My Journey

Other discussions for folks new to the wonderful craft of home distilling.

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Re: My Journey

Post by rager »

i save up my fients until i have enough for a five gallon charge(carboy filled) and run it. makes a hell of a drop you can never reproduce if you dump all your random fients into one jug
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raketemensch
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My Journey

Post by raketemensch »

Rager, I think that after I run this next 10 gallons of gen 4 I'll have enough for a 5-6 gallon spirit run of the first 4 generations. I've been looking forward to tasting it for months now.

I only saved about half a quart of the best hearts from this last one. It's only single-run, but it's tasty. I would say that it has lots of treble, and very little bass, but it's also not even a week old yet...

But it's already got an interesting taste up on top. It reminds me almost of corn husks more than the kernels. It's a pretty unique flavor.

Anyway, tonight I was diluting it with some mango nectar for sipping. It was really good, and the mango filled in some mid-range, but it still needs some bass. It has some charred chips in it, too.

Earlier tonight I had measured out some Evan Williams into a mason jar, and made it equal to the amount of my white dog I had left from this run. I wanted to do some flavor experiments, but I don't have enough personal stock built up yet to waste any of my own, so I figured this was a fairly cheap way to test stuff.

Into the 1/2 quart went 2 dried habañeros and 1.5 teaspoons of agave nectar. I got into this whole thing because of some wild turkey with ghost peppers. It's their "American Honey Sting," and I love it, but it's too sweet. The hot pepper is glorious, though. All the other brands are going for heat with cinnamon, but screw that, why have candy when you could have capsaicin?

So now I'm chasing this mango habañero flavor. A bit of black pepper also helped. I'm also thinking about roasting up some corn until it starts to char, and putting it into the thumper. Maybe a couple of herbs as well, I'm looking into what people like best with corn.
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Re: My Journey

Post by jb-texshine »

roasted in foil,hardwood coals, buttered,fresh cilantro and chili ,with a squeeze of fresh lime juice. Get that in a glass on the rocks with a salty rim... Wow, I just made myself hungry....
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raketemensch
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My Journey

Post by raketemensch »

jb-texshine wrote:roasted in foil,hardwood coals, buttered,fresh cilantro and chili ,with a squeeze of fresh lime juice. Get that in a glass on the rocks with a salty rim... Wow, I just made myself hungry....
See, that's where I'm coming from, the only problem is that butter is fat, so I don't think the flavor will come across. I can't think of a feasible way to add the flavor after, either.

Cilantro, though... I was thinking that, too.
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Re: My Journey

Post by jb-texshine »

Maybe try nuking with a lil butter ten shaking ,let cool and repeat a bunch.then freeze and filter butter once its solidified....
maybe just a few drops of butter flavoring from Adams extracts... Idk but light on the cilantro and heavier on the chili would be where I start. Maybe a touch of sugar to backsweeten with also. I would drink it.
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raketemensch
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Re: My Journey

Post by raketemensch »

jb-texshine wrote:Maybe try nuking with a lil butter ten shaking ,let cool and repeat a bunch.then freeze and filter butter once its solidified....
maybe just a few drops of butter flavoring from Adams extracts... Idk but light on the cilantro and heavier on the chili would be where I start. Maybe a touch of sugar to backsweeten with also. I would drink it.
The microwave idea is interesting. I'm trying to avoid any artificial flavorings, though, after a few years of not eating them they're like being smacked on the tongue with a sledgehammer.
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Re: My Journey

Post by jb-texshine »

I think there is a topic here somewhere called ,or about fat washing....i think. Read thru it a while back.
For what its worth I use a half stick of real butter in my boiler wher I make rum because it gives a slight butter taste versus veg oil.
Remember not to blow yourself up,you only get to forget once!


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raketemensch
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Re: My Journey

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jb-texshine wrote:I think there is a topic here somewhere called ,or about fat washing....i think. Read thru it a while back.
For what its worth I use a half stick of real butter in my boiler wher I make rum because it gives a slight butter taste versus veg oil.
I've finally got enough after last weekend's stripping run to do a real spirit run, I'll definitely try that. Maybe even a whole stick. I still need to dig up the fats thread.

