How to use oak spindles?

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wiescins

wiescins

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I'm planning on adding an oak spindle to a RIS in the secondary and am not sure what type of prep work i need to do. Here is a link to the spindle (http://www.midwestsupplies.com/american-oak-infusion-spirals-medium-toast.html). Do I need to sand them at all? Rinse with hot water? Soak in any spirits? This will be my first time using these and i don't want an infection or splinters/floatings (19lbs of grain + raw sugar + 12wks in carboys = lots of time & money).

Thanks for any help!
 
wiescins said:
I'm planning on adding an oak spindle to a RIS in the secondary and am not sure what type of prep work i need to do. Here is a link to the spindle (http://www.midwestsupplies.com/american-oak-infusion-spirals-medium-toast.html). Do I need to sand them at all? Rinse with hot water? Soak in any spirits? This will be my first time using these and i don't want an infection or splinters/floatings (19lbs of grain + raw sugar + 12wks in carboys = lots of time & money).

Thanks for any help!
Click to expand...
Personally I would use chips as they are far cheaper and easier to prep. If you go with American oak you will want to boil it beforehand to lessen the harsh oakiness. French oak is much softer in it's flavor profile and it's what I prefer to use. You can soak them in any spirit you'd like beforehand. I've used Jim beam and vanilla beans with one batch and it was nice.
 
Yeah,I used the medium toast French oak chips soaked in Beam's Black for my Whiskely ale. American white oak is spicier,while American Black oak is spicier yet. I've used all three in my bbq pit & noted this. The French oak was the softest,smoothest oak for brewing. Then white,then black. I think black oak would be good for a stout.
 
Any idea's on how to prep the spindles/chips prior to adding to the secondary?
 
Here is what I am doing with cedar. I am using cedar out of my local cigar shop, gonna break it down into smaller chunks and throw in the bottom of my secondary. Since I know that this wood was in a controlled environment and not out in the elements I am not so concerned with bugs, etc.

When I am done I will have wood infused with beer to cook over!!

Per your situation, I would not sand the wood, but break into small chunks with either a saw or other device. Those spindles have most likely been sanded in such a way as to close off the pores of the wood, so breaking it down out of the original shape will help open the "flavor" back up. Depending on what method of breaking them down you choose you run less of a risk os splinters than others... Saws=Less Splinters where as AXE=More Splinters. And as far as to spirit or not... depends on what flavors you want in your beer. I chose not to soak my cedar so as to not swing my Rye Ale into some sort of bourbon rye cedar ale... That is confusing to say and will confuse your taste buds!

Hope that helps ya!
 
cigarmitch said:
Here is what I am doing with cedar. I am using cedar out of my local cigar shop, gonna break it down into smaller chunks and throw in the bottom of my secondary. Since I know that this wood was in a controlled environment and not out in the elements I am not so concerned with bugs, etc.

When I am done I will have wood infused with beer to cook over!!

Per your situation, I would not sand the wood, but break into small chunks with either a saw or other device. Those spindles have most likely been sanded in such a way as to close off the pores of the wood, so breaking it down out of the original shape will help open the "flavor" back up. Depending on what method of breaking them down you choose you run less of a risk os splinters than others... Saws=Less Splinters where as AXE=More Splinters. And as far as to spirit or not... depends on what flavors you want in your beer. I chose not to soak my cedar so as to not swing my Rye Ale into some sort of bourbon rye cedar ale... That is confusing to say and will confuse your taste buds!

Hope that helps ya!
Click to expand...

Even wood that is used for cigars is basically lumber grade wood- this stuff has all sorts of chemicals and preservatives in it that you don't want in your beer. Things like food-grade cedar planks for grilling and smoking chips won't have this stuff- you need to make sure your wood is food safe before you go extracting all the badness with water and alcohol in your beer.
 
My goal is to help bring some oak/vanilla flavors, but mainly aroma, to an Imperial Stout. My current schedule (I have an end date that it is needed by) is to Primary for 5wks, secondary on oak for 7wks, then bottle. It is an 11% beer with a ton of dark malts and ~80 IBU's, so I need to come strong, but the non-oak version is very good on its own, so I don't want the oak to overwhelm. Would 2 spindles for 7wks be overkill?
 
wiescins said:
My goal is to help bring some oak/vanilla flavors, but mainly aroma, to an Imperial Stout. My current schedule (I have an end date that it is needed by) is to Primary for 5wks, secondary on oak for 7wks, then bottle. It is an 11% beer with a ton of dark malts and ~80 IBU's, so I need to come strong, but the non-oak version is very good on its own, so I don't want the oak to overwhelm. Would 2 spindles for 7wks be overkill?
Click to expand...

every thought about racking 1 gallon and oaking it so you can have both versions.
 
If you just want oak flavor/spiciness,you could boil them for a short time in 2C of water,cool,& place in an airtight container in the fridge for the duration of primary. That's what I did,& it works quite well. Then,pour all through a hop sock into secondary,tie off,& drop it in. Then rack the beer onto it & seal. Let it sit till a shot size sample is to your liking. Then bottle or keg.
 
a long overdue follow up. i used 2 oak spindles for 5wks and the oak was waaaaay too much. 1 would have been better. It was way more oak than an oak aged yeti. smelled/tasted like a bike tube for months, just starting to get ok now.
 
I wouldn't worry about it too much. There are few beers better suited to aging than your RIS. The oak should mellow nicely and the beer will continue to improve for years, by my estimation.
 

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