How long do you leave oak chips in your wine?

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ratm4484

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I got a pack of oak chips for my next wine batch. How long am I supposed to leave them in it? Thanks
 
What kind of wine? Kit? Fresh Juice? How many chips? What type of chips? What do you like in the way of oaky wine?

Give us a clue..................
 
I am going to try making one of those welch's grape concentrate wines. From what I've read, adding chips seems to be a good idea for just about any wine that you will end up leaving dry. I will leave this on the dry side so I figured it couldn't hurt to add oak. As far as the oak, it is american oak with a medium toast. Here is a link http://morewinemaking.com/product.html?product_id=18769 I have got 2 ounces worth and I will make a five-six gallon batch. As far as wines, I enjoy Cabs, Merlot, Shiraz, and Pinot noir, or an combination.

So how long do you think I should add it for? Thanks
 
Just so I don't get yelled at again, I can only offer the suggestion that a fermented beverage made with Welch's grape juice will be very thin and weak. Insipid is the generally accepted descriptor.

Oak is meant to balance out and add complexity to a full bodied red wine like a Cabernet Sauvignon or a full flavoured white like a Chardonnay.

Accordingly, I would not use any at all, it may end up tasting just of oak chips and nothing else.
 
If you use it, I'd use a tiny bit (maybe 1 ounce per 5 gallon) and taste it daily until it has not quite enough and then rack it off of the oak. It's better to have too little rather than too much. You can't take it out once it's in there and it takes forever to mellow. Not a problem for a "good" wine, since you're aging it anyway, but the Welch's is more for drinking right away. I oaked my blackberry just a little tiny bit and after almost a year it's getting pretty good.

Mikey- No one's going to yell at you for giving your opinion- don't worry! I happen to love my Welch's wines, but others might hate them. That's ok. I don't like barleywines but it's the brewer's perogative to make them.
 
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