Chilean Juice Buckets and Oak?

Hi all,

I have decided to try some Chilean Juice buckets and I'm looking for some Oak advice. To date I have made several dozen kits of various types. I've generally been happy with them, but I want to try the juice bucket route but have questions. Most of the kits I have made include some sort of oak such as powder and/or chips in the primary, cubes in the clarifying stage, etc.

The question I have is this something I should be adding to the juice buckets and what sorts of oak and when. In my mind, I'm thinking this is something I should be doing. As much as I would love to barrel age my wine, the expense and space constraints make that impossible, so I'm stuck with alternative oaking methods.

I plan on purchasing Bello Chilean buckets from L'uva Bella. Probably a Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Zinfandel. Possibly a Cabernet Sav as well.

Any suggestions on the best way to add oak to these?

Tim, you may want to attend this seminar on Saturday. http://www.piwine.com/chilean-juice-workshop.html

We are offering discounts on pails that day and Luva bellas will also be there. We are going to talk about all the different options you have in making the wine.

Hi Dan, I would absolutely love to attend your seminar, but unfortunately I have a conflict on that date that prevents me from attending.

There are a few good reasons to add some oak chips or dust during fermentation. Among those are the addition of tannin and the reduction of vegetal notes. You're not going to get much (if any) oak flavor from this though. For that, use cubes or staves during bulk aging.

I bought the following Bella Chilean juices in 2014:
Red Zin, Cab Sav, Malbec, Carmanere,
In 2015 the Syrah, Sangiovese, and Malbec.

The Cab Sav turned out the best in 2014 the Malbec right behind it. In 2015 the Sangiovese was a real surprise, tops the Malbec by far, so far. (I mean an Italian grape from Chile, come on) I found the R212 yeast addition gave the best results.

As for Oak I toast my own for bulk aging. Get some white oak from a local mill, cut to 1/2 x 1/2 in strips and presto.

I wrote the following a couple of years ago. It may give you some clarity..

http://www.winemakingtalk.com/take-on-oak.html

I ordered a couple of Chilean juice buckets too (Carmenere and Barbera). I plan to add medium roast French oak cubes during MLF. I've read that it helps maintain TA and pH levels that might otherwise be effected during MLF.

Local wine supply store just got me interested in this too. Claimed it was way better than kit wine. I'm new, only made about 4 kits thus far, would have to lean on them to get me all the chems, is it really that much better? Good price, $85 6 gallons of juice.

Unless you know the difference in taste between un-oaked and oaked, here's where you rely on the experience of others!!! Agree with Boatboy,,,, some dust/powder in primary then chips, cubes, or staves for aging. For a down-the-middle, Medium toast French. Researching can be an inexpensive way to discover the effects of different types and methods. Your selection should provide some great stuff!!

Anyone in Florida buy Chilean juice buckets from Pardo Grapes in Tampa. They have them for sale for $61 bucket. We have bought Calif grapes & buckets from them but not Chilean. Roy