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Xoakers - French Oak, Medium Plus

Xoakers - French Oak, Medium Plus

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Description

Xoakers are 1" Solid Oak spheres made from high quality French oak and seasoned for a minimum of 24 months.  They will contribute a complex oak character while softening and rounding the wine as well.  What sets these apart though, are their shape and ease of use.  The uniform size allows for precise dosing, and easy removal once complete.  Whether you are using carboys or neutral barrels, additions are as simple as counting out however many Xoakers you need, and tossing them in.  Every vessel will be oaked to the same extent when using these, and no need to weigh them out!

Removing them is as simple as turning over your carboy or barrel, and watching them roll out!  These can be used in both red and white wines, and are perfect for carboys, barrels, small tanks, and kegs.  Ideal oak for the home winemaker!  These Convection Toasted Medium Plus French Oak Xoakers are packed in Mylar bags, and will contribute various flavors depending on the wine.

The 8 pack will treat 4-8 gallons & 1 lb will treat 35-70 gallons.

  • Dosage: 1-2 Xoakers / Gallon (3.78 L) wine (depends on desired Oak Impact)
  • Contact Time: 4 Month Minimum Recommended
  • Useful Life in Wine: 12 Months
  • Size: 1" Diameter Spheres, 70 French Oak Xoakers / lb
  • Liquid Displacement: .10 gal (.41 L)
  • Toast Level: Med +
     

 

 

 

Community Q&A

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Browse 3 questions Browse 3 questions and 17 answers
Why did you choose this?
MoreFlavor Store
Used them before and they are great for oak neutral barrels!
Mark T on Dec 23, 2022
For aging Tequila in glass barrels...
Gene B on Jan 31, 2022
Used them before and they are great for oak neutral barrels!
Mark T on Dec 23, 2022
Great to use in my oak-neutral barrels
Mark T on Feb 12, 2022
For aging Tequila in glass barrels...
Gene B on Jan 31, 2022
For aging Tequila in glass barrels...
Gene B on Jan 31, 2022
good reviews. Convenience.
Sammy K on Jan 22, 2022
like the ease of use and the "more barrel like" results
CHRISTOPHER G on Dec 10, 2021
I want to add light oak to my wine this yr
FRITZIE D on Nov 18, 2021
Reviews
Edith G on Sep 27, 2021
Neutral barrels
Siegfried W on Jun 18, 2021
I use these in neutral barrles or in my speidel fermentation tanks to precicely add oak character to red winese and my chardonnay.
Eric H on Mar 19, 2021
It looks like good for long term aging
Yuta A on Dec 23, 2020
The produce good flavors in the finished wine...
Alexander on Dec 15, 2020
Easy oak add.
Tom T on Sep 12, 2020
used them and had great success
RANDALL DEL V on Aug 20, 2020
trying these instead of cubes
Valued C on Aug 3, 2020
Great flavor
Phillip R on May 8, 2020
I’m I need oak for my cab that’s in a Neutral barrel
Valued C on Apr 28, 2020
Trying something new
Thomas O on Mar 10, 2020
To oak my wines
Valued C on Jan 22, 2020
For hobby level winemaking... aging/oaking the wine.
WILLIAM H W on Jan 8, 2020
used last year and got good results.
Robert T on Dec 17, 2019
They are easier to take out of my barrel.
James Burchett J on Dec 11, 2019
worked great last year
Daniel K on Oct 21, 2019
Good reviews, and affordable
Gregory S on Oct 7, 2019
Convenient to add and extract
Stephen F on Aug 28, 2019
Making cab sov
Edward H on Aug 28, 2019
Recommended by users on winemakingtalk forum
Timothy J G on Jul 15, 2019
Adding some final oak addition prior to bottling.
Bob P on May 14, 2019
used them last year
KWPR on Apr 12, 2019
Prior experience with product made for good results
Chris G on Apr 2, 2019
8 balls are magic
Chris Chambless on Feb 15, 2019
To use in a neutral red wine barrel
Michelle T on Feb 11, 2019
For mead
Russell W on Dec 31, 2018
Trying to add oak during primary fermentation through Second Racking
Johnny R on Dec 18, 2018
Small batch of wine
Daniel C on Dec 6, 2018
because we are making WINE!!!
Kristina B on Nov 29, 2018
I bought this for the quality and complexity of tannins released over a longer time period.
Kenneth H on Nov 28, 2018
I use them every year
Tim V on Nov 17, 2018
to compare to cubes and sticks
Kenneth D on Oct 24, 2018
I have used these in my barrels and have won gold medals in my Pinot and Bordeaux Blends. Nice subtle flavours.
Douglas P on Jun 14, 2018
Nice barrel like oak flavor - still missing micro oxidation
Craig E on Mar 16, 2018
Use to flavor grappa
william d on Feb 20, 2018
Great to use in my oak-neutral barrels
Mark T on Feb 12, 2022
For aging Tequila in glass barrels...
Gene B on Jan 31, 2022
Can you remove these out of a 1 gallon carboy pretty easily? I used a spiral one before and it got stuck inside my 1 gallon carboy.
FromLV L on Feb 18, 2019
BEST ANSWER: Ann, I don't think they were specifically designed for use in one gallon jugs(glass carboys), but I found that some of the Xoakers are slightly smaller than others and they go in relatively easy. As with any piece of wood they swell up slightly when exposed to the water in the wine and so sometimes they don't readily come out when you rack off the wine. Because I use only the smallest balls I don't have the problem as much as I used to when I didn't pick out the smaller ones. Now I just rinse the jug thoroughly turn it upside down in a clean yogurt container and let it drain dry and let it air dry and the ball shrinks just a little and falls out. Hope this helps. steve
Do I need to stir the wine to have the oak flavor permeate the whole 59 gallons?
Martin S on Apr 18, 2019
BEST ANSWER: If you are using Xoakers , stirring is not necessary. However, I leave them on the wine until they saturate and sink to the bottom. This takes about 6 to 9 months so patience is a must. Also, don’t throw the spheres out. You can reuse them. Vacuum pack them and keep them in the deep freeze until you are ready to use them again. They behave more like neutral oak and they sink quickly in the second use. Leave the wine on the second use at least 6 months but somewhere between 9 months and a year is ideal. You can also use half used and half new to get a little bit of the toasting you might want. Hope this helps.
Do I need to sanitize the Xoakers? We've been so careful to sanitize everything so far in the wine making process and I'm wondering if we need to sanitize the Xoakers before adding them to the carboys.
KWPR on Feb 7, 2018
BEST ANSWER: Oak is naturally anti-microbial and therefore there is no need to sanitize them even if you are not using SO2. I've had great luck adding oak straight from the package in to beers, wines, meads, and ciders most of which are more fragile and susceptible to spoilage than standard red wines.
Reviews

