Oak 101: A fresh look at the wonder of it!

For officers only! Relevent history and facts about the growing, harvesting, fermentation, distillation and aging of Cane Spirits. Master this section and you master rum. Otherwise just masterbate...
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Capn Jimbo
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Oak 101: A fresh look at the wonder of it!

Post by Capn Jimbo »

Oak and the wonderful thing it does to spirits.



It removes some bad rum congeners, adds some oak component flavors and combines with the rum to creat some brand new esters. Things we perceive as vanilla, caramel, sweetness, almond, lite smoke, cinnamon, darker prune and raisin tones, toasty flavors, color, long and warming (chest) finish, astringency, fragrant top notes, coconut, celery/reedy, sherry/bourbon tastes, dried and deeper fruit tones, and of course wood and oak - all are the result of oak barrel aging.

The original use of used barrels also has a great impact. Ian Wisniewski of Whisky World:
In terms of colour co-ordination, sherry casks lend an orangey, amber hue, which is distinct from the lighter, golden, straw tint of bourbon barrels. The flavour profile also varies significantly with sherry casks contributing rich fruit (such as raisins, prunes, dates, figs, apricots), metallic tones, fruitcake, fortified wine, almond and walnut notes, spices such as nutmeg, ginger and cloves, not to mention creme caramel, chocolate, and a (positive) sulphurous note, delivered within a rich sweetness.

Bourbon barrels lend a lighter, drier sweetness, with a palate thriving on a medley of flavours: vanilla, honey, various fruits, almonds, hazelnuts, coconut, creme brulee, sherbet, spices such as cinnamon, as well as mint and eucalyptus notes.
Then you get into a near unending series of options regarding the prepartion and use of the oak barrels. Amazingly complex, both science and art. The use of oak chips, though not common, has been done in an attempt to provide more oak surface area and to thus shorten the process. But nothing substitutes for time, money and patience. Truly fascinating stuff. But one fact remains:

Young or old, without oak you simply don't have what we call rum as 97% of the rum drinking world knows it.



How 'bout over-oaking?

This is one of the two principal reasons most rum aging barrels are heavily charred - to reduce the oak taste. But all the other characteristics added by oak are affected as well to varying degrees. To make things more complicated these individual changes and characteristics occur at different rates. Apparently barrels have individual characteristics as well.

The master blender is a real artist who knows his barrels intimately. These are his (art) palate from which he/she hopes to create a great rum. From what I understand, the aging rum is checked frequently and notes recorded before it finally is selected and may become part of a blend. It's hard not to admire the dedication and skill of these artists.

Most of the modern distilleries use gas chromatographs to isolate almost all the esters and flavors scientifically, but in the end it's all up to the magic and art of the master blender. People like Joy Spence, Jerry Edwards and Richard Seale.

We once met Seale at a tasting in Miami and noted he had a black leather belt case for his personal tasting glass. Later, when I researched glasses and tasting techniques I contacted tasters I respected. Naturally, I was very curious about Seale's glass - he did report that his were custom made for him, were similar to sherry copitas, but avoided sharing his source.

I really couldn't blame him. His art is his livelihood. He was also one of the very first to start experimenting with sherry and other non-bourbon woods.
sailor22
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Post by sailor22 »

Some more random thoughts on Oak and barrels;

Not all Oak is equal. White Oak gives the sweet flavors you describe while other Oak's like Red Oak and Live Oak is bitter and nasty.

Oak from different forests have slightly different flavor notes giving rise to the barrel source terrior that the Brandy makers pay so much attention to.

Width of the barrel stays makes a difference in flavors. I have no idea why but Jim Russell of Wild Turkey told me they allow no more than 20% narrow stay composition in their barrels or they reject them.

The heat from charing or toasting is the catalyst that changes some of the wood into the delicious flavor compounds that are drawn into the juice with aging. Toasting creates different flavors than charring.

Bourbon manufacturers like to list the char level of their barrels (level 2, 3, 4 etc.) but barrel manufacturers will tell you that is isn't that exact a descriptor. The result is that no two barrels have been charred in exactly the same. That alone can mean different flavors and characteristics from each different barrel.

Buffalo Trace has been doing a lot of experimenting with barrels and it seems that different parts of the tree create different flavors and characteristics.

By law Bourbon must aged in barrels made with charred "new American White Oak barrels." That means a lot of used barrels are available after the Bourbon is dumped. It's a good thing too because a lot of delicate spirits like Malt and Rum benefit from the more subtle flavors imparted by a second use barrel.

If you ever taste directly from the barrels in a rick house you will be struck by how different barrels aging next to each other can taste.




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Capn's Log: Great post, thanks. Readers should also check out:
http://rumproject.com/rumforum//viewtopic.php?t=450
sleepy
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More on oak

Post by sleepy »

On the designation "white oak" - it refers to a group of some 28 (or so) species of Quercus and a few of other genera in the continental US, including some live oaks, plus others in Europe. As far as I can tell, all "white oaks" produce closed fiber, straight grained woods that are very well suited to a coopers task of building water-tight casks. I suspect that a reason for the range of barrel flavors from different harvest regions is simply the different species mix in each lumbering region.

On "red oak" - it is an "open fiber" wood. Take a split off a fresh cut log, put one end in water and blow; it'll bubble like a straw! Not the best thing for coopering or outdoor furniture, but can be a real pleasure to work with!
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