Imperial Stout Oak Chips

[acm28]

Hello guys,

Last week I bottled an Imperial Stout. I decided to set aside 5L and add American oak chips (my initial choice was French but this is what I could find at the time). These chips are toasted to a high degree, normally I would choose medium but I thought that high would go well with the type of beer.
Anyway, this was just to test and adapt some things in the future. I would like to know how long you recommend leaving the chips in before bottling the beer.
(personally I was thinking of leaving it for 1 month to 1 month and a half)

Thank you all in advance!

 

[JohnSand]

It's been a while since I oaked a beer. Without checking my logs, I think I judged by taste when to take it off the oak.

 

[Snuffy]

That seems like a long time for oak. A week sounds more like it. I agree that taste is the best way to judge. A big beer like an Imperial Stout can probably take more oak than most. There's a fine line there. The few times I have over-oaked I was able to recover by aging. Oak tends to mellow a bit over time - but then again, you're better off tasting up front than months down the line.

It's also a matter of taste. I like oak to be more nuance than flavor.

 

[BRbarfanTimmy]

Great question! As the others have noted it would be a question of taste. I've only made one imperial stout with oak and the chips went into the primary for 3 weeks until bottling. I thought it was a bit too subtle to be honest but it was an intense beer. I've made several Belgian quads and one wee heavy with bourbon and oak. All went for 3 weeks in primary and then I added the bourbon and oak for 2 weeks. These were about right to me with subtle oak notes. Just a guess but for your brew I would think longer might be better.

 

[BRbarfanTimmy]

That seems like a long time for oak. A week sounds more like it. I agree that taste is the best way to judge. A big beer like an Imperial Stout can probably take more oak than most. There's a fine line there. The few times I have over-oaked I was able to recover by aging. Oak tends to mellow a bit over time - but then again, you're better off tasting up front than months down the line.

It's also a matter of taste. I like oak to be more nuance than flavor.

Curious as to the brews you over-oaked. How long did they go? What style beer and what type of oak product?

 

[Snuffy]

Curious as to the brews you over-oaked. How long did they go? What style beer and what type of oak product?

I brew a recipe I got from HBT for Pirate Strong Ale every year or so. It's got pineapple and cinnamon in the boil and then rum soaked oak and vanilla beans in the secondary. Sounds like a dumpster fire but, when it works, it rocks the known universe. First time I brewed it I used the prescribed 4 oz of med toast oak cubes (Hungarian) soaked for a week in Myers dark rum and let em float for 5 days. I couldn't tell oak was anywhere. Rum, sure. Oak, nada. Vanilla was kind of there but not much. Next time, I used 8 oz of French med toast soaked in Capt Morgan spiced rum. Floated for 10 days. Added a 3rd bean as well. Got more vanilla and rum flavor but the oak finish was a hint of something between Old English furniture polish and burnt marshmallows. I bottled it in 750mls with 29mm caps and let it sit. Took about 3 months to stop making faces between sips. After another 3, it was delightful. You just wanted to go, "Arrrgh!" after every sip. Could be I got used to it but I don't think so. It just got better.

I also oaked a bourbon barrel porter with American med toast spirals and it was ok, but I could have done w/o the oak. My buddy loved it, so I gave him most of it. He dug one out almost a year later and I wished I hadn't given it away.

 

[BRbarfanTimmy]

I brew a recipe I got from HBT for Pirate Strong Ale every year or so. It's got pineapple and cinnamon in the boil and then rum soaked oak and vanilla beans in the secondary. Sounds like a dumpster fire but, when it works, it rocks the known universe. First time I brewed it I used the prescribed 4 oz of med toast oak cubes (Hungarian) soaked for a week in Myers dark rum and let em float for 5 days. I couldn't tell oak was anywhere. Rum, sure. Oak, nada. Vanilla was kind of there but not much. Next time, I used 8 oz of French med toast soaked in Capt Morgan spiced rum. Floated for 10 days. Added a 3rd bean as well. Got more vanilla and rum flavor but the oak finish was a hint of something between Old English furniture polish and burnt marshmallows. I bottled it in 750mls with 29mm caps and let it sit. Took about 3 months to stop making faces between sips. After another 3, it was delightful. You just wanted to go, "Arrrgh!" after every sip. Could be I got used to it but I don't think so. It just got better.

I also oaked a bourbon barrel porter with American med toast spirals and it was ok, but I could have done w/o the oak. My buddy loved it, so I gave him most of it. He dug one out almost a year later and I wished I hadn't given it away.

Unrelated to this thread, but how do you store your beer? I'm at high elevation in CO and its a split level so the lower/basement stays in the 60s most of the year, high 60s/low70s in the summer. I keep the beer in the dark. Do you believe beer "ages" better at room temp or refrigerated? I want to age some to see how they evolve but am unsure about the ideal conditions. I'll for sure search the forum but since I have your attention.

 

[Snuffy]

Unrelated to this thread, but how do you store your beer? I'm at high elevation in CO and its a split level so the lower/basement stays in the 60s most of the year, high 60s/low70s in the summer. I keep the beer in the dark. Do you believe beer "ages" better at room temp or refrigerated? I want to age some to see how they evolve but am unsure about the ideal conditions. I'll for sure search the forum but since I have your attention.

I age ales at room temp in totes on shelves in a dark semi-underground utility room. it's the most constant temp of any room I have. About 73 F in mid summer and 68ish in the dead of winter. Ideal would be maybe year-round 54 in a dry cave with wheels of funky cheeses and a hardhat. I haven't brewed a lager in about 3 years but when I do, I lager in my beer fridge at about 34. As long as it's dark and quiet with relatively constant temps you should be good.

