smooth white aged harsh

[Steve3730]

Been distilling for a couple years. mostly corn based recipes. 60=80% corn with 6row barley and either wheat or rye making up the rest. Ran through a pot still always doing a strip run and a spirit run. So when we cut it down and take some heart down to 80-90 it is sweet smooth and I get great compliments on it, better then off the shelf stuff. When I age it on charred oak it actually gets harsher and is nowhere near as good as it is in white form. I age at 125 proof in 32oz jars for 6 week-2 months with char 3 oak spirals.

Currently I'm trying to test stuff so I have 4 jars with different combos and amounts of charred oak sticks and spirals in there and have them in there for 3 months. Looking to take them off soon but want to reach out for some tips

Feel like I'm doing what most I've read on here are doing but not getting great results. What can I be doing better?

[HDNB]

I have always found an awkward stage in oak aging from 6 weeks to six months.
frsh white up to six weeks it's really nice....after six months it gets better and better, between then? it's harsh.

maybe you are finding the same thing?

[fizzix]

This has been popping up lately it seems. Was the oak seasoned and charred? Or fresh cut and charred?
And ditto HDNB. Had some Odin's Cornflake I more than once almost threw out. When it was white, and then young in a barrel. It's friggin' dynamite now some 7~8 months later!

[Steve3730]

Not sure if it was seasoned It was charred for sure. The spirals were just prepackaged ones used for flavoring spirits. The stave I bought off amazon I believe someone on here recommended them because its a guy doing it not a mass produced thing. But i can't find the link. below is the spirals

https://www.amazon.com/Oak-Infusion-Spi ... oak+staves" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

[BayouShine]

I'd have to agree. You're in that funky aging period that makes you question if you did anything right at all.

Put it away somewhere and forget about it for 6 months, then come back and check. There's some magic that happens around that 6 month mark. You'll be fine.

[Saltbush Bill]

Try some toasted oak instead of charred , you may like that better.

char 3 oak spirals.

Spirals are known to have a lot of end grain and are not ideal in my opinion.
Still dragon sell a very good product called "Dominoes" they come in a range of oak types , toasts and chars.
Ive found them to be excellent.

[Steve3730]

Try some toasted oak instead of charred , you may like that better.

char 3 oak spirals.

Spirals are known to have a lot of end grain and are not ideal in my opinion.
Still dragon sell a very good product called "Dominoes" they come in a range of oak types , toasts and chars.
Ive found them to be excellent.

Ya i read that on here and ordered the charred staves. right now I have a couple jars with the last spirals i had and staves and a couple with just staves

what is a good amount of oak to add to 32oz jars? Think I have 3-4 piece of wood in each jar right now. They are about 5" long 1/2"x 1/2" diameter

I will let them sit 6 months before i pull them off the oak.

[Saltbush Bill]

what is a good amount of oak to add to 32oz jars? Think I have 3-4 piece of wood in each jar right now. They are about 5" long 1/2"x 1/2" diameter

Is that 32 fluid oz? , if so that equates to 0.946353 of a Liter, that's way to much oak in my opinion, 1 stick that size would be enough.
With Domino's use half an average sized domino to 1 liter of spirit. They are very easy to split down the middle using a sharp knife.

[Steve3730]

I tried doing one stick but after 3 months the likker hardly even had a tint to it. So i added 2 more. I've attached a picture of what I currently have and the stick I'm using

[FL Brewer]

I use 3 sticks about 8x1/2x1 inch in a gallon of 120 proof whiskey. The oak comes from a half Jack Daniels barrel from Home Depot. I wrap them in aluminum foil, toast at 400 degrees for about an hour and a half, then char, rinse with clean water, and add to the gallon jug. The whiskey gets the nice reddish brown color and flavor pretty quickly, but is not overoaked after 30 weeks of stress aging (swapping in and out of the freezer almost every day). I agree with Saltbush Bill, I think you're using a little too much oak. I may even cut back to two sticks as an experiment next batch.

My first couple batches, I didn't toast the oak, and I got a harsh, bitter, tannic flavor I didn't like at all in the whiskey. Toasting the oak before charring completely eliminates the tannin in the flavor, at least as far as my taste buds can tell.

[Saltbush Bill]

I've attached a picture of what I currently have and the stick I'm using

Those sticks look to be pretty heavily charred , I find that a light char or or medium to heavy toast gives more colour and flavour.

[Antler24]

what is a good amount of oak to add to 32oz jars? Think I have 3-4 piece of wood in each jar right now. They are about 5" long 1/2"x 1/2" diameter

Is that 32 fluid oz? , if so that equates to 0.946353 of a Liter, that's way to much oak in my opinion, 1 stick that size would be enough.
With Domino's use half an average sized domino to 1 liter of spirit. They are very easy to split down the middle using a sharp knife.

Agreed. I used to use 1/2" x 1/2" x 7" sticks, 4 per gallon. Now using 1" x 1" x 4" per quart and that's plenty IMO.

[Steve3730]

So Dominoes>Staves>Spirals

Can you guys recommend where you buy the dominoes you use? I'd like to try some with lighter chars. I have 1 gallon of hearts that I'd like to get on wood but want to make sure I'm getting it on the right stuff so its sitting on the best possible and I get improvement at the end of aging. Thanks for the help guys

[HDNB]

the BBQ supply place. i like mclean's ex- bourbon barrel smoking chunks.

[Antler24]

I'd recommend going to a local saw mill or lumber supplier and ask for a white oak plank. You can then do what you want with it!

[Steve3730]

And just char the wood myself in the stove or on the grill?

[still_stirrin]

the BBQ supply place. i like mclean's ex- bourbon barrel smoking chunks.

+1.

I’ve used these quite successfully. You can add char if you’d like. Don’t really need to toast them tho. The stave chunks will float at first until saturated, then they’ll sink.

Mclean’s are great if you can find them. Or, order online. Comes in “bourbon”, “wine”, and “rum” too.
ss

[Saltbush Bill]

Can you guys recommend where you buy the dominoes you use? I'd like to try some with lighter chars.

As far as I know the only place selling proper dominoes is Still Dragon. They sell them by the KG / Pound.
They are a commercially produced product made for use in the wine industry, however they also work exceptionally well in spirits.

[raketemensch]

You can also buy chunks pre-seasoned on EBay.

[raketemensch]

You can also buy chunks pre-seasoned on EBay.

[Saltbush Bill]

http://stilldragon.com/index.php/oak-adjuncts.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow
Dont know where in the world you are here is the North American site, they also have AU and Europe.