Oak chips-

[Bavis54]

Hey friends- other day I picked up some medium toasted American oak chips at brew shop, I brought them home and put a medium to heavy char on them and added roughly a handful to a dozen quart jars of rum and hbb I had already made. After 3 weeks I popped top on one of the honey bear jars and it smelled like smokey wood- not in good way either so I was afraid I had put too many chips in each jar, I took couple jars and filtered thru coffee filter. I smelled the remaining oak chips and the smell of the chips has this amazing sweet bourbon smell just like wild turkey, it's absolutly wonderful. But now I have this question if the wood smells so great why did the likker smell and taste of badly smoked wood taste? Does it mean I had too many chips or just that I need to let it soak and age much longer? I'm very new to aging so you guys help here be appreciated. I left chips in all the other jars and kept the one filtered.

[der wo]

When you charr chips, the proportion between charcoal and wood is off. Way too much charcoal and not enough wood. You should use chips without charring. If you want a charr you need sticks not chips.
After charring you should rinse the wood. And perhaps soak it in water a bit. This reduces the burnt and ash smoke flavors.

You are lucky that filtering helps. But perhaps you should try uncharred chips or sticks. Probably you will like it even more.Edit

Too much wood or not too much: When it has the right color, the amount of wood was all right. But of course when you reach a god color after 3 weeks and next time you will invest more time, you have to take less chips.

[Pikey]

have used chips in the past and i think I charred them - but if I did, only lightly. and I'm pretty sure I used less than a "handful" for a 4 litre jar (about 4 of your quarts).

Nowadays I use sticks, toasted and charred. But I taste regularly and lift the oak out as soon as I feel the flavour is "oaked enough" - I have "over oaked" in the past and don't much care for the taste. I do seem to use more sticks than most and get them out a lot sooner, since I have access to plenty of seasoned oak, can chop and prepare my own.

A lot more experimenting to do before I get it right, but I'm convinced that you can easily "over-oak" !

[edit - I think I may still be "over-oaking" as I get the flavour close to what I want within a month or so, but my colour is still fairly light. - but THAT can be sorted easy enough.]

[NZChris]

I don't char chips because it doesn't sound like a good idea. You have confirmed that for me. Thanks.

Unless you are in a hurry to make a quick oak tea for instant gratification, try to find an amount that you can leave in the aging jar permanently because aging pretty much stops when the likker is no longer in contact with the wood.

[Oldvine Zin]

I don't char chips because it doesn't sound like a good idea. You have confirmed that for me. Thanks.

Unless you are in a hurry to make a quick oak tea for instant gratification, try to find an amount that you can leave in the aging jar permanently because aging pretty much stops when the likker is no longer in contact with the wood.

So true... age = age no tricks around that

OVZ

[Pikey]

One of the great things about this hobby, is that those who wish to be constrained by dogma and follow the restrictions imposed by "venerable authority" are at liberty to do so.

"Age is Age" and Taste is taste - sometimes they go together.

[NZChris]

I don't char chips because it doesn't sound like a good idea. You have confirmed that for me. Thanks.

Unless you are in a hurry to make a quick oak tea for instant gratification, try to find an amount that you can leave in the aging jar permanently because aging pretty much stops when the likker is no longer in contact with the wood.

So true... age = age no tricks around that

OVZ

Well I think there are, but that over oaking then removing it before it gets too strong isn't one of them.

[FullySilenced]

Put one jar with the chips somewhere and leave it a year or so ... then revisit it... you may be surprised...


you can blend the product you think is over charred/oaked with white product and adjust it to something you may like... or rerun it through with another batch..

happy stillin,

FS