title_body: Does aging in oak barrels add the same compounds to beer as it does to wine?
upvoted_answer: You remember correctly. 
  
  (http://indianapublicmedia.org/amomentofscience/age-wine-wooden-barrels/)
  
  
  
  (Tannic acid, a tannin found in oak)
  
  Tannins, the chemicals that are transferred from the oak barrels to the wine, are extremely good at forming hydrogen bonds (just look at the structure!), which makes them very soluble in water. Considering that both beer and wine have no shortage of water in them, these molecules are quite willing to join either substance.
  
  As for the aeration, I believe that may actually be an undesirable consequence of using the barrels for beer. However I can't imagine the effects being very profound unless you were aging the beer like you would with wine (months or years versus weeks).