I will be reviving my famed (at least in local circles ) pale ale recipe with a few tweaks on the next brew. What's the best approach/procedure when using oak chips for aging? How much? How long? Etc. I'm toying with the idea of sanitizing the chips by letting them sit in bourbon for a week and letting the beer age on that. Any thoughts, suggestions, etc. most welcomed.
Thanks in advance.
v/r
Bill
Oak Chip Advice
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Toast 'em !....
The boubon will work, but the pale will be very boubon flavored!
Instead...
To sanitze oak chips, place them in the oven that was pre-heated to 225 degrees with a pan of boiling water on the bottom rack. Keep them in the oven for 30 minutes, turning them every 15. After the 30 minutes, you can then toast them by removing the water and raising the temperature to 350 deg. F. Turn them frequently until the desired toast is reached.
How much to use and how long the contact time is depends on the actual wood type and desired level of flavor. I would use 1# in the secondary for 1 week, take a sample and go from there for a pale ale. The toasty notes produced by this technique really compliment pales, browns and, in larger quantities, porter and stout.
Eric
Instead...
To sanitze oak chips, place them in the oven that was pre-heated to 225 degrees with a pan of boiling water on the bottom rack. Keep them in the oven for 30 minutes, turning them every 15. After the 30 minutes, you can then toast them by removing the water and raising the temperature to 350 deg. F. Turn them frequently until the desired toast is reached.
How much to use and how long the contact time is depends on the actual wood type and desired level of flavor. I would use 1# in the secondary for 1 week, take a sample and go from there for a pale ale. The toasty notes produced by this technique really compliment pales, browns and, in larger quantities, porter and stout.
Eric