RJ Spagnols Best time to add oak cubes to aging wine?

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I'm curious if anyone has used oak in juice concentrate wines?? I have been dabbling with making wine but with just juice concentrates but I don't really like the 'juiciness' of the wine and wondered if adding oak to the juice might tone down the juice flavor. Also, does anyone have a way to describe what light to plus-plus chips means as far as flavoring?? I see Amazon has some but looks more like shreds than chips...
 
Thanks, Bryan. I'll try 1.5 oz and see where it goes. I cannot honestly answer whether I like a heavy or light oak flavor. I'm not exactly certain that I know the difference. What I do know, however, is that I don't love the wine as it currently stands and I feel like it needs something else. I'm going to age it for at least 3 to 6 months more before I make any conclusions though. Might end up backsweetening the batch if I don't like it. I find that my wife is less picky when it comes to a sweet wine.

I have a WE Trinity Red that is about 3 weeks post ferment and it is already light years better than the 3 month cab.
 
I'm curious if anyone has used oak in juice concentrate wines?? I have been dabbling with making wine but with just juice concentrates but I don't really like the 'juiciness' of the wine and wondered if adding oak to the juice might tone down the juice flavor. Also, does anyone have a way to describe what light to plus-plus chips means as far as flavoring?? I see Amazon has some but looks more like shreds than chips...
Juice/concentrate wines is a kit without all the extras. You can successfully add oak to any wine.

I got these descriptions from winemakersacademy.com:

The toast of the oak can range from barely being visible, to being completely charred. The most common toast levels are light, medium, medium plus, and heavy.​
Lightly toasted oak retains much of the “woody” type flavor. Often a light toast will impart more tannins and green wood flavors.​
A heavy toast is the most drastic toast you can put on oak. It results in a smoky flavor. One of my favorite Zinfandels has a stronger smoky taste that makes it seem like you’re drinking your wine in front of a campfire. While I can’t confirm they use a heavy toast I would presume it is.​
Medium plus is somewhere between medium and heavy toasts. This is the darkest toast most wineries use, at least from what I’ve seen.​

Shreds are good for fermentation oak, but are likely to impart too much oakiness during aging.

Thanks, Bryan. I'll try 1.5 oz and see where it goes. I cannot honestly answer whether I like a heavy or light oak flavor. I'm not exactly certain that I know the difference.
Makes sense. Also keep in mind that aging can make a tremendous difference in a wine. At 3 months a Cab is often no where near ready. 9 months from now you may not recognize it.

Taste the wines along the way and record your notes. This will teach you more than you may believe at this time.
 
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