Recent content by Mike - Next Level Oak

You sure could! Like winemaker81 said, it's best to age it a minimum of 1.5 years. I know some stave mills that kiln dry their staves to speed the drying up. Also, I'd imagine it would be really similar to American oak but there is a cooperage that advertises having Canadian oak. Good luck and...

I would recommend at least talking to a customs broker. The one I used save me a lot when I imported the French and Hungarian oak. I could tell you that horror story but wouldn't hurt just asking one if there are any specific requirements you would need.

Hey if you're interested I'll send you one of our bungs that might help out. Without the oak insert it might compress enough to get a nicer fit in the carboy. I do find drying the neck and the bung does help with keeping it in place but it's still a pain haha Send me a message with your...

Oh wow that’s interesting but doesn’t surprise me. I agree with Jim, that would go good cheese and crackers but hey why not try making a mead with it

I'm sure fruitwoods will add something to the wines and mead, especially with mead. The maple wood turned out really well but the cherry wood I toasted was something else, wasn't bad but it didn't really give me confidence to use. A friend of mine is a head brewer and I think he played around...

@winemaker81 is correct on the red oak, DO NOT use red oak. I've tried toasting cherry and maple and they were interesting! But to the question, I only buy staves that were seasoned for at least 1.5 years. Anything less is still considered "green" and not advised to use just yet. The stave...

Thank you for the kind words! I did gasp but then laughed when I saw you use oak for firewood. Until this order of new staves I've always worked with American oak, but I can see why people are a fan because the shopped smelled amazing when I was making his order. I have some oak trees on my...

I must say it was awesome working with this oak. The smell when I toasted and manufactured it was amazing. Definitely different from the American oak I've been working with. Hope the order gets to you safe!

Saw your order and we'll start making it, I'll get it sent as soon as I can. The idea from the beginning was to have the holes for gases to escape during fermentation (if someone wanted to use it while it was fermenting). Some like to bulk age their wine without an airlock so we give the option...

Just wanted to update that we did receive a small order of French and Hungarian oak staves. They will be available on our Customs page. I really wanted to give you all the same opportunity as wineries to customize your oak. You can decide what species and toast you want the two oak pieces to be...

Thank you! Alright it's settled, I'll be getting another bottle to taste now and this for later. Thank you for the suggestion and I don't feel guilty :)

Aw well at least you got to think of him again, what was his name? Funny thing is mine does the same when my niece and nephew go crazy. Hektor was my first German Shepherd and I had a flashback when I got him as a pup. My neighbor across from me was a judge and had 3 shepherds. Every time our...

My 10 year old German Shepherd, Hektor. Nursing his hips in his old age but he's still a puppy at heart...saw him still attempt to chase a squirrel up a tree!

Yes! I'm working with the same manufacturer on the design. The plan is to hopefully make it fit the Better Bottle, Fermonster, and barrels. It'll be a bit bigger than the one you have but will still fit the same oak pieces. Once we finalize the dimensions he is going to send the mold off to be...

Hey there! I've gotten to know a few members on here and they have been pretty awesome people. If anyone is interested in trying our product out please use THANKS at checkout as a thank you! Let me know if it doesn't work...squarespace can be weird at times. www.nextleveloak.com Glad to see...