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Wine Wizard

Topic: Barrels-and-Oaking

Could you provide me some ideas on an easy and cost effective way to properly frame a stand for my barrels?

Congrats on embarking on the ever-fascinating and (just as often) maddening adventure of using oak in home winemaking! You’ve discovered what many of your predecessors already have — that it is sometimes

I was thinking of adding oak chips in cheesecloth to a gallon carboy of red Zinfandel for one month; any experience with this?

I firmly believe that — much like Sauternes and foie gras, Port and blue cheese — oak chips and cheese cloth were always destined for each other. Many winemakers, from purveyors of

I just bought my first barrel and opted for a paraffin-lined model. Will this work or do I need charred barrels for wine aging?

Charred, toasted, fired … it’s all pretty much the same. In the wine industry, as well as the distilled beverage industry, heat-treated wooden barrels and kegs are used as storage vessels in

What does toasting add to oak flavor? Can I use a blowtorch on an oak plank to toast it, cut it in thin strips and add to my wine?

Dear Wine Wizard, I make wine in five-gallon batches from juice that I buy in Canada. I also buy skins, stems, and small bags of toasted oak chips, then let it all