Who's got experience with adding Wood?

[Eastside Brewer]

Okay, so I am interested in adding some wood to the secondary and I am foggy on the process.

Do you put (said wood) in some water and boil it? Do you add it directly to the fermenter? With a 5 gallon batch how many ounces, and for how long? I don't want an overpowering presence, just subtle.

Thanks,

Eastside

 

[Saccharomyces]

Subtle = 2 ounces of medium toast oak for a week. I soak it in a neutral spirit for two weeks for sanitary reasons, and then drain off the liquid and drop the oak into the carboy. In a pinch you can steam the chips for a few minutes in the microwave with a few tablespoons of water to sanitize them.

 

[Eastside Brewer]

Thank you.

I brewed a imperial brown and I'm going to throw some palo santo wood in as an experiment.

Eastside

 

[icu812]

Thank you.

I brewed a imperial brown and I'm going to throw some palo santo wood in as an experiment.

Eastside

where did you find/buy the palo santo wood from?

 

[Eastside Brewer]

Palo Santo Wood, Oil, Incense Sticks and Chips and Shavings

It's pretty expensive, but after getting it, I see that a little goes a long way!!

I am trying not to succumb to "Brewer's Panic" right now! I put 1oz. in 5.5 gallons of an imperial brown and after 3 days I pulled a sample and it was like drinking perfume!! God I hope it calms down a little! I'm going to rack it off the wood and keg it soon and I'll just have to wait and see what happens???

Eastside

 

[Go Gators]

I bought the oaked porter from AHB and it says nothing about sanitizing the oak cubes. I have not opened the original bag yet, so would it really be a bad idea to just add them directly to the brew?

 

[Parker36]

I have some experience adding wood to your mother.

I will now see myself out

 

[count barleywine]

Parker thanks I just spit my coffee on my computer screen! One can just microwave the wood a few times around 10-12 seconds, then let it cool a bit and add. I have some odd arthropod pets(giant centipede, 14yr old tarantula, giant Huntsman spider) and if I find a sweet piece of bark or something for a terrarium, I'll nuke it like this to kill microbes.

 

[IrregularPulse]

I am also going to be adding some medium toast french oak to a pale in a few weeks. From my searching here I found soaking them in water or neutral spirits is preferred because they absorb so much, and if you don't saturate them with them with water or spirits, they will absorb quite a bit of beer giving you less. I am adding 2 ounces to 5G. I'll probably boil water, cool, it, and soak the chips in there, then drain the water and dump them in.

 

[martinirish]

I oaked (steamed chips) a oatmeal stout (4oz/13.2 USG; 1 1/2 month), a scotch ale (2.8oz/6 USG, 3 months) and an old ale (1.5oz/5.3 USG, maybe 4-6 months). The first two came out very nice, the thrid one is still aging. The next brew I want to wood-age is an American stout, half oak, half maple. Do you have any recommendation about using maple wood? Should I?

Thanks!

By the way, the maple wood I have is from a black maple tree that my father, my brother and I cutted down last summer. I cleaned and cutted a few logs in small pieces. These pieces were then sun dried for about 2 weeks then slowly dried in the oven for about 20 hours, slowly raising the temperature from 170F to 380F. I let them cool down then wrapped the wood pieces in a plastic bag.
Strong but pleasant woody (maple) smell along with caramel and vanilla.

 

[StoutFan]

Many whiskeys are filtered through suger maple charcoal for the taste it gives off. I'd imagine tossing it in a stout would give it a nice earthy tone, woody but not over powering. I could be wrong too, I guess try it and see what develops.

 

[davefleck]

wood is naturally antimicrobial due to it's oils so a lot is working in your favor.

as long as it's not got particles on it you should be fine. (this is why wood cutting boards are safer to use then plastic)

i've heard of some putting them in the oven for 15 min at 350
hot water should work too. Vodka or any other booze like whiskey.

 

[SkewedBrewing]

When I've added wood chips in the past I put a medium sized handful in a bowl and added around a quarter cup of water and microwaved it for about 30 seconds and added everything to the secondary. This created exactly what I was hoping for, some added flavor and aroma but nothing too strong.

 

[IrregularPulse]

By the way, the maple wood I have is from a black maple tree that my father, my brother and I cutted down last summer. I cleaned and cutted a few logs in small pieces. These pieces were then sun dried for about 2 weeks then slowly dried in the oven for about 20 hours, slowly raising the temperature from 170F to 380F. I let them cool down then wrapped the wood pieces in a plastic bag.
Strong but pleasant woody (maple) smell along with caramel and vanilla.

You really shouldn't have cutted it. I would have just cut it. Sorry I had to point it out. Would have let it go, but you did it twice, which means you actaully think it's right. Just trying to help teach a fellow native the language of his people.

 

[martinirish]

You really shouldn't have cutted it. I would have just cut it. Sorry I had to point it out. Would have let it go, but you did it twice, which means you actaully think it's right. Just trying to help teach a fellow native the language of his people.

You don't have to be sorry... anyway, thanks!

 

[trip2hard]

I would recommend what everyone is saying I infected a batch by not boiling them first or soaking in a liqour. I got 3oz of med toast oak cubes soaking in a pint of makers mark bourbon for 1 week and am gong to add them to a double IPA for 20 days and see how that comes out and input would be appreciated.

 

[blackwaterbrewer]

parker, your comment made me belly laugh, thanks.