the planet, the pocketbook —and the future of winemaking. Our barrel sales have ranged from 10,000 to 20,000 per year for 20+ years. That adds up to hundreds of thousands of barrels we have kept in circulation.  That means Our Work at Quality Wine Barrels has helped save: -       50,000 to 100,000 mature oak trees -       400 to 800 acres of slow-growing, carbon-absorbi

Afternoon Brief, October 23rd

Feds Sue Total Wine in Southern Glazer’s ‘Antitrust’ Case: The Federal Trade Commission has filed for a federal court order to force Total Wine to comply with requests for documentation in an ongoing investigation into US distributor Southern Glazer’s...

Afternoon Brief, October 31st

The Lawrence Family and Carlton McCoy, Jr. Announce Acquisition of Bordeaux’s Château Lascombes to Portfolio Inbox: The Lawrence Family, owners of Napa Valley’s iconic Heitz Cellar and Managing Partner and Master Sommelier Carlton McCoy, Jr. have acquired iconic Château Lascombes...

By Charlotte Seligman 10 years owning and working the vineyards of Limerick Lane Cellars, Jake Bilbro, decided it was time to recast the winery’s brand to be more reflective of the estate’s unique 110-year history. He wanted to convey the rich story of the land and the people who worked it. But how to weave a visual and verbal narrative that succinctly speaks of the land’s magic and the world-class wines it produces? These questions haunted Jake Bilbro for weeks, until one day he found his inspiration. In his own words, Bilbro describes the experience: “Often, I find the answers to many questions associated with Limerick Lane in the property itself: the hills, the vines, the rocks, the trees, and of course, my family. This would be no different. At home, where my family sleeps, and the original founders of the vineyard slept, covered with grass and flowers at the end of our driveway lies a section of a tree stump. I have passed by the stump hundreds of