Odin's Easy Gin

[CoogeeBoy]

Not this little black duck but I have seen what I think are thumpers used on some of the bigger commercial stills.

Wait for the experts to chime in though.

[higgins]

Even though I never liked gin, my wife does, so I decided to have a go at Odin's Easy Gin. After the 1st one, I began modifying the botanicals a bit with each iteration. This is my 6th iteration:

In a blade coffee grinder I mascerated:
25 g juniper berries
5 g coriander seed
1 g angelica root
1 g orris root
1 g dried lemon peel
1.5 g dried lime peel
1 star anise pod
3 black peppercorns
and added to 1 liter of 43% neutral.

After 24 hours I poured it into a 3 qt pot still, added a few oz of bottled water, put the broken up peel of one small orange/tangerine in the vapor path, and distilled slowly, 2-3 drips per second.

Discarded first 10 ml
kept next 400 ml
added 350 ml bottled water and hit 43%

Mine louched a bit (turned cloudy), probably due to the orange oils. I added 43% neutral until it cleared (maybe 200 ml or so). I filled a 750 ml bottle, then put the extra 200 ml into a 375 ml bottle. I added 95% neutral to bring it to navy proof (106 in this case), around 50 ml or so.

I was really surprised at how much I liked this stuff! I have never liked G&T, and always thought it was because of the gin. But I recently discovered that what I really don't like is tonic (quinine).

I get together once a week with 4-8 guys (mostly retirees) to sample 4 different brown liquors (1/2 oz pours). We all bring a bottle and then choose which 4 to try. In 2+ years (a few gaps due to pandemic) we've sampled over 300 different commercial brown liquors, including bourbon, rye, scotch, irish, canadian, american whiskies, rums, brandy/cognacs, ports, tequilas, and gins, most in the $20-$60 USD range (750 ml), though a few $8 or $10 ringers were thrown in. This has been a very enlightening experience and is one of the highlights of my retirement.

So this afternoon I brought a sample of Gin #6 for them to try (since it wan't brown, it didn't count, but they all wanted to try it). To a man they all said it was the best gin they had ever had. They said they had never considered drinking gin straight until tasting this one.

SO MY HAT IS OFF TO ODIN for sharing his recipe and process.
I missed out on the gin experience for 50 years of adult life, and without Odin I would have continued to miss out on this wonderful libation.
THANK YOU ODIN!

[Rrmuf]

There's a couple posts on this thread where folks seem to think they need to add neutrals or dilute the final product down to 43%; The 43% stipulated is the ABV for maceration, not final distilate. He clearly states that the final ABV should be 45%.

If Gin @43% is good for you, then no worries and no debate BUT don't feel that OEG stipulates a final ABV of 43%.

[Virandell]

OEG + 2.5kg rhubarb and 1kg pineapple tomorrow I will gonna distill it hopefully will be good

[mercmar]

15L Birdseye neutral @ 40% was distilled 2x
180g juniper
45g coriander
52g dried tangerine peel
2 week maceration/ filtered into 10g copper pot still

low and slow run. tasting throughout. tangerine comes out stronger later. no way I wait 2 weeks. awesome recipe and scales well. going to age some of it on oak. will revert with findings.

[Rrmuf]

low and slow run. tasting throughout. tangerine comes out stronger later. no way I wait 2 weeks. awesome recipe and scales well. going to age some of it on oak. will revert with findings.

Hi, You might want to keep whatever you want to age on oak proofed at a slightly higher ABV for the aging.

Also, I had a thread on an Old Tom Gin experiment from last year. It turned out very well, and I am literally this week starting to age a scaled up a 2nd round at it.

https://homedistiller.org/forum/viewtop ... 06&t=81177

[dragon9874]

thx for sharing @Odin! never ran Gin, always been nervous/reluctant... didn't think i had the setup or knowledge. this recipe is actually achievable. thx again Odin!!

[Metalking00]

My girlfriend used to say she hated gin, but she loves this one. She even got me a little notebook to write the recipe in so I dont forget it. I made a few of the original recipe, then changed it up a bit. Heres mine-

Dilute 1L 95% to 43%
24g juniper berries
6g coriander seed
.25 g lavender flower
2.5g lemon and lime blossoms
1g rosemary
2g lemon verbena leaves
1.5 tangerine/lemon peel
Proof to 45%

I think that the variations on the citrusy flavors with the lemon verbena, citrus blossoms and citrus peels adds a complexity to the flavor. You cant pick out each ingredient, but it has more depth than just peel. The blossoms are light and high, the peels in the middle and the verbena is herby and low.

