Home Distiller

I've seen kegs going for about $50 if I want to make a boiler, but not sure what to watch out for in the way of getting one with the right fitting for a tri clamp. A two inch flange clamps straight to most beer kegs , a few wraps of PTF thread tape around the whole thing and you don't need more. Al...

Most of what I have read , and all of what I have been told in person by those who own curing chambers says that to much air flow only increases the chance of "case hardening"......opening the fridge door once a day for 30 seconds or so is more than adequate air exchange/ flow. A year or t...

Finally got around to rigging up a proper curing chamber. Had the bits and pieces for the build sitting in a corner for over a year now. Now that this is done salami of different types will be getting made, Country Ham is on the " to do" list as well. Got addicted to that stuff when visiti...

kimbodious wrote: ↑Mon Mar 18, 2024 10:19 pm using the beer LME kits

Are these actually beer kits in a tin, or just tins of LME.?
Both are available, both look very similar, both will give very different results IMO.
I've only ever used the tins of pure LME.

That's a really good link Larry , just spent a fair while looking at it and re-looking, some interesting facts there , not just about three chamber stills. ABV's that rum is drawn off at varies a lot from what I see there , some interesting footage in places for the"sanitizer freaks".....l...

Your story made me laugh ....yes late at night here to ,and had a couple of drinks, nice that you married and got to drink the wine that you made for another wedding. FWIW I was once told by an old and wise man , that regarding university's , the words intelligent and educated should never be confus...

Yummy has pretty well covered what I was going to say,....he's not joking, tape over the thermometers so that you can't watch them.
Run your still by watching how much product is leaving the still not a temprature.

So you ran the T500 by the manurfacturers instructions ? The ones that say to run by water temp leaving the reflux condenser? The same instructions that say that a T500 won't produce tails? Are you making proper cuts or just the fores cut as recommend by the manurfacturer? How much experience do you...

You'll find your way around eventually.
I'm still finding things after 11 years or so here.

I'm 100% with the two posts above, I've done many runs that took longer than 8 and 10 hours. Boiler size, ABV of boiler charge, still type, heat up times, fores and heads take off times are all individual choices. Only experience will tell what is right for you. In short, way to many variables to st...

https://homedistiller.org/wiki/index.php/Shady%27s_Sugar_Shine Metric Translation for 25L Ferment 4.5 kg Sugar 1.2L Boiling water +1/4 cup yeast 3 Vitamin B crushed Pinch Epsom Salt 1 Tablespoon DAP 1/2 cup crushed oyster shell/coral shell grit 40 grams baker's yeast to pitch

They can be a bit of a.shit to run Normandy, the same as some other CM stills......it just takes time, patients and practice/experience.
They hate water pressure fluctuations such as when someone in the house turns on a tap or flushes the toilet.
Best to run them on thier own water system.

Welcome MK. 59th birthday good age to enter the hobby :thumbup: Lots of terms and info to get my head around first! Thats true , learn the language of the craft, wrong wording only leads to confusion for newbs and experienced distillers a like. recently found a guy who has automated a t500 still wit...

Have just spent the last 6 days laid up in a hospital bed Sorry to hear that, shit happens at the least expected moments, I know that from personal experience. Seriuosly considering adapting to an electric element How do you think that will make it easier ?...or better ?...learn to control what you...

Coming from the brewery scene, I firmly intend to produce my own base spirit, but that will wait until I get a stable market. Buying in base spirit will need some scrutiny, Ive seen and tasted supposed NGS in bulk "200L" barrels that ranged from really good to really bad ...quality will a...

Last distillation was a Vodka mash, came off my T500 at 94 % really clean, next day i proofed down to 60 and the spirit turned white, 5 days later its all dropped out of solution and is clear, run it through the carbon filter and crystal clear. What was the mash recipe ? what grains used ? How are ...

I agree with HDNB , time takes away the burn, 5-6 year old barrel aged UJSSM can be quite smooth .

Otis I've read many times that an excess of DAP like nutrients are a major cause.

Sorry to hear of the lose of your good friend Crow, may he rest in peace.

I really don't understand how people manage to make blue distillate.
In ten years of regularly distilling using 3 different all copper stills I've never managed it.
Nor do I ever clean my stills other than a rinse with fresh water after use.

Jesse likes most things he uses, because he's getting payed to like them. As for using enzymes on unfermentable sugars in Rum fermentation , from what I've read the gain is very small. It's not worth the effort or cost unless you are fermenting many many thousands of gallons a year. Somewhere around...

Simple answer is, going from 2inch to 3 inch won't cause any problem what so ever.

squigglefunk wrote: ↑Mon Mar 04, 2024 10:47 am angels are not allowed in my booze sorry, worked too hard for it lol

Then I guess you are stuck with ageing and oaking in glass for ever more.
Try barrel aging one day and you may well change your mind.

The colour is because your still puked, to much power under the boiler. Degassing the wash might have helped with that as would a blob of butter in the boiler. As for control of the gas ring using one of these helps a heap.......more is to much.....and hard to regulate. Stick to this type suited to ...

Recently picked up a 200L drum of molasses. Its time to top up the barrels. Background noise is cicadas chirping. https://youtube.com/shorts/3STdqe9pAZ0?si=Dw61KSG5XqGXB8oJ Then someone got sidetracked and wasn't paying attention. 20240304_213513~2.jpg This is my latest happily fizzing along. Turn u...

I don't air rum or whiskey either. I want my hard-won esters in my final product, not wafting out the shed door I think you worry to much Chris, if your hearts are loosing that much flavour that easily, just by a bit of airing , then maybe you need more flavour to begin with. Airing for a day or tw...

A couple of days won't hurt, I've often left them longer.
The bit you loose will be very minimal.
Personly I find it easier to make cuts after a couple of days airing.
Coffee filters make great reusable covers for jars.

Divide the washes between a couple of fermenting containers, add water to dilute the sugar content.
You'll have more and a happier wash.

Temprature related is my guess, at this time of year here it's hot , 4 -5 days and they are done.
I wouldn't worry to much about slower, it should still finish OK.

Keep the jar separate, experiment a litte, add a small
amount, to a sample of hearts... see what you like.
Warning, may contain a headache.