Anyone use oak spirals?

I've used spirals twice. I used one spiral in a 3 gal batch. Both times I boiled the spiral for 10-15 min to get rid of excess tannins, then soaked in bourbon for 3-4 wks. The first batch was a 8% porter and I let it sit with the spiral in the secondary for 2 wks. It was too much oak presence and needed several months to mellow out. The second batch was a 9% English barleywine and it was on the spiral for 3 wks. I didn't taste it at all for at least 3 months bt the oak in this one was more balanced. I did use more bourbon with the second batch.

 

Cubes, spirals, and barrels tend to take much longer than chips. New will always impart an oak flavor faster than reused oak. It probably depends on the style, ABV, and how intense you want your flavor to be. I'd check after about 3 weeks to a month to see how the flavor is coming along.

 

I've used spirals a few times now. I'm a big fan of using less for longer. 1/3 to 1/2 of a spiral that has had a lengthy spirit soak will lend just the amount of oak character that I like when added for 6 to 8 weeks in five gallons of a strong, roasty stout/porter. Of course, base beer, toast level of the spiral, the spirit used for soaking, and your personal palette all play a role. I tend to prefer a subdued but thorough oak character

 

You'll notice you got a variety of times and techniques in the responses here, and all of them vary according to the beer in question and the individuals perception of how much oak character is too much. I think the best plan is to taste a sample every week and use your own taste to determine when the beer is ready.

I used to boil any oak I used to remove excess tannins as one other poster suggested, but I've stopped doing it in recent years and found little if any difference except in how long the beer has to sit on the oak. I used spirals (no treatment, just straight out of the pack) recently in an Imperial stout and two weeks was about right for that beer, but as I said your experience may vary.