Oak Color and Clearing

[taleman]

So I'm aging my mead with oak for the first time. I'm using a light toast french oak infusion spiral. To begin with my mead was pretty clear (I added sparkolloid and racked it). The oak has turned it dark and hazy. Is this normal? I expected some change in color but not so much and not for it to get haze. Will this clear eventually?

 

[fossilcat]

I know this doesn't really help your current situation, but for future reference...

I haven't used an oak spiral, but I have used cubes and just recently oak chips. The cubes haven't added any discernible color. As a matter of fact, the mesquite honey traditional is practically colorless (I've used French, American, and Hungarian med toast). Can't comment on the chips - they were added to an already very dark mead. I boiled the cubes to sanitize and got a little tea like color. I steamed the chips.

I would encourage anyone to oak their meads (not all the time, that would be boring. But, you know, strategically). That oaked mesquite traditional might be my favorite. It went to .998 yet tastes honey sweet - the oak compliment is delicious.

You should look at the Denard Brewing site for some tips on oaking. He's published a whole study on oaking on his website: https://denardbrewing.com/