I've got a major project due at work this Friday, so unfortunately I can't get any runs in this weekend, I'll be spending the whole time with headphones on staring at my laptop, writing code.

In the meantime, though, my new SCR came in. It's a 2-wire model, instead of the 4-wire that everyone else has been using:

Image

I also finally picked up a plastic project box @ HomeDepot for it, and I have a couple of CPU fans to use, one to blow in and over the heatsink, the other to blow out the other side. I think I'm going to wire it up for 110 for a bit, and get a good, slow spirit run done before I try it at 220 again for more stripping runs. The slow heat-up is the only drawback, but I'll just charge the keg and get set up the night before (with the PTFE gasket that just arrived), then just plug in as soon as I get up next Saturday morning so those almost 3 hours will go by early.

In other news, I picked up a $25 microwave on Craigslist on the way home from work last night. We haven't had one in the house for over 10 years now, and this one is going straight to the basement for aging experiments. I've got a few jars in mind for it already.

Research-wise, I've learned that I've been making my cuts too tight in the interest of having something to drink sooner. I really need to start making wider cuts and being more patient. I also think I'm going to order a bag of cherry wood smoking chips to try out, instead of the JD chips I'm using now. I don't have a problem with the JD chips, they're working well for me, I'd just like to try cherry. I'm also hunting for some white birch, it's one of my favorite flavors.

Oh, and I also am going to try a few more things on the air-condensing side. Right now I've got the fans under the finned tube, aimed upward at it. This makes use of natural convection, and I have the fins situated so that air can pass straight up through them. What I'm going to try next (on top of adding a scrubbie at the top and bottom of the tube) is simply making an experimental cowl, or shroud, out of cardboard -- basically capture *all* of the air coming from the box fans and direct it at the fins. It should be pretty easy, maybe 10 or 15 minutes, to build and test.
Last edited by raketemensch on Sat Nov 14, 2015 9:01 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: My Journey

Post by kiwi Bruce »

jb-texshine wrote:I think there is a topic here somewhere called ,or about fat washing....i think. Read thru it a while back.
For what its worth I use a half stick of real butter in my boiler wher I make rum because it gives a slight butter taste versus veg oil.
You don't use or don't like mineral oil?
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Re: My Journey

Post by jb-texshine »

kiwi Bruce wrote:
jb-texshine wrote:I think there is a topic here somewhere called ,or about fat washing....i think. Read thru it a while back.
For what its worth I use a half stick of real butter in my boiler wher I make rum because it gives a slight butter taste versus veg oil.
You don't use or don't like mineral oil?
Kiwi Bruce - never tried mineral oil.ive always used either real butter or vegetable oil,and preferr the butter. It does carry over a slight butter taste but I think it is a good compliment to full body rum.
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Never eat Mexican food north or east of Dallas tx!
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Re: My Journey

Post by HDNB »

i'll be interested on the cherry wood. i tried it once, beautiful color... a deep red mahogany. The flavour was good but i tried one shot, on two different occasions...both times gave me a screaming headache almost instantly. i'm curious if it was the wood, or me vs.the wood, like if i have a sensitivity to something in it.
the wood i used was blocky heartwood toasted at 350 and heavily charred.
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Re: My Journey

Post by jb-texshine »

HDNB wrote:i'll be interested on the cherry wood. i tried it once, beautiful color... a deep red mahogany. The flavour was good but i tried one shot, on two different occasions...both times gave me a screaming headache almost instantly. i'm curious if it was the wood, or me vs.the wood, like if i have a sensitivity to something in it.
the wood i used was blocky heartwood toasted at 350 and heavily charred.
I u cherry wood chips alot and love the color but don't know where your headache would come from....
Remember not to blow yourself up,you only get to forget once!


