"Gerald Todd" > wrote in message
news:1106781744.d07ba123636d0718b0ddcb7ab8160282@t eranews...
> I'm a newby at using kits (I've made some plum wine I wasn't particularly
> proud of). Well, let me rephrase that- I'm a newby. My question- how
> would you pretreat oak chips (if at all), what volume would you add, and
> at what point would you add them? I'm using Sun-Cal Cabernet and my goal
> is a dry red with oaky flavor. My guess would be to bake the chips at
> 300F for 20 minutes, use about a pint and add the to the secondary
> fermentation.

You didn't specify the volume of wine, but I assume a kit of ~6 gallons.

Also assuming these are chips from a homebrew shop and not something you
made in the back yard, I'd recommend that you dump them right into the
primary fermenter, and transfer them to the secondary if they'll fit through
the neck. This is where StaVin oak "beans" are nice; they fit easily. A
pint sounds like a reasonable amount to add if you like your wine to have
noticeable oak.

Tom S