Stupid Question.......Maybe

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sltm1
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Stupid Question.......Maybe

Post by sltm1 »

1st of all, if this is in the wrong thread please feel free to move it. Now, I've been running a pot still and thumper for 5 yrs give or take and I've done some experimenting and fell in love with UJ and my journey stopped there. I've never given any thought to another still arrangement but, naturally have read a boat load on neutrals here and how to make them but no one has ever presented the following idea. If I was to run a straight sugar shine with a bit of tomato paste through my rig, would that be a "neutral" flavor? My wife likes to make small batches of amaretto and kahlua as X-mas gifts and she uses store bought vodka, thought maybe I could save her a trip to the store and make her presents totally home made.
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ben stiller
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Re: Stupid Question.......Maybe

Post by ben stiller »

Take a look at Birdwatchers recipe. You just described it, but to be neutral you will need to either run it many times to get close or
run it through a reflux still.
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ShineonCrazyDiamond
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Re: Stupid Question.......Maybe

Post by ShineonCrazyDiamond »

Okay. So I might be going around getting all the neutral heads all worked up today, but by god I'm just stating my personal experiences :lol: . So here we go.

I made a neutral this summer. Not a perfect neutral, but a ccvm vodka pouring out at azeo from hearts to tails. It was a piggy back to a bourbon bill, crow, actually. Straight hearts. It was as neutral as I will ever need, straight ethanol sweetness. I put it in a bottle and brought it to butch's this summer.

Panicky also made a vodka this summer. He only had a pot still. He may come in and correct my memory, but I believe his method was this. He also worked off of a uj piggy back ( no backset, no new corn, just sugar gen 2). Anyways, he stripped the wash, spirit run on the low wines taking wide cuts, then let it sit for a couple weeks with washing soda in it. Then he did a long spirit run, keeping just the hearts. Then, he ran the final product through activated carbon in a copper pipe, and I think through a coffee filter to catch the carbon dust. He put it in a bottle and brought it to butch's this summer.

I tell you what, I really couldn't tell much of a difference. The flavor was the same. His actually, had more of a mouth feel, and I think might have even been favored in the crowd. Take it as you like.

I'm willing to bet twice through the thumper set up, with the soda and carbon, if desired, would give you what you need. The difference was one afternoon for me, and a lot of work for him. But the product was awesome. Especially if you are using it for flavoring, you will get something she will enjoy.

Use a neutral base like all bran. I personally did not like tomatoe paste underlying through the pot still ( a different experience all together, not this one)
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NZChris
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Re: Stupid Question.......Maybe

Post by NZChris »

Do a large ferment and put away a stock that will last a long time. Three charges worth at least. Strip them, taking a healthy foreshot and shutting down before it gets really nasty. Do the spirit run being careful not to be greedy with the heart cut. You might not choose to drink TPW as vodka, but as a base spirit for your wife's prezzies, it should be fine.
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Kareltje
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Re: Stupid Question.......Maybe

Post by Kareltje »

This year I made several birdwatchers ferments, stripped them and tried to run them into neutrals. It did not work very well.
I collected heads into one large batch, treated it with a lot of washing soda and ran it again. It resulted in half of the alcohol in about 80 %ABV very bad smelling barbecue starter and half of it in about 60 % neutral smelling spirit.
Another part that was tasting very soapy, I treated with carbon. Put activated animal carbon and some pharmaceutical carbon pills in ti and distilled it. Only yesterday, so I am not sure, but it seemed to work out great: not smelling bad, anyway.

Sometimes there are off tastes that can not be remedied.

Edit:
Oh, one of the remedies I tried was running a boiler with bad tasting wash through a thumper of clean water. I did not work for me.
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Re: Stupid Question.......Maybe

Post by thecroweater »

On that light rums will make great bases for those or similar products should you not be keen on your results. This Tia Maria recipe is an excellent twist on kahlua and is really not as tricky as it sounds as you can substitute some hard to get ingredients.
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Re: Stupid Question.......Maybe

Post by PipeWelder316 »

sltm1 wrote:1st of all, if this is in the wrong thread please feel free to move it. Now, I've been running a pot still and thumper for 5 yrs give or take and I've done some experimenting and fell in love with UJ and my journey stopped there. I've never given any thought to another still arrangement but, naturally have read a boat load on neutrals here and how to make them but no one has ever presented the following idea. If I was to run a straight sugar shine with a bit of tomato paste through my rig, would that be a "neutral" flavor? My wife likes to make small batches of amaretto and kahlua as X-mas gifts and she uses store bought vodka, thought maybe I could save her a trip to the store and make her presents totally home made.
Sounds like you have had a good past five years to me, maybe time for you to build another still, only this time a reflux column. There are more then a few different ones to choose from. I recommend you building a VM reflux column. You don't have to give up your pot, just add to your capabilities.
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Post by HDNB »

i did a clean up run on some UJ hearts on a pot still and then made Tater's Kahlua recipe, with high end coffee (Jamaican blue mountain) half the sugar recommended and 2 drops of glycerin in a gallon. it was friggin awesome!

get on it though it needed to sit for a week or two.
I finally quit drinking for good.

now i drink for evil.
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Re: Stupid Question.......Maybe

Post by jb-texshine »

I have a suggestion, liquid enzymes and rice meal. Very neutral flavor ran twice through pot n thump.
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NZChris
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Re: Stupid Question.......Maybe

Post by NZChris »

Johnsmih1010 wrote:Brita wTer filters are normally made from coir .
They are also made from plastic and there are very few synthetic products that stand up to high proof alcohol. Before using any plastics, you should check with the manufacturer of the plastic, whether, or not, it is suitable. Brita water filters are designed for filtering water and I very much doubt that the synthetics used are suitable for high proof alcohol. It would be safer to build your own filter using SS and/or glass and using PTFE for seals.
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