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Never eat Mexican food north or east of Dallas tx!
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Re: My Journey

Post by kiwi Bruce »

HDNB wrote:two different occasions...both times gave me a screaming headache almost instantly.
If you already get migraines the cherry could be a trigger. If you don't usually get them, or haven't in the past, the best way to avoid them is stay well hydrated. Drink lots and lots of water. If you have had them before there is an herb called "Feverfew" that works for me. I make a tincture four oz of plant to 4 Fl oz of neutral spirit. Take 5 to 10 drops in a glass of juice, each evening or when you feel a migraine starting. If you already get migraines Calcium Citrate is a trigger, avoid it.
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Re: My Journey

Post by raketemensch »

My software project got pushed out to January, so I'll actually have some time to get stuff done this weekend.

Unfortunately, my 5th-gen UJ ferment is stuck at 1.040. It smells awesome, and is still outgassing and fermenting slowly, but VERY slowly. I have some ph strips arriving shortly, so I can find out if that's the issue or not.

The last gen fired up like nothing I'd ever seen, it was fizzling and bubbling like mentos in a coke bottle. This round it's been mostly dead. I'm thinking it's either ph or I didn't aerate enough.

When y'all aerate a new batch, do you dig all of the trub bed up and mix it in as well?
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Re: My Journey

Post by HDNB »

i did mix it up well.

make yourself an omlette and throw the shells in the ferment. won't hurt anyuthing and will help fix the problem if the ph is low
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Re: My Journey

Post by raketemensch »

Yeah, it was down to a little under 3. I had thrown 3 washed egg shells in yesterday, too, so 24 hours later it was still under 3.

I went to Tractor Supply today, and picked up a bag of oyster shells. I sterilized half a cup of them and tossed them into 20 gallons tonight. I'm still looking for a shells:gallons ratio, but not having much luck.

Mainly I'm just hoping it'll get rolling again and be ready by Sunday, but I'm not holding my breath.
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Re: My Journey

Post by skow69 »

Baking soda isn't new age cool or organic like shells, but it will bring your will pH up really fast. I'd bet the seashells work a lot faster if you grind them up, too.


EDIT spelling
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Re: My Journey

Post by raketemensch »

They're pretty finely ground, they're actually chicken feed.

Side note, chickens have some weird-ass stomachs.

That said, I may add some baking soda tomorrow, thanks. I thought about it today, but everyone says shells, shells, shells.

I usually have some PH Up in the pool shed, too, but I ran out in August, and the pool stores around here are closed.
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Re: My Journey

Post by Mudturtle »

The shells help em digest their food and gives em calcium for the egg shells :):
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Re: My Journey

Post by MichiganCornhusker »

skow69 wrote:Baking soda isn't new age cool or organic like shells, but it will bring your will pH up really fast.
Really fast, just ask Brutal. :lol:
Seriously, add a little at a time, it can erupt right out of your fermenter. But, it does work quick & easy.
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Re: My Journey

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MichiganCornhusker wrote:
skow69 wrote:Baking soda isn't new age cool or organic like shells, but it will bring your will pH up really fast.
Really fast, just ask Brutal. :lol:
Seriously, add a little at a time, it can erupt right out of your fermenter. But, it does work quick & easy.
Heh, thanks. I added 3 teaspoons the other day, and it fizzed like mad when it hit, but it didn't raise ph much. I finally picked up some sodium carbonate, and after some research it looks like you want about 2 grams per 5 gallons of wash, so I want ~8 grams, so 2 teaspoons. I'll check it again tomorrow. From what I've read, sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) raises oh and general alkalinity, whereas sodium carbonate (ph up for pools and aquariums) raises ph more than alkalinity.

I guess the 4 cups of oyster shells that I added will help more with the next generation, since this time around I need to get it up before a buffer would really help. (That's what she said)

Meanwhile, I charged the keg with ~7 gallons of stripped UJ at 30% today. Tomorrow morning I'll give the new 220 electrical box/SCR a shot -- if it works, then I'll be ecstatic. If it blows up (again), it'll be OK, since I need to do a slow spirit run anyway, it'll just take a long time to warm up. The 220v gets me to drops in 35 minutes, at 110 it takes 2:45. Which sucks, but is better than nothing.

