Oaking Revisited

Here is a thought. You like the wine, right? If you did not like the wine, you would have nothing to loose but since you like it, consider leaving well enough alone.

Here is a thought, I know it sounds weird but just for grins you could put a few oak chips in a single bottle when you bottle it and let it sit a couple months and try that single bottle. Of course you would have to figure out how much (how little) to add to a single bottle.

Next year try to make two gallons and oak one.

I use roughly 1 ounce per gallon which is more than a lot of people recommend, so 6 grams is what I would use in one bottle. Start at 3 and see what you think.

Joe

Excellent!

Thanks for the advice Paul and Joe :)

Jim

Oh, and I am talking about chips or beans; the stuff that looks like sawdust imparts a strong 'wood' taste and is not something I like to use.

Joe

Thanks for clarifying Joe. I made a select Pinot Noir kit recently that used both the powdered and chipped forms of oak. I presume both are available from my winemaking store - but I will bear in mind the woodiness of the powdered version.

Jim

There is at least one winery here in N. VA., Md area that is using the spirals. I have tasted the wine and it is very good. Some of the wineries out here buy new barrels after just three years. I personally think this is a waste but to each his own. It might be possible to pick up a so called "Spent" barrel and use Spirals for years to come.

I went to the Maryland Wine Festival a couple weeks ago and tasted a number of red wines. They all tasted the same - like a new barrel.

There was very little to NO varietal character to the wines. It was virtually impossible to tell the difference between a Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon. Even the Chambourcin tasted the same. I guess some people think that this is the way wine is suppose to taste and has become the defacto standard. Luckily we can tailor the wines to our individual taste.