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Baking stores usually sell these for under R50 for 500g. Champagne yeast is a bit more iirc. Turbo is also used for fuel production, quick and dirty. There's different methods, you can feed yeast and sugar during fermentation to keep it going. I use around 30g to 40g per wash, teaspoon of distillavite or dap, some citric, pinch of Epsom. Does the same as tpw
Would love to get my hands on a basic still, or even convert the pressure cooker I have in the cupboard into a still. Will have to be post-lockdown though. Want to try my hand at quick spirits, like rum and gin, and put a bottle on oak as well to give it some time.
The pressure cooker will need almost zero work. All you need is some copper pipe and a bucket and a glue gun and maybe some silicon tube.
A few things I found useful:
1. Stripping runs can be done fairly fast, you're just pulling everything out of your wash.
2. Carbon filtering a diluted neutral is essential
3. Low and slow spirit runs with defined cuts on foreshots, heads, hearts and tails, produces your best end product.
First step is quick and easy, but undrinkable.
Second step is great as a lot of undesirables attaches to the carbon,leaving a usable product. Methanol remains, which is bad.
Third step us where art meets science, voltage controlled (pid) helps to slow down things. Cutting methanol for sure, heads are high proof but also contains a lot of undesired ethanol, can be re used subsequently.
At still head temperature, taste and smell you find hearts this is what you want, a parrot helps too, but not essential.
Tails are lower in proof and higher in taste, good for blends or reuse on next run.
I have researched and learnt a lot from doing over the last while, however I have much more to learn and a lot more info to dump here if anyone is keen
The pressure cooker will need almost zero work. All you need is some copper pipe and a bucket and a glue gun and maybe some silicon tube.
This is exactly what I'm planning, but I want to do it a little bit "nicer", so to speak. I want to add a cap at the top I can insert a thermometer in so I can keep an eye on the temperature at the top of the column, as I understand that makes the shot-calling (foreshots, hearts, tails) a bit easier.
I don't plan on making the solution reversible, in other words, I don't mind doing a permanent fixture on the pressure cooker lid. Ideally I'd like a nice thick copper pipe, about 50cm long and around 40mm in diameter for this, but looking at what those pipes cost... Oof. I want to fit the 40mm one to the lid, solder a splitter on the top with a screw-off cap so I can use it with or without a thermometer. From there, ideally a reducer down to something like 15mm or even 22mm is fine, that's regular pipe and that I can then run through the condensing bucket or whatever to get my spirit. But like I said, it'll have to be post-lockdown, unfortunately.
EDIT: Oh yes, and I'm not sure I would want to do plain sugarwashes with just bread yeast. I'm the kind that'll ferment clean, using a good yeast (not Turbo Yeast), to make sure I get as little methanol as possible. The first thing I want to try out is a dark spiced rum, then I want to make a few bottles of gin I can pass around and thirdly I want to try my hand at a whisky. Perhaps a nice, sweet bourbon or something. Doesn't need years, but I'll also make one I can age for a long time.
A few things I found useful:
1. Stripping runs can be done fairly fast, you're just pulling everything out of your wash.
2. Carbon filtering a diluted neutral is essential
3. Low and slow spirit runs with defined cuts on foreshots, heads, hearts and tails, produces your best end product.
First step is quick and easy, but undrinkable.
Second step is great as a lot of undesirables attaches to the carbon,leaving a usable product. Methanol remains, which is bad.
Third step us where art meets science, voltage controlled (pid) helps to slow down things. Cutting methanol for sure, heads are high proof but also contains a lot of undesired ethanol, can be re used subsequently.
At still head temperature, taste and smell you find hearts this is what you want, a parrot helps too, but not essential.
Tails are lower in proof and higher in taste, good for blends or reuse on next run.
I have researched and learnt a lot from doing over the last while, however I have much more to learn and a lot more info to dump here if anyone is keen
Sent from my SM-N970F using Tapatalk
I have hundreds of distills under my belt, so if I may, can I comment?
- A single run potstill can produce something very drinkable, if you follow the mantra that if it is drinkable before you distill, it will be great after the distill: old rotten beer needs to be stripped and then run through a column
- always run the still slow as possible to get a product, and no faster
- carbon filtering is only needed for an absolutely clean, neutral base alcohol that you intend to use with a flavourant or addition: in fact, whiskey has been done for hundreds of years using on a potstill and a triple distill process, no carbon filtering, just cask aging.
- you can achieve decent clean alcohol if you understand your potstill and know when you are getting what out of it: I use an electronic thermometer taped to the bend in my Lyne arm and I watch this VERY carefully. I tune the gas or electrical rheostat to maintain certain set temps depending on the stage of the session, and I know exactly when I start with the methanol and when the heads start running. Yes, I do separate heads, hearts and tails and I also test for ABV regularly.
My point is, you don't need a lot of cash and rigmarole, and if you don't like something, chuck it all together and run it through again and again and it will be fine. YOU NEVER CHUCK AWAY ALCOHOL.
Last comment: the use of copper is MANDATORY as copper neutralises various things like sulfur compounds. Even commercial column stills should be copper-lined or copper-coated.
I have hundreds of distills under my belt, so if I may, can I comment?.
- A single run potstill can produce something very drinkable, if you follow the mantra that if it is drinkable before you distill, it will be great after the distill: old rotten beer needs to be stripped and then run through a column
- always run the still slow as possible to get a product, and no faster
- carbon filtering is only needed for an absolutely clean, neutral base alcohol that you intend to use with a flavourant or addition: in fact, whiskey has been done for hundreds of years using on a potstill and a triple distill process, no carbon filtering, just cask aging.
- you can achieve decent clean alcohol if you understand your potstill and know when you are getting what out of it: I use an electronic thermometer taped to the bend in my Lyne arm and I watch this VERY carefully. I tune the gas or electrical rheostat to maintain certain set temps depending on the stage of the session, and I know exactly when I start with the methanol and when the heads start running. Yes, I do separate heads, hearts and tails and I also test for ABV regularly.
My point is, you don't need a lot of cash and rigmarole, and if you don't like something, chuck it all together and run it through again and again and it will be fine. YOU NEVER CHUCK AWAY ALCOHOL.
Do you want to be good or be praised - Epicurus
Do what you do to the best of your ability, and blessings will follow you
I have hundreds of distills under my belt, so if I may, can I comment?
- A single run potstill can produce something very drinkable, if you follow the mantra that if it is drinkable before you distill, it will be great after the distill: old rotten beer needs to be stripped and then run through a column
- always run the still slow as possible to get a product, and no faster
- carbon filtering is only needed for an absolutely clean, neutral base alcohol that you intend to use with a flavourant or addition: in fact, whiskey has been done for hundreds of years using on a potstill and a triple distill process, no carbon filtering, just cask aging.
- you can achieve decent clean alcohol if you understand your potstill and know when you are getting what out of it: I use an electronic thermometer taped to the bend in my Lyne arm and I watch this VERY carefully. I tune the gas or electrical rheostat to maintain certain set temps depending on the stage of the session, and I know exactly when I start with the methanol and when the heads start running. Yes, I do separate heads, hearts and tails and I also test for ABV regularly.
My point is, you don't need a lot of cash and rigmarole, and if you don't like something, chuck it all together and run it through again and again and it will be fine. YOU NEVER CHUCK AWAY ALCOHOL.
Great post, thanks. Answers a lot of my questions.
OK quick Q - if I can't get a proper copper column, can I just use a steel or stainless column and stuff some copper "filter" in there, like a copper scouring pad?
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