Distilled rye with strong, sweet smell.

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Kabundokan
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Distilled rye with strong, sweet smell.

Post by Kabundokan »

I have made my first Rye whiskey SG was 1.09 finallized at "0" which gave me 12% abv.
First of all, making the mash; 6 lbs of Rye, 1.5 lbs of corn and 1 lbs of home malted barley and topped it with 4 lbs of sugar to get 1.09 SG. Before topping with sugar I checked the gravity and it's 1.05. I used active dry yeast about 48g.
When I distilled my wash I started at 75% alc. (150 proof), I started stripping the rest at about 40% although the smell was sweet and it's like Rum. I distilled it again together with the stripping runs. The smell was less but still it's not like the commercial rye whiskey.
Could it be the corn and the sugar I added? Or something else. That's my theory. I would like to know if anyone has an idea what it could've made my "rye blend" had strong smell.
BUT, A friend came over to try it and they said it's one good whiskey. Better than the commercial rye whiskey. I tried it, swirl a good amount of alcohol in my mouth, and it's smoother than the one we use to buy.
What do you guys think. I'm novice and it's my first rye whiskey that I crafted.
I added this recipe on my notes anyway just incase this is the starting point of a good moonshine. :D :lol:
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still_stirrin
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Re: Distilled rye with strong, sweet smell.

Post by still_stirrin »

Kabundokan wrote:...my first Rye whiskey SG...6 lbs of Rye, 1.5 lbs of corn and 1 lbs of home malted barley and topped it with 4 lbs of sugar to get 1.09 SG....

When I distilled my wash I started at 75% alc. (150 proof)...although the smell was sweet and it's like Rum....The smell was less but still it's not like the commercial rye whiskey.

Could it be the corn and the sugar I added?
The corn will affect the aroma and flavor in the distillate, yes. But commercial rye whiskeys don't use corn or cane sugar for fermentables. If you want to get closer to your paradigms, then eliminate the corn and increase the barley malt.

Malted rye has a sharp flavor and will be spicey in the distillate. It usually requires a long time in the cask to mellow those sharp flavors and aromas. If you're trying to make a white whiskey with a high percentage of rye...good luck. It will be a big challenge.

The corn produces a sweet flavor in your product which when combined with the oak aging cask results in a whiskey that has a sweetness and vanilla taste. Corn (bourbons) based recipes are quite palatable white too, because of the sweetness up front.

Rye is a different grain altogether and it definitely needs more time to "come to life".

And as you've noted, multiple passes through the still buffers the aroma and flavors of the mash...sometimes that is desired when the initial character is overwhelming.

So, for your recipe...how many gallons is your ferment for the 11-1/2 lb. input? I'd guess 5 gallons given the 1.090 OG.
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Kabundokan
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Re: Distilled rye with strong, sweet smell.

Post by Kabundokan »

still_stirrin

yes, it's 5 gallons . I forgot to add the amount.
thanks for the input. I will keep this in mind.
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