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BrewinBrian44 said, 'I plan on leaving them for 6 months then re evaluate. I might try to replicate a breathing barrel by sandwiching a piece of paper towel under the lid of the jar, could be a terrible idea lol.'

I think the paper towel will just go really soggy.

Geoff

The Baker wrote: ↑Wed Apr 20, 2022 4:18 pm BrewinBrian44 said, 'I plan on leaving them for 6 months then re evaluate. I might try to replicate a breathing barrel by sandwiching a piece of paper towel under the lid of the jar, could be a terrible idea lol.'

I think the paper towel will just go really soggy.

Geoff

I ended up buying some extra large corks that fit a small mouth quart jar perfectly. I just lightly snugged them in to allow some oxygen exchange.

BrewinBrian44 wrote: ↑Wed Apr 20, 2022 4:44 pm

The Baker wrote: ↑Wed Apr 20, 2022 4:18 pm BrewinBrian44 said, 'I plan on leaving them for 6 months then re evaluate. I might try to replicate a breathing barrel by sandwiching a piece of paper towel under the lid of the jar, could be a terrible idea lol.'

I think the paper towel will just go really soggy.

Geoff

I ended up buying some extra large corks that fit a small mouth quart jar perfectly. I just lightly snugged them in to allow some oxygen exchange.

Not sure where you got your cork but I bought several 4” cork stoppers from here cork to make my vacuum filtration system.

That’s the place!

I have 2 gallons of 60% Single Malt on JD Chips. Left some heads and tails to get the aging flavors I have read about. 2months in, and I still have overpowering tails smell. Aging in 1/2 gallon mason jars. Anyone have some opinion on maybe removing lid and topping with a breathable fabric? Would this be the best way to age? Sorry, been working on my hobby for a while, and just now getting into the aging process.

boxarain wrote: ↑Tue Jul 12, 2022 10:40 am I have 2 gallons of 60% Single Malt on JD Chips. Left some heads and tails to get the aging flavors I have read about. 2months in, and I still have overpowering tails smell. Aging in 1/2 gallon mason jars. Anyone have some opinion on maybe removing lid and topping with a breathable fabric? Would this be the best way to age? Sorry, been working on my hobby for a while, and just now getting into the aging process.

For a wide cut, you’ll need waaaay longer than two months before you see any improvement. Wide cuts are meant for a long sleep. If you want something to drink sooner, try a narrow cut next time and save your feints for the next spirit run.

I have yet to do it myself, but if it doesn’t improve much over time, you can try chill filtering through a coffee filter. You essentially throw your booze in the freezer and get it very cold. Some of the tails compounds clump together into chunks that float on top at cold temps. Once you’ve got to this point, you just pour the freezing cold spirit through a coffee filter and it’ll remove some of the nastiness. You can also blot it off the top with a paper towel.

Thanks BrewinBrian. I figured 6 months, but I can't help but crack that lid and dip in. I have read 4mos things start to turn for the better. Just wanted to be sure I was on the right track.

boxarain wrote: ↑Tue Jul 12, 2022 5:25 pm Thanks BrewinBrian. I figured 6 months, but I can't help but crack that lid and dip in. I have read 4mos things start to turn for the better. Just wanted to be sure I was on the right track.

Patience will reward you on this. You should consider longer than 6 months if you can. A year or longer will help tremendously.

I have some old bourbon that I cut pretty deep into the tails. More than I normally would. Tasted really rough at 6 months, I forgot about it and let it sit for a while longer under a cork stopper, probably around a year and a half until I stumbled across it. Tastes pretty damn good now. I also didn’t use too much oak, which allowed me to keep it on the oak the whole time without overpowering it.

Sounds good. I will let her sit for as long as it takes.

Hi there!
. .
For those who miss "European" oak species. On the left in the photo - raw sticks of Q.Petraea from Caucasus (if me be lucky) or Q.Robur from some local badland (if the sellers were luckier than me, lol). Of course, they position it as "Caucasian, naturally seasoned, toasted" and this is highly likely bullsh!t in triplicate. Heartwood or sapwood? Truth to tell, even the sellers have no idea. So, how should we ***k with it all?

I could throw these sticks on the porch in the wind, rain and snow... where they would sprout shrooms, becoming at least a little like what is needed, in terms of sugars disclosure, vanilla and other things, and also (and this is the main thing) in reducing the overwhelming level of tannins that European oak gives us, coupled with cheating about the kiln drying. But in contrast to Q.Alba, this local wood is poor in lactones, sugars, vanillas by default so, is it all worth a penny?

Hehe, the Lenin's Komsomol members don't like doing it without huge efforts. So they boil it with NaHCO3 (baking soda), then cook few times just in water and then drop them into a neutral 40% EtOH for at least a month. Then replace it with the 50% neutral EtOH for a month. Then change it for the 70% EtOH for a month more. Poor, poor EtOH… let’s re-boka it later. If you guys think the sticks become exhausted and tired out... then you weren't enough familiar with the damned European oak. The Young Pioneers drop them sticks into the water boiling hard time and again and... they get this smell of pissed parquet for 5 or 6 times more.

