Almost every one of the kits in the Wine Making Log has used the oak provided by the manufacturer and it was added according to manufacturer’s instructions. For some kits the oak is added during the primary fermentation and others the oak is added during secondary fermentation. There are some kits where one type of oak is added during primary and another type is added during aging.<?
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When there are deviations from the kit manufacturer’s provided oak, it is where the kit has been made before and some different oak characteristics are desired. Currently there are three batches of the Meglioli Barolo; one using the supplied oak, one where heavy toast Hungarian oak cubes were substituted for the supplied oak and one where heavy toast French oak cubes were substituted for the supplied oak. Sometimes based on prior experience with a kit additional oak is desired. The La Bodega Port is aging with two medium plus toast French oak spirals that are in addition to the supplied oak.
The non-pasteurized fresh juices from <?
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As Wade,Waldo and Applemanhave indicated, oak is a matter of personal taste. The kit manufacturer adds the type of oak in the quantity they believe will produce a wine that is typical for the style of wine. My recommendation would be to make the kits with the oak provided, added according to instructions and without extra oak. By following the instructions you can determine if the oak is too much, too little or just right. If it is anything other than just right, you can make adjustments to future kits from this manufacturer.