Home Distiller

Those seeds are grand wormwood they are use to bitter/ flavor the absinthe. You will also need roman/ small/ petite wormwood for the coloring phase. Roman wormwood is very hard to find, also hard to grow, and expensive to purchase. You can't grow roman wormwood from a seed, it is propagated from ro...

I have since filled it up with brass mesh from my LHBS. Brass...??? Are you sure it's really brass...??? Most brass contains a small percentage of lead which will leach out into your spirits in the presence of high temperature high proof alcohol vapor... Make sure you are using either stainless ste...

I went to the Methven street races today and I really enjoyed watching it all. I have made a few videos which I have posted on youtube. Excuse the poor film quality as I recorded it off my phone. Enjoy! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QhAW2Uxwy_g" onclick="window.open(this.href);return fals...

I have been thinking about making my own absinthe and I have found these wormwood seeds here http://www.trademe.co.nz/Home-living/Outdoor-garden-conservatory/Seeds/Herbs/auction-280377689.htm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow Is this the right kind of ...

As dnder said, foreshots are the 50 ml you collected. The 500 ml is the heads. You will not lose alcohol, unless you feint jar (it's what people call their heads+tail container to be redistilled) is not closed well. You can run that next time and you will get more alcohol out of it, or you can just...

I have just collected 500mL of foreshots (after I threw out the first 50mL). I'm now collecting the good stuff in a bucket. After I have collected all the good stuff should I put the tails in the same jar as I put the foreshots in? If I collect 250mL of tails + the 500mL of foreshots to recycle for ...

So to keep things simple, after I have thrown away the first 50mL, should I put the next 500mL in a jar and recycle it by putting in the next batch, and put the rest in my bucket and turn the still off once the temperature goes above 82ºC?

How do all of you know when to turn the still off and stop the run? Do you go by the rule of 'each kilo of sugar gives 1L of 40%ABV spirit' or do you stop when the temperature goes over a certain point (after it has remained almost constant for the entire duration of the run), or when you smell the ...

After talking to the guy at my LHBS, and upon further inspection, I have determined that the condensor is in fact made of copper. I have since filled it up with brass mesh from my LHBS. I am yet to test it out, I just hope that I didn't pack it too tight! I have bought a bigger hydrometer trial jar ...

It's hard to tell because it's painted black.

Does anyone here know if the condensor on my still is made from copper or stainless steel?

I have removed the rings from the condensor and have replaced them with stainless pot scrubbers. At first the condensor was blocked, it got up to temperature but no alcohol was coming out. So I had to give the scrubbers a few tweaks at the start to free it up a bit so the alcohol would come out. Now...

I've just done a dencent sized harvest of hops and I would like to make some hop tea. Not to add to my beer, but I'm intending to have it as a relaxing drink. Does anyone here know how many hop cones to use to make a reasonably strong tea, and how to make it?

How hard was it to make the extension?

kiwistiller wrote:"rabbit_" is the guy's usersname, smokeu. he hasn't been around in a while, who knows, he might have given up and will sell you his unit if you send him an email / pm

Thanks for your help.

Does anyone here know of anyone in Christchurch who can build me a reflux column to bolt onto my still?

kiwistiller wrote:

SMOKEU wrote: Where in NZ are you again? you can borrow my machine if you are in aucks.

I appreciate your offer, I'm in Christchurch though.

Do you have any ideas as to what copper mesh is commonly used for, or what kind of shops sell it?

kiwistiller wrote:ditch the saddles and pack it with mesh; do stripping runs first, then use sodium carbonate on the low wines; set up separate control for both product and reflux condensers.

Stainless steel pot scrubbers? How much stronger will the spirit be?

I have a Still Spirits Super Reflux still, the same model as this http://www.wineworks.co.uk/images/product/reflux_still1211538478_742.png" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow It produces 80%ABV spirit from a 12%ABV wash. The condensor is packed with cera...

If I wanted to use ordinary filter coffee, how many dessert spoons of coffee would I need to use?

What essence do you peoples recommend to make a good tequila?

It's great being able to legally distill as much spirit as I want. The people in NZ who distill usually do it as a hobby more than anything else. They're usually older, sensible people who are past the 'get as pissed as you can' stage of their lives. I've never heard of anyone in NZ getting poisoned...

http://www.yourshout.co.nz/Filter.jpg" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

If a liquer essence bottle says add 200mL of sugar then I will add 150mL sugar and a few tablespoons of glucose syrup, with a bit of boiling water to dissolve it.

I'll keep it under 92°C then.

ScottishBoy wrote:
The search function is pretty good too.

I did use the search function and it didn't show me what I wanted to know.

What temperature range should I keep my Still Spirits super reflux still at to avoid getting bad alcohols?

I sanitize a cup and then dip the cup into the brew to get a sample.

I bought a new airlock from my LHBS. Same price as the traditional airlocks. This new one is almost silent. I can't even hear it from a metre away when it's fermenting furiously.