Distilling old homebrew

[Morning Wood Bourbon]

Hello, first let me apologize if this topic has been discussed. I searched this subtopic forum and couldn't really find what I'm looking for. Like some of you I started as a homebrewer. I have about 4 gallons of beer that just didn't turn out as I hoped. I want to recycle the alcohol with my copper beauty. It is in bottles and is carbonated. I'm pretty sure u can't just run it as is. Any suggestions on how to degas, how long it should sit before running etc. Any other tips would be great. Again if this has been covered please direct me to that feed. Cheers.

[WalkingWolf]

The hops in your beer will get in your still and you will never be able to get the taste out (so it's been said). It is not recommended to distill anything with hops.

then there are other opinions as well.
other opinions

[frozenthunderbolt]

I've run it quick and dirrrrty in my still - straight from the bottle fizzing. If you leave enough head space it will work.
A standard 'new still' set of cleaning runs will get rid of any odd tastes if you also give your packing a boil in water and bicarb.
I got a nice whisky? out of it.

[Kegg_jam]

I did a batch of old brew for my first run. Didn't have a clue at the time and learned a lot about head space.

Low yield because of low starting abv.

If you go that route I would crack em open and let them sit over night or longer to get some of the carbonation out.

It really wasn't worth the effort but it was a good learning experience.

[Morning Wood Bourbon]

Thanks guys. I'm going to try it. I've got a alembic pot still so no worry about the packing. I think I'll empty all the bottles into a bucket and let the beer flatten a little as well.

[still_stirrin]

Do it. Just leave plenty of headspace in your boiler so the foam doesn't puke.

I've run old contest beers (left overs from a homebrew contest) and the resulting liquor was worlds better than the old oxidized, skunky beer. I even mixed and matched beer styles as well. The liquor aged very nicely on toasted and charred oak.

Distilling is a great way to salvage what you otherwise would dump out. At the very least, you could use it as a practice run of your still.
ss

[LBHD]

I have done it - made good whiskey.

Hops were not an issue for me, but it was not a double IPA or anything.

I de-gassed by adding a double dose of fermcap to a carboy, and pouring the beer in a bit at a time. After that, I racked to the boiler and ran it with no probs.

[Jimbo]

I did it with an IPA, wasnt crazy about the result, like drinking condensed hop oils. Its aging gracefully in the back of the cabinet, maybe Ill try it again in 37 years.

Had no problem cleaning the boiler and leibig after.

edit: still_stirrun, I did the same with a couple cases of old fruit wines I wasnt drinking, the resulting eau de vies are great, the wines were.... well old and bla, not much of a wine drinker.

[humbledore]

I will agree that hoppy beers are not good candidates. But lightly hopped beers work fairly well. Sometimes in homebrewing you have a missfire. It's a good feeling not to have to pour all that hard work down the sink if you can avoid it.

[Jimbo]

yeah, that was the logic I used to distill the IPA. I've since decided life is too short to compromise, and have dumped 3 batches, 30 gallons of beer in the past year because they didn't turn out like I was shooting for. I used to suffer through them and then decided lifes too damn short for that nonsense.

[WooTeck]

ive go a bunch of old beer and cider that im thinking im going to clean up in to a nutral when i get the time. never really had any problems with hop oils when ive done it in the past and i was rather impressed with the drop that came out

[Morning Wood Bourbon]

Have you aged it in the past or just enjoy as she comes out.

[WooTeck]

i have just enjoyed it white