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garnern2 wrote: ↑Fri Jun 05, 2020 7:08 pm Since no one gave me a straight up or down opinion on Distiller's Active Dry Yeast in this recipe, and since I ran it a few nights ago and wasn't happy with the results, I decided to make it again. I made a 6 Gal batch then split into two fermenters, one with baker's yeast and one with DADY. We will see how it progresses.

BoomTown wrote: ↑Sun Jun 07, 2020 6:38 am

garnern2 wrote: ↑Fri Jun 05, 2020 7:08 pm Since no one gave me a straight up or down opinion on Distiller's Active Dry Yeast in this recipe, and since I ran it a few nights ago and wasn't happy with the results, I decided to make it again. I made a 6 Gal batch then split into two fermenters, one with baker's yeast and one with DADY. We will see how it progresses.

My money’s on the DADY!

PoorBoyJack wrote: ↑Mon Jun 08, 2020 12:33 am I have put off mine for now. I have some turbo crap laying around, so I am blasting through it first. Might as well!

PoorBoyJack wrote: ↑Mon Jun 08, 2020 12:33 am I have put off mine for now. I have some turbo crap laying around, so I am blasting through it first. Might as well!

garnern2 wrote: ↑Sun Jun 07, 2020 4:57 pm

BoomTown wrote: ↑Sun Jun 07, 2020 6:38 am

garnern2 wrote: ↑Fri Jun 05, 2020 7:08 pm Since no one gave me a straight up or down opinion on Distiller's Active Dry Yeast in this recipe, and since I ran it a few nights ago and wasn't happy with the results, I decided to make it again. I made a 6 Gal batch then split into two fermenters, one with baker's yeast and one with DADY. We will see how it progresses.

My money’s on the DADY!

Gotta be honest...I used DADY last time and couldn't get the fermentation to complete. I used straight up spring water this time rather than treated city water, so we'll see what happens. So far, the baker's yeast is actually fermenting more vigorously.

BoomTown wrote: ↑Sun Jun 07, 2020 6:38 am I’ve now got two small(16L) pots fermenting with DADY. They seem to be taking longer that similar washes in these pots When I USP Ed Red Hat Bakers yeast. I check and record readings everyday, the DADY pots are dropping 6 or 8 points per day, where with Red Hat Bakers yeast they went down 10 or 12 points everyday. Since I’ve only just restarted this
hobby, I haven’t got enough inventory to compare tastes between the out puts, but plan to do that maybe in August, after I have several batches of each aged (as in allowed to air out) 3 or four weeks. I’ll taste test the White, and move the best tasting White to my little 3 Gal Gibbs, and lock down the recipe till I have enough to fill my 10 Gal Gibbs for a 3 year ageing cycle. The other spirit, I plan to age on oak sticks in half gallon jars, and maybe steep in herbs intended to produce a gin.

I’m assuming I’ll be working with a ‘taste neutral’ spirit but we’ll see.

I’m making what I suspect will be a light rum using raw (brown) sugar and Birdwatcher’s recipe. Learning how my new gear works for this project in preparation for making Absynth Later in the fall, after the plants I have on the balcony garden are big enough to harvest.

At any rate, I plan to continue using the DADY as it’s supposed to be able to produce higher ABV from sugar rich washes.

garnern2 wrote: ↑Fri Jun 19, 2020 8:17 pm

BoomTown wrote: ↑Sun Jun 07, 2020 6:38 am I’ve now got two small(16L) pots fermenting with DADY. They seem to be taking longer that similar washes in these pots When I USP Ed Red Hat Bakers yeast. I check and record readings everyday, the DADY pots are dropping 6 or 8 points per day, where with Red Hat Bakers yeast they went down 10 or 12 points everyday. Since I’ve only just restarted this
hobby, I haven’t got enough inventory to compare tastes between the out puts, but plan to do that maybe in August, after I have several batches of each aged (as in allowed to air out) 3 or four weeks. I’ll taste test the White, and move the best tasting White to my little 3 Gal Gibbs, and lock down the recipe till I have enough to fill my 10 Gal Gibbs for a 3 year ageing cycle. The other spirit, I plan to age on oak sticks in half gallon jars, and maybe steep in herbs intended to produce a gin.

I’m assuming I’ll be working with a ‘taste neutral’ spirit but we’ll see.

Am beginning to get disenchanted with DADY. FErments that should take 3 or 4 day, are going 6 or 8.

I’m making what I suspect will be a light rum using raw (brown) sugar and Birdwatcher’s recipe. Learning how my new gear works for this project in preparation for making Absynth Later in the fall, after the plants I have on the balcony garden are big enough to harvest.

At any rate, I plan to continue using the DADY as it’s supposed to be able to produce higher ABV from sugar rich washes.

I have brewed beer since 2003 and I'm familiar with proper fermentation practices. I have used baker's yeast for meads before, but I had never used DADY. I've now used DADY twice and, for me, it isn't as capable as baker's yeast. The yeast selection for beer, mead, wine, and champagne is incredibly important because the flavor profile relies on it almost exclusively. I don't have enough experience with distilling to know if yeast has the same impact in terms of flavor. Either way, with as little yield as I can get from my 8 gallon boiler, I want the maximum alcohol in a wash without going beyond the threshold of producing off flavors, etc. The last batch (my first) using DADY never finished fermentation--I ended at 1.010. It has an almost cloying but strangely not off-putting sweet flavor, and I made cuts in 8 ounce jars (without being able to find one jar without that particular flavor).

Anyway...the baker's yeast fermented more completely this go-round, and I gave the batches almost 2.5 weeks to finish.

