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Soluble Oak™ is a patent-pending, all-natural white oak (French and American) that gives precise control of oak flavor, aroma and mouthfeel in wine, spirits and beer.
Start low, test on 100 ml, taste, adjust and scale. The starting ranges below run from 0.1% for a rounder mouthfeel to 1.5% for a pronounced oak profile in strong beer styles, and they come from the dosing pages on solubleoak.com. Every beverage is different, so treat each range as a starting point, not a target.
This guide puts the dosing information for each beverage in one place and ends with a one-page cheat sheet you can print and keep at the tank, the still or the brew deck.
The dose rate is the percentage of Soluble Oak™ added to the finished beverage. 0.1% is 1 ml per liter.
For more complexity, test American Soluble Oak™, French Soluble Oak™ and a blend of both before you settle on a final formulation.
Dose conversions (calculated from the dose rate)
| Dose rate | 100 ml test sample | Per liter | Per 5 US gallons (18.9 L) |
| 0.1% | 0.1 ml | 1 ml | 18.9 ml |
| 0.2% | 0.2 ml | 2 ml | 37.9 ml |
| 0.3% | 0.3 ml | 3 ml | 56.8 ml |
| 0.4% | 0.4 ml | 4 ml | 75.7 ml |
| 0.6% | 0.6 ml | 6 ml | 113.6 ml |
| 0.7% | 0.7 ml | 7 ml | 132.5 ml |
| 0.8% | 0.8 ml | 8 ml | 151.4 ml |
| 1.0% | 1.0 ml | 10 ml | 189.3 ml |
| 1.2% | 1.2 ml | 12 ml | 227.1 ml |
| 1.5% | 1.5 ml | 15 ml | 283.9 ml |
Source: How to Dose Soluble Oak™ for the method and per-liter figures; the 100 ml and 5-gallon columns are arithmetic from those percentages.
Which oak? American Soluble Oak™ suits producers who want a smoother, rounder mouthfeel, natural vanillin, perceived sweetness, creaminess and toasted or caramelized notes. French Soluble Oak™ suits those who want classic oak character, structure, tannin and a refined, balanced finish. They are one product in two oaks, and they can be blended. See Choose the Right Oak.
In wine, Soluble Oak™ adjusts mouthfeel independently of obvious oak flavor, and it fine-tunes structure, roundness and vanilla character. French Soluble Oak™ leads for wine. It is particularly well suited to red wines, where it adds depth, balance, structure, tannin and classic oak character.
Soluble Oak™ goes in after fermentation and final filtration, so it needs no change to existing equipment. Adjust the dose for the varietal, the existing tannin structure, the alcohol level and the oak intensity you want.
| What you want | French Soluble Oak™ starting range |
| Enhanced mouthfeel with little noticeable oak flavor | 0.2–0.3% |
| More noticeable French oak character | Approximately 0.4% |
Source: Suggested Starting Doses.
Taste at the low dose before you go further. At a tiny dose the tannic-acid mouthfeel feels smooth, and a wine that felt thin or angular can become rounder and fuller before it tastes oaky. If you want more, step up in small increments and rest the sample 24 to 48 hours before you decide.
Dose ranges above approximately 0.4%, and ranges for American Soluble Oak™ in wine, are needed from client before this section covers them.
In spirits, Soluble Oak™ finishes an already-aged whiskey, bourbon or other spirit with a small correction, adds sophisticated vanilla and velvety smoothness, and helps standardize barrel-to-barrel variation. It goes in after distillation, and many distilleries use it after an initial period of barrel aging.
Spirits generally need a higher dose than wine or beer because of their alcohol concentration and stronger existing flavor profiles. Adjust the dose for the type of spirit, its existing intensity and the oak profile you want.
| What you want | American Soluble Oak™ | French Soluble Oak™ |
| Pronounced oak character | Approximately 1.0% | Approximately 1.0% |
American Soluble Oak™ is the lead choice for whiskey and bourbon, with natural vanillin, perceived sweetness, mouthfeel, toast, smoke and roasted character. French Soluble Oak™ adds tannin, structure, complexity and a smoother, more refined finish where that profile is wanted.
Source: Suggested Starting Doses.
Start with the low-dose mouthfeel correction, then build. The starting range for a mouthfeel-only correction in spirits is needed from client.
Low alcohol limits what barrels extract from beer, and Soluble Oak™ adds vanilla, structure and mouthfeel without an aggressively barrel-aged taste. It goes in post-fermentation. The right dose depends on the style and its flavor intensity: delicate beers reveal oak at relatively low doses, while imperial stouts, porters and strong ales need substantially more.
| What you want | American Soluble Oak™ | French Soluble Oak™ |
| Rounder mouthfeel with minimal oak flavor | 0.2–0.3% | 0.1–0.3% |
| Noticeable oak in lagers, pale ales and mild amber ales | 0.7–0.8% | 0.6–0.7% |
| Pronounced oak in imperial stouts, porters and strong ales | 1.0–1.5% | 0.8–1.2% |
One exception to plan for: in very high-IBU IPAs, the rounding effect of Soluble Oak™ can compete with bitterness. Source: Suggested Starting Doses and Soluble Oak™ & Craft Beer.
Soluble Oak™ adds oak finishing to non-alcoholic spirits, cocktails, ready-to-drink beverages, coffee-based beverages, teas and botanical drinks. These products vary widely, so testing begins at a low dose. Delicately flavored drinks may show oak at very low doses, and stronger or more complex drinks may need more before the oak comes through. Test both American and French Soluble Oak™ to see which suits your product.
| What you want | American Soluble Oak™ | French Soluble Oak™ |
| Enhanced mouthfeel with little noticeable oak flavor | 0.2–0.3% | 0.1–0.3% |
| More pronounced oak character | 0.6–0.8% or higher | 0.6–0.8% or higher |
Source: Suggested Starting Doses and Soluble Oak™ & Non-Alcoholic Beverages.
The cheat sheet puts the 8-step method, every starting range above and the dose conversions on one printable page. Keep it at the tank, the still or the brew deck.
Download the Soluble Oak™ Dosing Cheat Sheet (PDF)
Go deeper on solubleoak.com
Want help choosing an oak or a starting dose for your product? Contact us.
