I have a 5 gallon batch of a chocolate walnut mead and wanted to add oak chips soaked in rum. I was wondering if anyone out there has any experience with this. Specifically how much rum to soak the chips in, how long to soak them for, and do you add the contents of rum and chips to the mead or just the chips themselves. Any insight would be much appreciated, thanks!
Adding oak chips soaked in rum to a mead
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JustinCider
Well-Known Member
I have done something fairly close to that. I soaked medium toast oak chips in some Makers Mark bourbon for a week and then added them to my 5 gallon batch of Carmel Apple Mead for like 10 days. I put about a walnut size of chips per gallon and covered them with bouron for a week...then i drained them and put them in the carboy in a grain bag. I turned out fantastic but the next time i would dump the bourbon in as well to give it even more flavor.
:rockin:
:rockin:
I have also used Bourbon but not experimented with rum at all. General principles will surely apply though...
I actually would *not* add the liquor, at least at first -- think of it this way: you are making an oak extract as much as you are infusing the flavor of the liquor into the oak. You can for sure way over-oak a batch by adding the liquor (I've done it...), but it is indeed a good way to add oak flavor. My last little bit of oaked bourbon was added to a test batch of cider, and it was pretty much exactly as if I had added the chips themselves, and you can titrate the flavor pretty easily.
I have found that an ounce of dry chips seems to be a sweet spot for a 5 to 6 gal batch; I soak them in the Bourbon for a couple weeks ahead of time, then strain them out of the liquor, and let them air dry for an hour or so before adding them in a muslin bag. I would be prepared to take samples every week or so and see when you get to where you want flavor wise. I generally go a week or two and get to where I want to be. In the case of my oaked rye pale ale, I am dry hopping at the same time. A lighter flavored mead might oak up in a shorter time period, but it sounds like your mead could be pretty robust, and may easily take 2 weeks of oaking without overdoing it...
If you go a couple of weeks and still doesn't seem rummey or oakey enough for you, you can add little bits of the left over rum to taste.
I actually would *not* add the liquor, at least at first -- think of it this way: you are making an oak extract as much as you are infusing the flavor of the liquor into the oak. You can for sure way over-oak a batch by adding the liquor (I've done it...), but it is indeed a good way to add oak flavor. My last little bit of oaked bourbon was added to a test batch of cider, and it was pretty much exactly as if I had added the chips themselves, and you can titrate the flavor pretty easily.
I have found that an ounce of dry chips seems to be a sweet spot for a 5 to 6 gal batch; I soak them in the Bourbon for a couple weeks ahead of time, then strain them out of the liquor, and let them air dry for an hour or so before adding them in a muslin bag. I would be prepared to take samples every week or so and see when you get to where you want flavor wise. I generally go a week or two and get to where I want to be. In the case of my oaked rye pale ale, I am dry hopping at the same time. A lighter flavored mead might oak up in a shorter time period, but it sounds like your mead could be pretty robust, and may easily take 2 weeks of oaking without overdoing it...
If you go a couple of weeks and still doesn't seem rummey or oakey enough for you, you can add little bits of the left over rum to taste.
loveofrose
Well-Known Member
I've tried both fortifying with rum and rum soaked cubes. I actually wouldn't suggest either. I did test batches and found the subtle characters of even a very strong mead are lost to the dominate rum character.
You can dose fortifying down, but it's something like a eighth shot of rum per gallon. Cubes are trickier because you have to catch the perfect infusion time.
I'm not saying don't try it. Just beware. If you figure it out, let us know what you did!
Better brewing through science!
You can dose fortifying down, but it's something like a eighth shot of rum per gallon. Cubes are trickier because you have to catch the perfect infusion time.
I'm not saying don't try it. Just beware. If you figure it out, let us know what you did!
Better brewing through science!
I had initially wanted to age in a used 5 gallon rum barrel for a few days
but had no luck in tracking one down. This is my back up plan. Thanks for the help I'll post back and let you know how it went!
Sent from my iPad using Home Brew
but had no luck in tracking one down. This is my back up plan. Thanks for the help I'll post back and let you know how it went!
Sent from my iPad using Home Brew
Austin Homebrew sells rum-soaked oak chips, which I've used on about three batches. The flavors that come from it are almost too subtle, especially the oak, but it did add a slight rum "sweetness" to the batches.