Sailman wrote: ↑Mon May 25, 2020 4:24 pm IMG_20200525_201637.jpgIt's day 8 of the birdwatchers fermentation. The cap has fallen and it doesn't appear to have any more activity. So before I take the FG and rack it into a carboy to settle out does this look normal?

rubberduck71 wrote: ↑Mon Jul 06, 2020 11:04 am

Sailman wrote: ↑Mon May 25, 2020 4:24 pm IMG_20200525_201637.jpgIt's day 8 of the birdwatchers fermentation. The cap has fallen and it doesn't appear to have any more activity. So before I take the FG and rack it into a carboy to settle out does this look normal?

I finished my first BW wash last week & got these same "floating islands" of TP remnants. I racked to new bucket, added Turbo Clear & racked again to get a clean wash.

Stripped once & then spirit run through my small pot still. 1st two 100 ml after fores taken off very headsy, but after that had damn near 1000 ml of very nice stuff all the way down to 40%. Heads/tails went into feints jar.

Using it with some local black berries for panty dropper!

lilye wrote: ↑Sun Mar 29, 2020 4:19 pm I agree with husker. this recipe has less variables than others and as a newbie I am exciting about trying it out. I am sticking to the formula only dividing the ingredients by 4 to give me a yield of about 5 gallons of wash. I have a one gallon "Mr. distiller" table top distiller and want to keep it simple.

My only problem is that my hydrometer shattered into tiny pieces. now that I am living in Panama it is exceedingly difficult to find supplies her. I have ordered another but with everything in the country being frozen indefinitely no telling when it will arrive.

With all this time on my hands I'd like to go ahead and try it anyway. Can I assume that if there is a lot of activity after I pitch the yeast that things will proceed along as they should. I did make a few Uncle Remus' vodka ( hope I recall that correctly) and so that went pretty well for me.

Any advise, comments or suggestions??? Oh, did I mention blue laws are also in affect in this country and have been for most of March?

regards,
Lilye

jdetechguy wrote: ↑Mon Jul 13, 2020 7:21 am If its truly stalled and not just slow, you can search previous posts from this recipe, you will find a ton of advice. RAD had a good post that helped me out. Here is the link. Just scroll down and look for RAD14701. We found that the vegetable fertilizer made it run like a bat out of hell, but we got a bit concerned about some of the by products and stopped that fast. DAP gets you the phosphate side of that as SS mentions. Also, we started making yeast starters that seem to help getting a good charge. Have you considered a high krausen after getting the nutrients back?

http://homedistiller.org/forum/viewtopi ... 40&t=38371

Royco wrote: ↑Mon Jul 13, 2020 8:36 am...The wash heated up above the set temp of 30°C. Could have got to high thirties. Maybe that stunned the yeast...

Royco wrote: ↑Mon Jul 13, 2020 8:36 am...Really appreciate the input on a subject that must have been asked hundreds of times before. I thought I should know better having brewed AG beer for some years before trying distilling.

still_stirrin wrote: ↑Mon Jul 13, 2020 9:56 am

Royco wrote: ↑Mon Jul 13, 2020 8:36 am...The wash heated up above the set temp of 30°C. Could have got to high thirties. Maybe that stunned the yeast...

Well, yeast have “ideal” fermenting conditions. But I’ve found that ale yeasts, including baker’s bread yeasts do extremely well in warmer temperatures. I typically pitch yeast into my wort runoff (yes, I lauter my mashes) as the fermenter is still quite warm to the touch, 100* to 110*F. The yeast is super energetic at that temperature and often is very actively fermenting as I finish runoff to the fermenters.

Yeast will do perfectly fine at human body temperatures, including moderately “feverish” temps. So, I doubt your temp controlled ferment oscillations caused the yeast much threat.

More likely, I suspect a shortfall on nutrients. Potassium is a key nutrient, and readily available in the 10-10-10 fertilizer Rad suggested. Also, nitrogen is another nutrient, although not as important as phosphorus, which DAP excels with. Again, the 10-10-10 is a good alternative to use, and you can usually get a big bag of it at your local hardware/plant store.

A hint here is to pulverize the fertilizer (I use a mortar & pestle) before adding to the boiling water where you pour your sugar. Fertilizer is not very dissolvable in water, so grinding it to a powder and adding to the hot water will help hydrate the minerals.

Royco wrote: ↑Mon Jul 13, 2020 8:36 am...Really appreciate the input on a subject that must have been asked hundreds of times before. I thought I should know better having brewed AG beer for some years before trying distilling.

Yes, your homebrewing experience is a valuable asset. However, grain (or extract) recipes are an easier target as the grains bring a lot of the nutrients along with them that the yeast needs. I guess that’s why beer brewing (and drinking) is so widespread worldwide for generations. All that “goodness” is built into the products and processes.

And keep in mind that the distilling hobby is really an extension of your brewing hobby. You learn the brewery processes (kindergarten thru senior high) and distilling is the graduate education.

Enjoy. Read and learn as you go.
ss

Saltbush Bill wrote: ↑Mon Jul 13, 2020 10:06 am Birdwatchers is a T and T recipe and contains tomatoe paste as part of the recipe.
This seems to be a question about something called Roycos DAP Wash, why is it even in this thread?

Royco wrote: ↑Mon Jul 13, 2020 2:15 pm

Saltbush Bill wrote: ↑Mon Jul 13, 2020 10:06 am Birdwatchers is a T and T recipe and contains tomatoe paste as part of the recipe.
This seems to be a question about something called Roycos DAP Wash, why is it even in this thread?

OOPS!

Royco wrote: ↑Mon Jul 27, 2020 12:14 amSmells like vomit so must be infected.

NZChris wrote: ↑Mon Jul 27, 2020 12:38 am

Royco wrote: ↑Mon Jul 27, 2020 12:14 amSmells like vomit so must be infected.

Next time you smell vomit, search the forum before you kick the can over.