Color of boiled infusion: as soon as this black sulphy raw petroleum turns into a nice cup of green tea, our thangs get better lil by lil, they do. So, let’s now slightly toast’em, salt and pepper time and temperature to taste. Now they are as in the middle of the top picture. Check the structure: it’s loosy (brushed? leached? well, you’ve gotit). Check the weight: it’s about 10 to 15 percent less than before. Check the color: sorta front door of an old porn barn. Check the nose: no cheap furniture factory anymore. It’s OK now to add the sticks into some coupage-dedicated spirits but better let’s stitch some caramel in (that this wood never had at all).
. .
We can use some allgrain wort (better made for dark ales). Or some grape juice and wine. Or some brown sugar. And so on, and so forth. And we cook the sticks in some rather small quantity of this syrup. As the syrup caramelizes, we stir and add a bit of water. And again, and again. Keep on stirrin’, don’t let it burn. And finally we are getting our firewood wrapped in a sticky nutella. Dry them up a bit. Now let’s wash the surplus nutella out. Still they are sticky and wet - let’s give’em a slight charring shade with a trivial propane torch. Lotsa caramel popping outta the pores. Wash the surplus bubbles. Torch once’gain. Let them dry and rest now. Smells like candy, not baseboard!
. .
That’s all. Nothing new for y’all, in fact. Just a way to waste spend the time from June to December

So it's been over a year since anyone has posted... I have just read this all of the way through, and it's great.

I have a few questions that I haven't found an answer to, here or elsewhere.

1) Is using Everclear a sin? My last go at aging was with Buffalo Trace White Dog and various chips and cubes and such. It was for gifts, but obviously came at quite a cost. The new batch will be Everclear diluted to similar ABV 58%.

2) What do you really mean by "off wood"? Do you still leave a bit of air and allow for breathing, or is this sealed up? Lots of discussion about whether whisky ages in the bottle. I believe it probably doesn't if you're talking about a sealed bottle, but a mostly sealed jar might be different. And how long would be too long off oak? Does it make any difference after the 1.5 months described here?

3) I bought some charred oak sticks from Etsy, and now think it might be a mistake. They are from an AWO that stood dead for over 2 years, was cut and dried, then charred without toasting. about 3/4 x 3/4 x 6. I am uncertain as to whether or not this is heart wood. I have put 1 stick in 1.25L of 58% Everclear in a 1.8L mason jar. I have put 1/2 stick (exposing end grain at one end) in another jar. They've been in about a week. Should I take them out?

4) Should I not use the disk on the mason jar lids? I had intended to put a coffee filter between the lid and the jar for a loose seal, but didn't want to remove the disk. Someone here said the sealant on the disk can do harm. Really?

5) And finally... Has anyone tried putting their whisky jars under a black blanket on a covered porch or in a window? I live in So Cal, and we don't get very low temps, but in "winter" we get lots of sun, and I thought at the very least the temps could go up nicely under a black blanket, and cool off to about 50ºF at night. In the summer, my garage will only swing from 90ºF to 70ºF give or take.

I have 6 x 1.8L jars filled to 1.25L, but may divide some up, or get more Everclear and some 12oz jars for more experimentation.

I have properly aged cherry, crabapple, pear which I plan to toast, and some oak sticks of various toasts I bought in addition to the charred ones.

Thanks

rpsharman wrote: ↑Thu Jan 18, 2024 1:01 pm
4) Should I not use the disk on the mason jar lids? I had intended to put a coffee filter between the lid and the jar for a loose seal, but didn't want to remove the disk. Someone here said the sealant on the disk can do harm. Really?

I definitely don't. The sealant is usually plastisol which is very easily degraded by ethanol. Pour some white dog on one and watch it dissolve.

I use coffee filters under the ring to air out and PTFE film under the ring for storage. It's available in 12" x 40" sheets or 4" x 4" precut squares at reasonable prices on Amazon.

Cool. Thanks. My other thought was flipping over the disc. It actually makes a non-airtight seal, and the plastisol is now facing upwards. But I suppose still exposed to the fumes.

elbono wrote: ↑Thu Jan 18, 2024 3:00 pm

rpsharman wrote: ↑Thu Jan 18, 2024 1:01 pm
4) Should I not use the disk on the mason jar lids? I had intended to put a coffee filter between the lid and the jar for a loose seal, but didn't want to remove the disk. Someone here said the sealant on the disk can do harm. Really?

I definitely don't. The sealant is usually plastisol which is very easily degraded by ethanol. Pour some white dog on one and watch it dissolve.

I use coffee filters under the ring to air out and PTFE film under the ring for storage. It's available in 12" x 40" sheets or 4" x 4" precut squares at reasonable prices on Amazon.
17056183899010.jpg

I bought these a few years ago - 100 discs for $59 and free shipping (with prime).

Price is a little bit higher today: JG Finneran PTFE Discs