The rosemary i use is light green and soft, not the dark green leathery leafed type. It has a lighter, less resinous flavor.

The lavender doesnt seem to add much flavor at this amount, but it gives a barely perceptible perfume to it.

Thanks Odin, great recipe!

[Andrew_90]

According to Odin's original recipe one must add 1 Tangerine peel per liter. A Tangerine peel wet and trimmed of all the white weighs on average 21.6g and dry 6.3g.

I made a batch yesterday and added a peel per liter. It is simply way to much.

Your "1,5 tangerine / lemon peel" was that peel wet or dry? Some in the know would recommend 1/25X of Juniper which would be in my case 25% of what I currently added.

[NZChris]

I made a batch yesterday and added a peel per liter. It is simply way to much.

OEG is a starting point that makes a good first gin. It isn't the best gin you will ever make, but it gives you a starting point to work from. How much citrus you like will eventually be arrived at by constantly referring to your notes and tasting notes. The smaller your gin still is, the more batches you will have to make and the faster you will find recipes and methods that suit your ideals.

Note that you didn't actually use his method, so the method and cut that you chose might have contributed to it having too much citrus.

[Metalking00]

Andrew90, i used fresh peel. The tangerines i use are very small, but the lemons are big. I havent had any issue with it being overpowering. Also, i remove the peels before putting everything in the boiler, so that may have something to do with it.

[Samuel]

I recently tried OEG recipe and like Andrew_90 I found it odd to use that much peels. I used 1 lemon/L so I got ~7g of peel/L. On the parents site it is said :
x = juniper
x/2 = coriander
x/100 = bitter & sweet orange peel, lemon peel, ginger, orris root, cardamon, nutmeg, savory, calamus, chamomile.

According to this I should have used 0,13g of peel instead of 7g. However after drinking it I found it... nice! I thought lemon would be overpowering but it was not. I'm a bit confuse, but it worked well at the end.

[NZChris]

According to this I should have used 0,13g of peel instead of 7g. However after drinking it I found it... nice! I thought lemon would be overpowering but it was not. I'm a bit confuse, but it worked well at the end.

The x/100 is for dried botanicals. I use three to four times that amount of dried citrus for most of my gins and that's still a lot less compared to the amount of fresh peel that OEG uses.

[Samuel]

According to this I should have used 0,13g of peel instead of 7g. However after drinking it I found it... nice! I thought lemon would be overpowering but it was not. I'm a bit confuse, but it worked well at the end.

The x/100 is for dried botanicals. I use three to four times that amount of dried citrus for most of my gins and that's still a lot less compared to the amount of fresh peel that OEG uses.

Oh I see. Thank you for the precision

[Samuel]

OEG + 2.5kg rhubarb and 1kg pineapple tomorrow I will gonna distill it hopefully will be good
1_20211101_203218.jpg

Looks good! How great was it?

[Royalwulf]

about to make this for the first time. it says to collect 400 ml, after fores, does anybody do anything with the stuff after 400?

[NormandieStill]

I always collect after the 400ml in small quanities (around 25ml) for a couple of jars, but after tasting I've only ever once had something that was worth putting back into the blend. Do it as an exercise. Or better, collect the whole 400ml in jars and see how the taste shifts over the course of the run.

[NZChris]

I put the foreshot and the tails together and make something with it, often a liqueur of some kind. I call it Distiller's Treat and never let anyone else taste it.

Most of my gins use less citrus than Odin's and I can get away with keeping 440ml/l as long as I don't mind if it louches, (I don't).

[Royalwulf]

I put the foreshot and the tails together and make something with it, often a liqueur of some kind. I call it Distiller's Treat and never let anyone else taste it.

Most of my gins use less citrus than Odin's and I can get away with keeping 440ml/l as long as I don't mind if it louches, (I don't).

thanks Chris
liqueur is a thought
how much less citrus?

[NZChris]

I put the foreshot and the tails together and make something with it, often a liqueur of some kind. I call it Distiller's Treat and never let anyone else taste it.

Most of my gins use less citrus than Odin's and I can get away with keeping 440ml/l as long as I don't mind if it louches, (I don't).

thanks Chris
liqueur is a thought
how much less citrus?

For dried citrus peel, approximately x/33, x being juniper. More if I want a particular citrus to be dominant in the gin.

[CoogeeBoy]

I put the foreshot and the tails together and make something with it, often a liqueur of some kind. I call it Distiller's Treat and never let anyone else taste it.

