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[sdelli]

Took most the weekend but all 2014 is out of the barrels... Barrels cleaned with Oak Restorer... All 2015 now in barrels! Wine cellar looking a little full until bottle time.

 

[Boatboy24]

Tell me more about "Oak Restorer".

 

[sdelli]

Used it for the first time and so far very happy with the results! Will see if it effects the taste at all now....

http://morewinemaking.com/products/oak-restorer-cw-cool-water-1.html

 

[Boatboy24]

Thanks! I looked at it a few months ago, but there weren't any ratings.

 

[sour_grapes]

Hmm. The page at MoreWine! says:

This fast dissolving formulation contains 100% active components for advanced cleaning action compared with carbonates alone.

But the MSDS says:

A mixture from:

sodium carbonate
sodium bicarbonate
Proprietary surfactant Plant derived & renewable biodegradable blend

These aren't quite in conflict, but the MoreWine page seems a little hyped!

 

[jayhkr]

Very impressive cellar! I'm envious!

 

[Petti]

Agreed. That's an outstanding looking cellar.

 

[JohnT]

That cellar just screams out that you have pride in your wine! Fantastic! I certainly would not mind sitting in that to do a little sippin!

 

[sdelli]

Thanks everyone!

 

[David219]

Hi, sdelli. Any further updates on Oak Restorer? Still happy with results? No adverse effects on the wine, that you can tell? Did you just follow the recommended dosage on the link you referenced on the earlier post?

I just received some, but it came with no directions...only what was published on the website. Any helpful hints?

 

[sdelli]

Hi, sdelli. Any further updates on Oak Restorer? Still happy with results? No adverse effects on the wine, that you can tell? Did you just follow the recommended dosage on the link you referenced on the earlier post?

I just received some, but it came with no directions...only what was published on the website. Any helpful hints?

Yes! I did all my 7 barrels with this product. All seems fine. I looked inside them after it was done and was very impressed on how clean the inside looked. So far no bad tastes to deal with. I downloaded the instructions from morewinemaking.com. The instructions tell you there is 3 levels of cleaning you can pick from. It then dictates how much product to use. I did the middle one... I think it came out to about 1 1/4 ounces of product per gallon of barrel size. Give the barrel a good rinse first. I took the product and sanitized a bucket to dissolve it in. Filled the barrel up to the top. Make it overflow. Cap it and let it sit for about 4 to 6 hours. Drained it then gave it a real good rinse. Then just ran some kmeta sanitize solution in it. Let it drip and then fill again! It got all the crystals and residue out of the barrels. Like the directions say... Do not let the barrel go dry because then it is harder to clean. Much easier if it goes from wet wine to being cleaned.

 

[David219]

Thanks! I plan on using it later this spring, when the current wine "resident" of my barrel is due to rotate out.

 

[4score]

Yes! I did all my 7 barrels with this product. All seems fine. I looked inside them after it was done and was very impressed on how clean the inside looked. So far no bad tastes to deal with. I downloaded the instructions from morewinemaking.com. The instructions tell you there is 3 levels of cleaning you can pick from. It then dictates how much product to use. I did the middle one... I think it came out to about 1 1/4 ounces of product per gallon of barrel size. Give the barrel a good rinse first. I took the product and sanitized a bucket to dissolve it in. Filled the barrel up to the top. Make it overflow. Cap it and let it sit for about 4 to 6 hours. Drained it then gave it a real good rinse. Then just ran some kmeta sanitize solution in it. Let it drip and then fill again! It got all the crystals and residue out of the barrels. Like the directions say... Do not let the barrel go dry because then it is harder to clean. Much easier if it goes from wet wine to being cleaned.

To be clear, you dissolved the recommended (middle) amount in some amount of water in a bucket then poured this in the barrel then added enough water to top off?

 

[sdelli]

That is correct

 

[downunder]

Sorry I am a bit late coming to this thread but we are just getting over vintage. The Oak Restore you are using is made by ARID?. If it is the company head quarters is located about a 30 min drive from me here in South Australia. I buy it by the carton and each of the 3x5kg bags has detailed instructions on it. If someone is repacking it to smaller quantities I can understand the problem of no instructions.
From memory it is recommended to use a 3% solution and it gives varies way of using it. I used to use the fill the barrel and soak method but found when I wanted to do a few Hogshead barrels (300 litre) it became a little expensive and hard to get the required amount of Oak Restore to dissolve in a bucket.
I cannot justify spending $1000's on a commercial barrel cleaner so I tried a cheap replacement. I dissolved the required amount of Oak Restorer to make the correct solution in a 20 litre bucket put a small submersible pond pump in the bucket with a fountain head fitting. Suspended the barrel over the fountain head until it almost reached the top of the inside of the barrel and turned on the power.
You will be surprised at what comes out of the barrel. It has the advantage over pressure spraying (how I used to clean the barrels) in that it reaches all corners of the barrel that spray cleaning never touches.
You can then use the same set up with clean water to rinse the barrel but I normally use another product from the same company to sanitize called Peroxia. (great for barrels that are a bit smelly)

I have used this product for 3 or 4 years and have never had and problems or taints with it.
Hope this helps

 

[thruhike00]

Does the oak restorer take a barrel from neutral back to giving oak flavor? Or just a cleaner to get the stuff out of the barrel? Thanks!

 

[sdelli]

Just a cleaner.