 

[acm28]

That seems like a long time for oak. A week sounds more like it. I agree that taste is the best way to judge. A big beer like an Imperial Stout can probably take more oak than most. There's a fine line there. The few times I have over-oaked I was able to recover by aging. Oak tends to mellow a bit over time - but then again, you're better off tasting up front than months down the line.

It's also a matter of taste. I like oak to be more nuance than flavor.

Well, my goal is not to drink it straight away, but to let the oak taste "calm down" for a few months.
I would like to have a strong flavour, where the oak is noticeable but not aggressively so. To achieve this (based on my experience with wine only, not beer) I think it would be better to leave it with the oak for a while and then let it rest in the bottle for a few months.
But I will follow your advice and I will guide myself by the evolution of the beer's flavor and aroma.

 

[acm28]

Great question! As the others have noted it would be a question of taste. I've only made one imperial stout with oak and the chips went into the primary for 3 weeks until bottling. I thought it was a bit too subtle to be honest but it was an intense beer. I've made several Belgian quads and one wee heavy with bourbon and oak. All went for 3 weeks in primary and then I added the bourbon and oak for 2 weeks. These were about right to me with subtle oak notes. Just a guess but for your brew I would think longer might be better.

Well, I also thought that because of the style of beer it would last for a while with wood, but I'll find out and then I'll tell you.
I'm glad you said you've already used it in Quads. Last year I made a quad and this year I was thinking of doing it again but using some wood. I'm thinking of using oak, but medium roast and without rum or whiskey, just the wood. I was thinking of using it after fermentation, letting it rest for a while with the wood and then bottling it (like I'm doing with the Imperial Stout).
Any opinions or suggestions?

 

[BRbarfanTimmy]

Well, I also thought that because of the style of beer it would last for a while with wood, but I'll find out and then I'll tell you.
I'm glad you said you've already used it in Quads. Last year I made a quad and this year I was thinking of doing it again but using some wood. I'm thinking of using oak, but medium roast and without rum or whiskey, just the wood. I was thinking of using it after fermentation, letting it rest for a while with the wood and then bottling it (like I'm doing with the Imperial Stout).
Any opinions or suggestions?

I added the wood after fermentation. No reason other than that is what others have done and what I've seen in some recipes. Both times I simply added to the primary bucket and let it go for another 2-3 weeks. The results were good. On a side note the oak cubes were soaked in the bourbon during the entire time it was fermenting. Again something others have done. I make wine as well and many red kits have you add oak chips at the beginning and cubes or spirals during secondary. Not that its the same thing, but I think the more hearty the beer the more oak it can take. Now my curiosity is peaked and I think for an upcoming batch of beer I might try splitting up the secondary and trying two different time windows for comparison.

 

[acm28]

Hello,
I just came to update the post in case in the future someone wants/needs to know how it went.
So, yesterday I bottled my Imperial Stout, I tasted it a few times after leaving it with the chips and last week I thought it was quite good, so I decided to bottle it. Yesterday, June 8th, I had time so I bottled it and added sugar for priming, it spent more than 2 months (since March 29th) with the chips and as expected it underwent several changes over time.
After a few weeks, when I tasted it, it tasted quite woody, it almost seemed like there was a bit of wood in my mouth, and from then on it got better.

Now I'm going to wait a few weeks, to gain some energy, and then I'll tell you how the final result was.

 

[MaxStout]

Hello,
I just came to update the post in case in the future someone wants/needs to know how it went.
So, yesterday I bottled my Imperial Stout, I tasted it a few times after leaving it with the chips and last week I thought it was quite good, so I decided to bottle it. Yesterday, June 8th, I had time so I bottled it and added sugar for priming, it spent more than 2 months (since March 29th) with the chips and as expected it underwent several changes over time.
After a few weeks, when I tasted it, it tasted quite woody, it almost seemed like there was a bit of wood in my mouth, and from then on it got better.

Now I'm going to wait a few weeks, to gain some energy, and then I'll tell you how the final result was.

For a big beer like that, give it time to age--several more months. At 2 months it's still in the larval stage.

Keep the bottles in a cool, dark place, and forget about them for another 4 months or more. Then try one. You might be pleasantly surprised.

 

[BongoYodeler]

Hello,
I just came to update the post in case in the future someone wants/needs to know how it went.
So, yesterday I bottled my Imperial Stout, I tasted it a few times after leaving it with the chips and last week I thought it was quite good, so I decided to bottle it. Yesterday, June 8th, I had time so I bottled it and added sugar for priming, it spent more than 2 months (since March 29th) with the chips and as expected it underwent several changes over time.
After a few weeks, when I tasted it, it tasted quite woody, it almost seemed like there was a bit of wood in my mouth, and from then on it got better.

Now I'm going to wait a few weeks, to gain some energy, and then I'll tell you how the final result was.

Thanks for documenting this, and I look forward to further updates. I have an imperial stout recipe that I've brewed and enjoyed as is, but I've thought of trying oak chips (or spirals), and bourbon some day.

 

[acm28]

For a big beer like that, give it time to age--several more months. At 2 months it's still in the larval stage.

Keep the bottles in a cool, dark place, and forget about them for another 4 months or more. Then try one. You might be pleasantly surprised.

I left these 2 months with the oak chips just based on the flavor, for my purpose I think it's close to the desired point. I don't want to "hide" the other aromas, I just want to leave some secondary notes coming from the oak, which in this case are very evident.
In a few weeks I'll try one to see how it really turned out after priming, but I'll keep the rest, I always like to let them age for a few months (in fact, that's one of the reasons why I bottle them in 0.75L bottles).