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I seem to recall that a few years ago I went down the rabbit hole of certain species of mushrooms were able to produce amylase. Alpha I believe. There was little research on it but it seemed plausible.

I could always tell where my Golden Retriever peed...
there would be a 3inch radius of brown surrounded by a 12in radius of dark dark green.

Consider an 18G pot will carry some considerable weight with it when full... not only for the hot plate/heat source but also trying to maneuver it

The process of a new sugar wash is good practice but I'm keen on getting a handle of the cheapest vodka & diluting it to 30% to break in new equipment. Skip the wine.

It kinda depends on how many plates we're talking and also what's the end product you're looking for

"Barrel aging" not only adds the sugars & tannins, etc from oak but also allows a small amount of air exchange [micro oxidation]. Is it not possible to "oak" and "age" in separate steps or in conjunction? Like a mason jar that gets opened twice a month & put bac...

Good call SMF - I was thinking of the log-style, that's all I see in my area. Don't need much volume to keep it covered. Haven't seen a squat-style in years.

You could get a diffuser plate [available off Amazon or wherever]. The induction heater heats the diffuser and the diffuser heats the pot, assuming there is enough contact area to the pot. It's usually stainless steel & it works well with induction heat units. I have one that I used to use but t...

There's not a lot of data here to make a suggestion... - how long since you pitched the yeast? - what yeast are you using? - did you rehydrate the yeast before pitching to make sure the yeast is viable? - what temperature are you fermenting at? yes Campden tablets are potassium[or sodium] metabisulf...

All the way til the end this had the makings of a Pat McManus story.

I would suggest maybe picking up a handle of cheap-ass vodka or rum, dilute it to about 20-30% ABV in the boiler & run it, mult jars & all. Then run it again. And again. That way you can get a little more experience with your SOP, the distillation process and blending before moving on to you...

As Mooseman alluded to, basic apple juice is going to be a pretty 1-dimensional cider. It's generally re-hydrated concentrate, and usually pretty watery tasting out of the bottle. I've had better luck with [American] apple cider. It's unfiltered, pressed juice, tho it can be difficult to find the fu...

Welcome from the Boston northern burbs.

There's a metric ton of great info buried in these pages but the best place to start is the "New distiller reading Lounge" and "Novice Distillers" forums to see the answers to questions you may have that have already been answered.

Also, the ADI forums will likely have much more experience & info than you will get here.

https://adiforums.com

It's one thing to spend money on the hobby, but you ought to at least be responsible enough to work out a business plan, aside from the legal tangles. Along with the physical space, you need to figure raw materials & material handling, utilities, storage vessels, equipment maintenance & clea...

I can get a 1.75l handle of the local Chateau Cheapeau for under $20US and 10lb bag of sugar is pushing close to $10 these days. Worth it for me. But if I was paying double that for half the product like you, I'd be looking in my fridge & cupboard for things about to expire lol

That's exactly what I do when I'm breaking in new equipment. I'm not keen on going thru a fermentation only to throw it away, so a handle or 2 of cheapo stuff does the job. Be sure to proof it down to 20-30%.

You didn't say what volume you put into the barrel in either case, as the more headspace the faster the evaporation. But assuming you put in close to the 5L top it is still pretty normal for a small barrel. As SBB said the loss or gain in ABV will depend on the environment it lives in. The staves in...

My best to all... I truly hope everyone knows how much you all are appreciated here. I check in with this site at least twice per day. It's my check-in with friends I've never met. People I feel like I know, yet would not recognize them if they sat in my restaurant. My escape, yet my home. Everybody...

One thing about distillation is that the higher the ABV, especially if you're looking for a flavorful spirit, the less of the original flavors come thru. Do yourself a favor & taste the must as it is fermenting, it will give you an idea of what you have going on. If you are a mead maker then you...

No worries man every site needs people like this. Unfortunately the encyclopedia of information on here is extremely useful and vast and would take a long time to figure out what I can ask in 5 minutes. Without an open and active form regardless of if the information is posted, means this whole web...

Hello & welcome, from a fellow Masshole. The fermentation background will definitely get you started in the right direction. Spend a lot of time reading up on your type of still as CM can be difficult to learn on as your 1st one. If it's modular, you may want to take out the dephleg & plates...

Also keep an eye on the fermenting temps for the yeast being used. Some beer yeast like cooler temps - as low as 50F, most wine yeasts around 70F, while bread yeast especially like it warm - like 80F. A little research will go a long way.

With that dephleg design even a few drips/sec water flow adjustment will make a huge difference. You're talking 50F inflow water temp and waiting for those small tubes to heat up that spool full of cold water with vapor to allow it to pass the higher vols. Otherwise you're just pushing any vapor thr...

IMO EC-1118 will make for a boring, though adequate whiskey compared to US-05. In fact I prefer bakers yeast to the 1118 for grains. It will also most definitely outduel the US-05 in a split pitch. I have a recycling starter of US-05 for my whiskeys and ciders and keep it in the fridge until mash da...

I've been doing this more & more recently since I haven't found the perfect solution... just resting offcuts of oak or pine on 1/2g or 1g mason jars & jugs with oak sticks in them. I figure it allows it to breathe just fine & haven't noticed an appreciable evap loss over the 6 months or ...

Maybe try soaking them & see if they sprout or dissolve?

Not to be gross but is it possible it's some kind of mouse scat or something along those lines?

I'm sure it's similar to mead in that the type of honey makes a big difference in the final product too. Mine was from a food distributor and I'm guessing was probably a generic clover honey. Quality honey around me is stupid expensive nowadays even thru the beekeeper clubs.

I tried a honey shine a few years ago after scoring a bucket from work. Did pot strip & spirit but from reading up on the "delicate flavor" of the honey I ran the spirit run a lil harder than I normally would to make it a little grungier. The new make was interesting but not particular...

How much power are you putting into the boiler that you're knocking it down with 2.5l? And for how long? Take-off rate?