T he truncated cone vat was rediscovered thanks to the tradition of the Gamba family. For many centuries, oak was considered a good material for containing liquids; both for the fermentation of must and after for the aging of pressed wine. Research conducted in the 1970's revealed that even as a large vessel, the vat could impart variable aromas and an oak character during the fermentation process. In particular, the research recognized that oak staves act like ideal and diffuse micro-oxygenators making it possible to:
• Eliminate unpleasant reductive aromas caused by stress due to a lack of oxygen in the yeasts. An oak vat has proven to create ideal conditions for enhancing cellular reproduction and yeast activity.
• Allow the oxygen and oak tannins to immediately enter the complex chemical process, thus leading to the proper combination of tannin anthocyanins and as a consequence, greater color retention.