The box is as simple as it gets:

one pole goes straight to the keg.
one pole goes in and back out of the SCR
ground goes straight from outlet to keg

If that blows up, I'm as stumped as I can possibly be. Here's a shot of it:
IMG_6134.jpg
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Re: My Journey

Post by skow69 »

Ya know -- if you wire nut the red wire to the power-in lead in the SCR, you'll have 220. You would have to turn it on and off at the breaker. Get some assistance if you have any questions or feel uncomfortable about it.
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Re: My Journey

Post by raketemensch »

skow69 wrote:Ya know -- if you wire nut the red wire to the power-in lead in the SCR, you'll have 220. You would have to turn it on and off at the breaker. Get some assistance if you have any questions or feel uncomfortable about it.
I've been seriously considering that, using the 220 to get up to temp, then switching to 110 for the run. But for the moment I'm giving up on the 220 and going with 2 elements at 110. I just can't wait any more. This last attempt at a controller failed as well -- even without the thing hooked up to the element, with the wires just bare for testing, as soon as I plug it into the outlet the circuit for this sub-panel blows on the main panel. SO stumped. :think:

Meanwhile, I just did my first real spirit run with the keg, with 6-7 gallons of stripped gen 3 and 4 UJ. I was collecting 200ml at a time, next time I'll go for at least 250, because I ran out of jars a few times :roll: Jar 22 is a spaghetti sauce jar, after that there are some glass juice bottles, a few store-bought moonshine jars, and a mish-mash of other random crap. I ended up with 32 jars total, just about 6.4 liters, which looks right for starting at 30% according to the calculators. I watered a little down for sipping in the middle, I can't wait to blend this stuff.

Never done a cuts party with this much to taste, this is going to get weird fast:
IMG_6142.jpg
In the 2 months prior to today I'd never produced more than a pint of drinkable stuff. Part of it is that I make my cuts too tight, most of it is that I was running a 5-gallon pot... It seems like a lot of work to get so very little drinkable product, but I should end up with close to 3 liters at the end of today, which feels pretty damn good.

Next weekend I go back to stripping again :]
IMG_6139.jpg
Last edited by raketemensch on Sun Nov 22, 2015 8:03 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: My Journey

Post by HDNB »

thats not your license plate, right?
I finally quit drinking for good.

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raketemensch
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Re: My Journey

Post by raketemensch »

HDNB wrote:thats not your license plate, right?
What license plate? :lolno:

(thanks)
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Re: My Journey

Post by Wooday »

I need to get a keg...
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raketemensch
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Re: My Journey

Post by raketemensch »

I recommend going to Craigslist, searching for one, then saving the search with an email alert. You'll get an email every time one goes up for sale.
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Re: My Journey

Post by skow69 »

Does that ckt bkr blow if there are no wires connected to it at all? If not, does it blow if you connect the wires to the box, but not the SCR?
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Re: My Journey

Post by raketemensch »

If I ever needed to do an experiment with wider cuts, this spirit run was the thing to do it with. My God, this stuff is tasty.

The middle 50% is definitely a keeper, and I'm working my way out from there.

I bought some Harley-branded Ole Smokey Distillery moonshine a couple of weeks ago, and it made me feel a lot better about my own stuff. Now, I feel like a god.

I've never even gotten a full pint before, after this run I ended up with 2 1.75 liter bottles, a full quart jar and a full pint jar.

I'm working on a spicy fruit and herb recipe, so I think what I'm going to do is separate it into some pint jars and try macerating different herbs/spices/etc, then try blending them into my Dream Booze.
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Re: My Journey

Post by skow69 »

raketemensch wrote:I've never even gotten a full pint before, after this run I ended up with 2 1.75 liter bottles, a full quart jar and a full pint jar.
You went from a pint to a gallon and a quarter in one step. That's quite the correction. Sure you didn't overreact a little, maybe?
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