Apple Smoked Oates for Bourbon

[Avalir]

Hey y'all,
So, in the grand scheme of things I'm moderately new to the hobby (have roughly a year under me, learning rapidly from self taught with the help of this community). I have a bourbon recipe I'm more than happy with, but I want to give it that umph factor to make it stand out. Currently my grain bill is 64% cracked corn, 20% mated barley (10% pale malt, 10% vienna malt), 16% rolled oats. I age it on medium toasted french oak, with a level 3-4 char on top of that (I picked up french because I repurpose my used wood for my lady's scotch, so I figured it may suit the scotch better, though I've been pleasantly surprised with my bourbon results on it). Right now I'm pondering smoking some of the grain on apple; I've read great things about aging whiskey on apple and want to see how smoking with apple turns out (I'm well aware smoking and aging with apple are completely different, so no need to point that out). I've never been terribly big on apple smoked, not that I don't like the taste, I just prefer hickory or mesquite for meat if I'm putting in the time and effort, but this ain't meat.
Long story short, from my research, oats are probably the best grain for absorbing that smoky goodness, even more so than barley. I've always been a fan of smoky flavors (I haven't yet tasted something too smoky, so that's not necessarily a concern in and of itself), but assuming that whatever amount of oats I smoke with apple is heavily smoked (I have a tendency to go overboard in most peoples' perspective; once again, I love the smokier side), how much of the oats (16% of grain bill) would be a good starting point? Or even, at what point would it start taking away from the other flavors/notes in the mix?
I'm sure it will take some experimentation, but I'm sure I'll find my personal preference within the year. Just looking for some thoughts on how much of the oats may be a good starting point. On a side note, I also have a good deal of yummy maple logs lying about that I could smoke with too (looking for somebody to cosign the some maple-smoked, some apple-smoked route). Any and all feedback is appreciated.

[Sporacle]

https://homedistiller.org/forum/viewtop ... 6#p6707665

Have a look at this one, this may give you some ideas

[8Ball]

I’d smoke all the oats and the barley too.

[Avalir]

I’d smoke all the oats and the barley too.

Haha... love it!
Wasn't sure if anybody may have had notes about apple smoke being "overpowering," but I'm definitely leaning towards the 16% of my grain bill heavily smoked definitely won't be too much (gaining tasty roast in the process is an added plus). Not sure if I want to do my barley as well at this time. I think oats will at least be a good starting place.

[rubberduck71]

Noob observation here: wouldn't smoking the barley denature the enzymes you need to convert the corn & oat starches?

May need some of the more experienced gurus to weigh in. If I'm correct, you may need some backup enzymes in powder or liquid form. That said, 8Ball knows his $hit!!!

Duck

[8Ball]

Noob observation here: wouldn't smoking the barley denature the enzymes you need to convert the corn & oat starches?

May need some of the more experienced gurus to weigh in. If I'm correct, you may need some backup enzymes in powder or liquid form. That said, 8Ball knows his $hit!!!

Duck

You don’t need heat to smoke grains. Mist them down a little so the smoke “sticks,” and use a cold smoke generator. Easy to make your own with a couple tin cans, some pipe & fittings & aquarium pump. Attach to your smoker and you are good to go. Let the grains air dry a little in full sun, then store or grind. I’d let them sit at least after smoking to mellow out and develop the smoke flavor.

[rubberduck71]

You don’t need heat to smoke grains. Mist them down a little so the smoke “sticks,” and use a cold smoke generator. Easy to make your own with a couple tin cans, some pipe & fittings & aquarium pump. Attach to your smoker and you are good to go. Let the grains air dry a little in full sun, then store or grind. I’d let them sit at least after smoking to mellow out and develop the smoke flavor.

Gotcha, so the smoking doesn't get them up to a temp high enough to do anything to the enzymes.

Duck

[8Ball]

You don’t need heat to smoke grains. Mist them down a little so the smoke “sticks,” and use a cold smoke generator. Easy to make your own with a couple tin cans, some pipe & fittings & aquarium pump. Attach to your smoker and you are good to go. Let the grains air dry a little in full sun, then store or grind. I’d let them sit at least after smoking to mellow out and develop the smoke flavor.

Gotcha, so the smoking doesn't get them up to a temp high enough to do anything to the enzymes.

Duck

https://www.instructables.com/Miss-Bets ... _page=true

Here’s basically what I made.

[Avalir]

He sure does. Lol... one of my primary reasons for just starting with the oats though. Oats are just as good, if not better at absorbing the smoke flavors as barley. I will be doing a hot smoke (at least for now), so with oats I dont need to worry about denatured enzymes and can just reap the tasty smoke with the added bonus of the flavors that come with roasting my oats in the process (I'm assuming some mild nuttiness, but don't ruin the surprise for me).