“Flavoring” on oak for only a few days

[Captain Spaulding]

Hi Stillers!

Wondering if anyone else has experienced what I THINK I am experiencing.

With some UJSSM and also some Rum it seems that somewhere between one and three weeks on oak there is a sudden pop of mellow sweetness and vanilla/butterscotch flavors. But then only another week or two and I taste bitter tannins that I know will smooth out with proper aging.

I feel like I could set aside some of my new make and watch it very closely over this one to three week period, then pull the oak out before that bitterness sets in for some drink now bottles.

Has anyone else experienced this?

[bilgriss]

I have honestly never checked as soon as three weeks. But there are lots of discussions around the forum confirming that there is an initial period where the product gets pleasant though not complex notes from the wood, followed by a period of harshness that mellows over time. In a year or two, all those flavors meld together, and other reactions with air and aging in general result in something with more depth and complexity that is exciting. Patience is the hardest thing to bottle in this hobby.

[NZChris]

If you are a new distiller and want to quickly put something in your drinks cabinet, that will work well enough. Yes, you do have to rack it off the wood before too much tannin is released.