First time making whisky

[RavensC]

hi guys,

so i have been making gin for a while but ive only ever used sugar washes because i made a nice recipe and i kind of just stuck to it. My family comes from Scotland so i would like to try making some whisky. this is the recipe that my local distilling shop suggests.


Grain Bill: 2 kg of Grain and Malt – crushed or milled (preferably milled - see below for suggested Grain Bills)
6 liters of Water (low or no Chlorine, low Mineral and Metal Content)
Yeast (Grain yeast with a minimum ABV Tolerance of 15%): 5 grams
Yeast Nutrients: 2 grams
Granulated White Sugar: 1 kg (per 5lt fermentation – you will not use all of it, but that is the maximum you should hopefully need)
Distilled Water (available from the local Pharmacy)
20g French Oak Barrel Chips or American Oak Shavings

i usually make washes that are 20l because thats as small as i will go. but according to this recipe i will need 24l of water and 8 kgs of barley malt.
but i have like a 30l pot to make my wash in. is it possible to do it in 4 lots and mix it together or can i maybe put 4kgs of BM in like 4l of water do that in two lots and the dilute it down?

i have to assume most people dont have giant pots laying around for just making washes or maybe im wrong. and this recipe says to add sugar.. acording to my math i would need like 600g of sugar to get it to 15% do distilleries do this? or am i just making a vodka if i add even a small amount of sugar?

thanks guys.

[SassyFrass]

While that may be a great recipe, I'd probably pass on it.
Check out the recipes in the tried and true section. Lot of simpler, easier whisky style recipes than that one are in the T&T area. UJSSM is probably one of the easiest and tastiest. Just my $.02.
SF
PS:
Are you using a pot still? Or are you gonna run it thru reflux?
Traditionally a pot still is used for whiskey because a reflux will strip out alot of flavor.
PSS: meant to add that you can substitute other grains for the corn in UJSSM to give it more of the Scottish influence.

[8Ball]

I’d skip the sugar initially and just do a step mashed all grain. This will give you the best flavor. Ferment on the grain. Strip & spirit with tight cuts. Age with used American White Oak. THEN do a piggy back sugar head using the spent grains.

[Demy]

Sugar will give you a little more "easy" alcohol but surely a cereal-only ferment would be tastier, plus I think sugar is added to have a high OG that would be difficult to get with cereals alone. As far as I know, it is not recommended to push too hard with the alcohol of your ferment.

[Twisted Brick]

While that may be a great recipe, I'd probably pass on it.
Check out the recipes in the tried and true section. Lot of simpler, easier whisky style recipes than that one are in the T&T area. UJSSM is probably one of the easiest and tastiest. Just my $.02.
SF

+1

Whisky quality benefits from a 7-8% FG (max) fermentation as this promotes optimum yeast activity and flavor. A lot of distillers feel adding sugar (prohibited in Scotland) compromises the final product, and since you'll be mashing anyway, you can replace the sugar with a little more grain. All-grain mashes contain enough nutrients naturally so you wont need to add any.

[Setsumi]

if you have a grasp on mashing beer yes go ahead but without the sugar. easier will be to get high temp enzymes and fine crushed corn/ maize meal.

but SassyFrass is correct, UJSSM is a good place to start.

[Deplorable]

Hop on over and read the thread on easy large batch mashing. You don't need a huge pot to mash enough grains to get two or three stripping runs from a single ferment.
After that, pick a recipe from the Tried and True section and give it a try. For a first attempt I'd suggest Jimbos Single Malt.
Pick a grain, malted Barley like Golden Promise or Maris Otter is what I'd suggest. Make a big ol batch, ferment on grain, then rack off and squeeze the grains. Let it settle out and clear, then pot still it.
After you've done that once or twice, and got the hang of it, move up to a good bourbon grain bill with corn and malts.

[SaltyStaves]

Have you got a style of 'Scotch' you are aiming for? What the home brew shop has steered you towards is not a single malt, but closer to a blended malt.