Acacia wood or Robinia psuedoacacia is considered an invasive species as it has spread its roots which originated in southeastern US to as far as Romania. More recently, Acacia has been used as an alternative to the traditional white oak when aging White wine.

Although white wine is often aged in steel casks, wine makers have since discovered that aging in an Acacia barrel preserves the wines aromatic and fruit characteristics. Acacia wood does not contain as much tannin content as oak, thus, it better preserves freshness as well as floral and varietal characteristics. Additionally, white wines aged in Acacia barrels do not suffer from a loss of overall structure.

For those not looking to entirely dial back on the "oakiness," we at East Coast Wood Barrels provide the option of an Acacia Shell with Toasted White Oak Heads. As the barrel heads account for roughly 35% of the total surface area which the wine is exposed to, this provides a great enough area to lightly impart oaks characteristics.