Canadell Bung Inserts - A Technical, Economical, Sustainable Solution For Your Barrels!
- Aug 5
- 4 min read
Updated: Aug 7
The Bouchard Cooperages team would like to invite you to learn more about CANADELL's premium French Oak Bung inserts through a recent Chardonnay study at a premium Napa Valley-based winery.
Barrel bung inserts offer:
- Result driven profiles
- Flexibility and practicality in the cellar
- Economical solution for barrel aging
- Sustainable solution for barrel aging
- All the benefits of used barrel's micro-oxidation capabilities
For those new to Canadell French oak adjuncts, the 4th generation company is completely vertically integrated from forest to finished oak product and controls the entire production process of their adjuncts.
Canadell Barrel Bung Inserts
The bung inserts are to be inserted through the bung of the barrel and are available in different toast profiles:
- Fire Toasted Options (M, M+) - More classic, spicy and savory
- Convection Toasted Options (M, M+, Long) - More fruit forward, sweet and confectionary
The results are barrel-like and intended for longer aging processes. Bung insert trials allow the perfect opportunity to get familiar with Canadell's high quality oak profile and extend the value of your barrels.
Canadell Fire & Convection Toasted Bungs Inserts vs. Damy / Billon barrels on Napa Valley Chardonnay
The trial included a famous Rutherford based Napa Valley winery that trialed:
Canadell Barrel Bungs Inserts:
- Fire Toasted Medium
- Convection Toasted Medium
- Convection Toasted Long
vs.
228L Burgundy Export Barrels:
- Neutral
- Damy, Allier, 3Y Air Dry, Medium
- Billon, Allier, 3Y Air Dry, Medium
Napa Valley Chardonnay was picked in August and either fermented in a neutral or new Billon / Damy 228L barrel (A classic Burgundian Chardonnay barrel) with minimal bâtonnage. The barrel bung inserts were then added in November to neutral barrels and left for 6 months of aging before undergoing an ETS Oak Volatile Analysis.
Numbers at a Glance:
Canadell Barrel Bungs Inserts:
- A new Canadell Bung Insert ranges between 120 - 160 EURO
- 20% barrel equivalent with recommended aging of 6 months.
vs.
228L Burgundy Export Barrels:
- A new Billon/Damy barrel costs 1,045 EURO
- New Barrel = 100% new oak with recommended aging of 10+ Months
Vanillin (Vanilla): Inserts Perform!
Canadell inserts produced 2 - 3x more vanillin than the barrel sample. Vanilla is a key oak character for Chardonnay and inserts provide a powerful tool to highlight this component.
Furfural (Butterscotch): Inserts in range
Barrels produced higher furfurals due to the fact that the chardonnay was barrel fermented in comparison to the inserts that were added post primary fermentation. Convection M toasted inserts represent best insert tool to highlight furfurals.
Oak Lactones: Inserts integrate quickly
Oak lactone levels are a synonym to barrel integration. Cooperage wise, winemakers know Billon integrates slowly while Damy integrates quickly. Inserts tracked similar to Damy and neutral barrels making them a good tool for shorter aging.
An economic and sustainable option
Priced at 20% the cost of a barrel, bung inserts and oak adjuncts allow for all parts of 150 year old French oak trees to be utilized essentially adding value to a byproduct .
Key Findings from Napa Valley Winemaker:
"In a blind tasting that compared Canadell barrel inserts to 24 new French oak barrels from various coopers, the inserts scored above average and were not perceived as an adjunct product by any tasters in the group. In contrast to other inserts or staves I have trialed, Canadell clearly uses high-quality heartwood, traditional seasoning, and precision toasting that closely emulate a new French oak barrel. I feel confident in the quality of Canadell inserts to supplement our oak programs, allowing us to not only maintain high standards of winemaking but also to support sustainability initiatives by extending the life of our barrels"
- Napa Valley Winemaker
CANADELL
Trie-Sur-Baïse - Midi-Pyrenées, France4 Generation Family Run Company since 1939
Company at a glance
Canadell's headquarters remain based in Trie-sur-Baïse in South West France however, staves for enology are processed both at Canadell's Trie and Ully production sites and then used internally or sold to France's most prestigious cooperages. Together, both sites include 100 employees. At the core of both production sites is the human eye and an artisanal "savoir-faire" that can only be acquired through years of experience and a true passion and respect for French oak, a noble material in itself.
From Jacques Jr. to Frédéric Canadell
Canadell is currently managed by CEO Frédéric Canadell while his father Jacques Jr. remains involved through a supervisory role. Frédéric focused the company towards the cooperage industry through cooperage acquisitions in Burgundy, new cooperage startups in Southern France as well as in the early 2000's, the creation of an oenological line of premium French Oak adjuncts: CANADELL.
Sustainability & Attestations
Canadell is certified by the program for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC), a leading global alliance of national forest certification systems. They are also a sponsor of the "ONF-AGIR" fund (Office National des Forêts - React) which is committed to preserving France's forests to ensure their sustainability and help mitigate the negative impacts of climate change.
New to using adjuncts?
If this is your first time using adjuncts or you need a refresher on how to calculate dosage rates and equivalent percentages of new oak via adjuncts, please see the integrated Canadell oak adjunct calculator tool below.
For more information concerning Canadell or Bouchard Cooperages, please see below or reach out to your Bouchard Cooperages point of contact.
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