I decided to thief out a little taste of each merlot before giving them a stir and testing for malic acid levels this time.  They are both quite acidic and kinda harsh, but seem to be taking on some oakiness from the cubes I tossed in.  Both lots were at max malic acid levels, >500 mg/L by the strip test.  I retested lot A only for lactic acid, it had not changed;  I didn’t retest lot B so I wouldn’t needlessly use up the strip tests, since they’re not cheap.  It’s only week 2, so I guess more waiting as usual.