4.7 / 5.0
9 Reviews
5 Stars
4 Stars
3 Stars
2 Stars
1 Star
8
0
0
1
0
Rated 2 out of 5
Not very effective for adding oak.
Not really a good way to add oak. I did not notice any difference.
August 9, 2022
Purchased
over 4 years ago
Rated 5 out of 5
Aging Tools
Read about these Xoakers through a fellow Tequila aging friend, they work extremely well for smoothing out any beverage you want to enhance !!
February 13, 2022
Purchased
over 2 years ago
Rated 5 out of 5
Too big to fit into whiskey bottle necks, but fine fir decanter and mason jar aging.
January 2, 2022
Purchased
over 2 years ago
Rated 5 out of 5
Excellent oak spheres
Very easy to use and easy to work around when racking. Doesn't leave behind sediment to clog anything up. I use these for my smaller carboys (1 or 1/2 gallon) when I have a bit more wine than will fit in the larger carboys.

Depending on varietal, I add these along with starting malolactic fermentation, then when malo is done I soak them with an SO2 solution while I transfer wine from malo to "aging" carboy, then rinse with purified water and place back in the new carboy for another several months (total about 3 to 4 months).
November 2, 2021
Purchased
over 6 years ago
Rated 5 out of 5
oak balls
I had good success with American oak balls . This year I'm trying French oak balls . I'll know the results in a year. They are vary are vary easy to use.
January 7, 2020
Purchased
over 4 years ago
Rated 5 out of 5
French oak medium plus Xoakers
Those Xoakers work very well for what I wanted them for. Awesome product. Stop the chip slip. Use Xoakers instead for better control of the taste your looking for.
December 24, 2019
Purchased
over 5 years ago
Rated 5 out of 5
They work well and add a subtle flavor to the finished wine
February 16, 2018
Purchased
over 6 years ago
Rated 5 out of 5
Oakers
Very good oak flavor. Easy to use and get out of barrels.
February 7, 2018
Purchased
over 6 years ago
Rated 5 out of 5
Barbera loves Xoakers
I did a bench trial on my 2015 Barbera wine with both American and French chips and also with the French Oak-Medium Plus toasting letting things soak up the flavors for a month. The Xoakers won over the competition! I have always had some problems trying to add complexity to my Barbera and the Xoakers solved that problem. I continue to use them every year with this wine, one that can easily end up tasting woody. I recommend their use in finishing off your wines.
January 25, 2018
Purchased
over 6 years ago