Fusel Oils and Tails

[Bee]

If fusel oils are an indication that you are into tails, why bother to filter the product?

[Dancing4dan]

If fusel oils are an indication that you are into tails, why bother to filter the product?

Hey Bee, not sure what you are referring to.

Stripping run or after a spirit run?

During a stripping run tails and oils come through for sure. Sometimes there are desirable flavours there.

Am easy way to clean up low wines with a lot of oils is to let them sit for a few days. The oils will float and separate out. Then run through a filter. Funnel and coffee filter. If the ABV is low I also use a microfibre cloth. Don’t do this with high ABV. The yellow ones from COSTCO work well. Oils cling to the cloth.

On a spirit run I find how I run the still really determines how many oils come over. I don’t get tempted to turn up the power until I am collecting feints. My pot still riser is packed with copper specifically to give surface area for oils to cling to. Usually don’t start getting oils until the output ABV Starts to drop off near end of the run. At that point I usually switch to collecting feints and use a separate collection vessel and turn up the power.

Before a all faints run I filter as mentioned above.

Others will chime in with their own methods.

Cheers.