Hello Everybody!
This weekend I am going to attempt to clone one of my favorite beers, a Kentucky Bourbon Barrel Ale. This is my first attempt at making a wood-aged beer. I picked up some Medium+ American Oak Infusion Spirals and I plan on soaking them in Four Roses Bourbon for 3 weeks before adding them to the secondary. The beer itself is estimated to be 9% alcohol if that matters.
My question for all of you with oak spiral experience is how much and how long? I've been told anywhere from 1/3 of a spiral to 2 spirals and anywhere from 30 days to 6 months. I am moving out of town for school for a few months after I add the oak to the secondary, so I won't have many opportunities to regularly take samples and taste the beer. I would like to keep it in there for the full 4 months and just bottle it in December, but I don't want too much oak extraction. Is there a general rule of thumb to the amount oak and length of time for the best results? I can make my way back home to remove the spiral I just need to know when I should plan on it
As always, thank you all for any advice or feedback.
This weekend I am going to attempt to clone one of my favorite beers, a Kentucky Bourbon Barrel Ale. This is my first attempt at making a wood-aged beer. I picked up some Medium+ American Oak Infusion Spirals and I plan on soaking them in Four Roses Bourbon for 3 weeks before adding them to the secondary. The beer itself is estimated to be 9% alcohol if that matters.
My question for all of you with oak spiral experience is how much and how long? I've been told anywhere from 1/3 of a spiral to 2 spirals and anywhere from 30 days to 6 months. I am moving out of town for school for a few months after I add the oak to the secondary, so I won't have many opportunities to regularly take samples and taste the beer. I would like to keep it in there for the full 4 months and just bottle it in December, but I don't want too much oak extraction. Is there a general rule of thumb to the amount oak and length of time for the best results? I can make my way back home to remove the spiral I just need to know when I should plan on it
As always, thank you all for any advice or feedback.
