On identifying Oak

[schmand]

Hey guys,

got some oak from a friend now.
I got 3 planks, what kind of oak are they? White oak?

all of them:

plank 1:

plank 2:

plank 3:

Do you think this is heart wood?


Have a nice day

schmand

[beelah]

Hard to say from just looking at the pictures, but I am guessin IMHO, that it might be red oak.

Generally it is white oAK that is used in wine and whiskey barrels, but i and others here have used maple and i have heard apple wood.

I tired using red oak, but didn't like the flavour, too much like sucking on wood.

Now I did liekthe maple, gave it a nice sweeish background. I was using western vine maple and western broadleaf maple, but if you are any where that sugar maple grows I would go with that.

I think some of the comerical dstillers, like Jack Danels use maple charcoal in thier aging process.

[rtalbigr]

The best way to identify if it's white oak is by the end grain. Take a very sharp knife and slice the end grain so you have a very clean cut. Then take a 10X loupe and examine your cut. If it's white oak the pores will be blocked with tyloses, in red oak the pores are open. Another way is cut a half inch thick piece with very clean cuts on each end. You will be able to blow through the red oak but not the white oak. That's why white oak is used in cooperage, the pores are blocked, hense water tight.

Big R

[beelah]

Didn't know that about whilte oak and red oak BigR....thanks for that simple way of identifying the difference between the two.

[rtalbigr]

Your welcome beelah.

Studied that stuff about 40 years ago. Still remember some of it.

Big R

[schmand]

Hey guys,

examined the planks some days ago and I think it is white oak (I hope so, too ). Cut it into approx. 3/4" x 3/4" x 4" sticks. Charred it with my propane torch, it smelled delicious!
Would you call this alligator char?

I put one of the sticks into some booze (turbo yeast = big off-taste) that has been "aging" on oak chips for 2 weeks and got a slightly golden colour then. It only had a "simple" smoky flavour; the one that you may know from cheap toasted oak chips.
Now after 2 days it looks like this:

Wow! Such a nice color, it looks like store-bought xx year old whiskey. It still tastes a bit like the oak chips, but has already mellowed considerably. I cannot wait to taste it in 2 weeks/months/years. But I don't think it will last that long ...

So I think I will char most of the wood, it's faster than toasting, more mellowing, better color, ... love it! Maybe I got a strange sense of taste, I like 2 days old charred oak flavored turbo wash


Take care

schmand

P.S.: Sorry for the bad pictures, I have to get a better camera ...

[rad14701]

schmand, I wouldn't be overly optimistic in having the off taste from the turbo wash being removed during the aging process... You are better off starting the aging process with clean spirits... But, hey. you never know till you try...

[schmand]

schmand, I wouldn't be overly optimistic in having the off taste from the turbo wash being removed during the aging process... You are better off starting the aging process with clean spirits... But, hey. you never know till you try...

Haha, that's right! Yea, I know bout the off taste, that is why I only used it once and now stick to BW and All Bran!