So, somewhere along the way I think it was Mr Oak Tom S that gave the advice, if you think your Chardonnay has enough oak, leave it in the barrel awhile longer because it doesn't really.
So, how do you tell when it really does have enough? Is there something that just jumps out at you that will scream, for goodness sake, get me outta here? ;-)
Brian
If it was my first year making Chardonnay and I'm making a single barrel of wine in a new barrel..... Starting after an initial 3-4 months on oak, I'd taste it about every other month side-by-side with a commercial wine (or a previous vintage) which has the level of oakiness I like (while learning, tis a good idea to use a reference and compare). When they taste 'equivalent' oakiness, then continue 'oaking' the new wine about 1/4 longer than it already has been on the oak (to give a sufficient 'margin' for mellowing of the tannins with age in the bottle. [additional feedback from others encouraged here on their experience]).
I'd also reserve some (maybe 10-20%)unoaked or 'underoaked' wine to possibly blend with the main quantity just in case you determine you really went too far. Blending is the 'fine tuning' used by the big boys.
It may take a couple of batches to learn by experiment how much time it takes to get the 'right' oakiness in the bottle with the type and age of the barrel(s) you have.
The rule of thumb I'm familiar is no more than 1/2 new oak (preferably about 1/3); the balance being 2nd and/or 3rd year barrels (by the third year the barrel should be pretty 'neutral').
If your Chardonnay ends up too oaky, you can always set your babies aside a couple more years to mellow (and also cut back on the time on oak by about 10-20% for the next batch), or else smoke a cigar while drinking your Chardonnay to mask the tannins (if that floats your boat).
Let us know what you decide to do and how it works out.
Gene
Well not exactly. It's mostly a matter of experience. For example, my 2004 Chardonnay has been in barrel since late September. It seems to be already showing a lot of oak, but I know that if I were to fine, filter and bottle it right now I'd taste very little oak in the finished wine. It needs to sit in barrel, have the lees stirred now and then, and in another 8 months or so be prepared for bottling. It'll be starting to really show what it's got a year or so beyond that.
Tom S
Hi Brian, The oak intensity diminishes significantly as the wine ages so, leave Chardonnay in the barrel until "it screams, for goodness sake, get me outta here." Regards, Lum Del Mar, California, USA
With a new 8 gallon barrel that has had a couple of fermentations done in it, what do you figure would be a reasonable time to get a strong oak character?
Brian
If it's been used a couple of times already, it really isn't a new barrel anymore. I'd guess that, depending on how long the barrel has held wine, you'd still pick up noticeable oak within weeks to several months.
Remember, it's OK to put some StaVin "beans" or oak chips into a used barrel to restore some of that new barrel character.
Tom S
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