Toasting Wood

[PieOPah]

Whilst in the process of making my first batch of whiskey from grain, I have been thinking about the wood used for Aging.

I have read that fruit trees make good wood to age on rather than just using Oak. With this in mind, I have a Cherry Tree in my front garden that I am due to prune.

Would I be able to use some of the thicker branches?

The plan would be to cut them into small staves about the size of kindling. I would then boil them (how long would this need to be done for?) and then put them in the oven for a few hours (different temperatures so I have several different batches to choose from).

Would the wood from branches be good enough or does it have to come from the trunk?

[Fil]

I dont know.. but am interested in the answer.

but afaik any wood used needs to be well seasoned, and american white oak seems to be the premium choice, there was an ebay seller selling ex staves from US bourbon barrels for i think £3.50 each +pnp so that would be well seasoned and possibly bourbon infused source for white oak for chopping and toasting..

the fruit wood may impart flavours you dont want?? so perhaps try it on a single bottle before you commit a whole brew/spirit run to it. then again it could be something special too?

[chill]

I like cherry for aging Rum. I use furniture grade cherry wood as, well, it is what I have. The fruit tree in your yard should also work, but I think you should remove the bark and sapwood. I don't understand why you would boil them. Fil is correct that barrel wood is seasoned (dried over time), though I don't know if that is a requirement. Barrels are not made with green wood as it would shrink and the barrels would leak. The woodworking reason for aging wood is to get it to a state of dimensional stability. It is possible that using green wood would extract unpleasant tastes.

Chuck

[PieOPah]

I can't remember where I read it (read so much) but one suggestion was to boil the wood first - perhaps to get rid of some nasties.

I've also read about drying out the wood first in a pot on a stove so I may give that a try. If I don't try, I guess I'll never know :-)

[chill]

I think that Aidan pours boiling water over the JD chunks to clean off whatever may have happened to them since they were a barrel. I don't recall reading of anyone doing that for general wood.

Chuck

[Almanac]

I use virgin American White Oak for making Bourbon. I buy 18ft X 6ins X 1.25 in planks from a speciality timber supplier. I season it for at least 12 months outdoors but loosely covered. When I cut the planks into biscuits I boil them in batches to get rid of tannins and then dry them for toasting. Those biscuits are used in nuked grain spirit at 65%ABV with beautiful results

AM

[Anavrin]

Theres a guy in Halifax selling American White Oak off cuts, already seasoned / kiln dried, not sure if it's good value as I've never bought any myself but here's the link.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/TIMBER-HARDWO ... 5d5153fe9f

[Anavrin]

I though the above guy was selling individual planks but it appears it's an auction for a 26kg job lot!!!

It's at £14.99 plus £11 delivery, the auctions not going to finish for 9 hours but could prove to be a real bargain

[Fil]

anyone going to bid on this ?? i might, BUT not in competition with anyone here, that would be silly..

[Anavrin]

I'd be interested in a couple of planks but I don't need the job lot, I'll let you grab it if you want Fil, you could send out some chunks in the post to a few of us and probably cover your costs

[Fil]

I'd be interested in a couple of planks but I don't need the job lot, I'll let you grab it if you want Fil, you could send out some chunks in the post to a few of us and probably cover your costs

that would be no problem, just to conform, these planks would benefit from a further seasoning (out in the weather under cover so not soaked by rain) for 12? 24? months?
and my own needs are minimal so i would imagine there would be plenty to go around, and im not in this to profit so id be happy to divvy up at a pro rata of actual cost +actual pnp..

cheers

ps whats your considered opinion of the value, no point bidding over the top and the only other white oak ive seen is old ex barrel staves at £3.50 each..

[Anavrin]

Not sure exactly what they're worth, but it's 26kg of American white oak, there's been no further bids so far, just checked and there's 24 mins to go

I'm not sure they would need weathering, I'd be tempted to just char them and use them

[Anavrin]

It sold for £16!

Was that you Fil? Bargain if it was

[chill]

That wood would be ready to toast. It has already been dried for use in furniture. I have gotten a lot of wood like that from local furniture shops. Most people have no interest as it is only suitable for small wood working projects. Oh, and aging spirits.

[Almanac]

There's a world of difference between used barrel staves and virgin, seasoned and toasted AWO wood.

If memory serves me right I believe the raw timber I last bought weighed in at just over 2kg per foot, it's very dense, and the 16ft length I bought cost me 34 Euros. It ain't cheap, as timber goes, but the amount used per litre is minimal.

That was a nice find for someone as long as the wood hasn't been chemically treated.

AM