Most of my gins use less citrus than Odin's and I can get away with keeping 440ml/l as long as I don't mind if it louches, (I don't).

thanks Chris
liqueur is a thought
how much less citrus?

Yes but....
I went way overboard on my last batch with too much citrus, or so I thought, but my gin tasting judging panel love it and after a couple of months, it has really smoothed out a lot. I had one today in fact and really enjoyed.
I suppose the moral of my tail is to experiment a bit and find out what you like.

[NZChris]

I suppose the moral of my tail is to experiment a bit and find out what you like.

Absolutely.

Many of my gins are made by tweaking the method and ingredients using my notes from the previous generations of the same style of gin, but every now and again I find an 'out there' ingredient, or method, that begs to be tried.

[Bushman]

The key word is tweak, make small changes at a time so you can make an honest assessment..

[NormandieStill]

I put the foreshot and the tails together and make something with it, often a liqueur of some kind. I call it Distiller's Treat and never let anyone else taste it.

Most of my gins use less citrus than Odin's and I can get away with keeping 440ml/l as long as I don't mind if it louches, (I don't).

Coincidentally I did a test gin run last night. The foreshot was a little too bitter for inclusion and the tails I collected didn't gel with the rest, so I slung them in a glass and diluted it. Damn tasty it was too. I'll dedicate an empty bottle to making "Distiller's Treat" in the future.

[FL Brewer]

"I went way overboard on my last batch with too much citrus, or so I thought, but my gin tasting judging panel love it and after a couple of months, it has really smoothed out a lot. I had one today in fact and really enjoyed.
I suppose the moral of my tail is to experiment a bit and find out what you like."

I've found the citrus does mellow through the few weeks of aging...

[CoogeeBoy]

"I went way overboard on my last batch with too much citrus, or so I thought, but my gin tasting judging panel love it and after a couple of months, it has really smoothed out a lot. I had one today in fact and really enjoyed.
I suppose the moral of my tail is to experiment a bit and find out what you like."

I've found the citrus does mellow through the few weeks of aging...

Go the Seminoles!

For me, another key note was I tried a few different citrus including pomello or grapefruit, which I initially thought was overpowering but has a v nice taste now.

While we are at it, thank you to all the regular HD contributors, moderators etc for their help along the way, they have really been a wonderful resource and great support (despite the odd angry comment which only confirms that they are not all bots, hell, some of them have even got a sense of humour!)

[Vurumai]

Macerated 3.5L with the standard recipe and produced 3 bottles of 750ml at 40% of good smelling spirits. Collected down to 20% but it got real musty so I decided to toss it.

Read somewhere that the flavors get better over time. That the reason it has to rest for a month?

Also, I like a herbaceous and almost piney gin. Anything else I can add to enhance that other than more juniper?

[NZChris]

Macerated 3.5L with the standard recipe and produced 3 bottles of 750ml at 40% of good smelling spirits. Collected down to 20% but it got real musty so I decided to toss it.

Read somewhere that the flavors get better over time. That the reason it has to rest for a month?

Also, I like a herbaceous and almost piney gin. Anything else I can add to enhance that other than more juniper?

Have a look at a Gin Flavor Wheel for some ideas. viewtopic.php?f=15&t=81670&start=30

I've never waited six weeks. I make enough that I haven't drunk it all in six weeks.

[artooks]

Macerated 3.5L with the standard recipe and produced 3 bottles of 750ml at 40% of good smelling spirits. Collected down to 20% but it got real musty so I decided to toss it.

Read somewhere that the flavors get better over time. That the reason it has to rest for a month?

Also, I like a herbaceous and almost piney gin. Anything else I can add to enhance that other than more juniper?

Well I tried many times 2 weeks is probably %80 ok, but again, waiting is the hardest part
Also you need to keep the spirit as a whole during this period and close the lid with a coffee filter or cheese cloth to make aeration possible, do not close the vessel 100% and wait. During this phase the water and alcohol starts to bond together, so there is some kind of reaction due to that.

[NZChris]

Also you need to keep the spirit as a whole during this period and close the lid with a coffee filter or cheese cloth to make aeration possible, do not close the vessel 100% and wait. During this phase the water and alcohol starts to bond together, so there is some kind of reaction due to that.

Really????

I don't recall Odin recommending that anywhere in this thread. It's a great trick for neutral, but not something I would do to my gins. I go to a lot of trouble and expense to put flavor into my gins, so I put a cork in the bottle so that they can't bugger off out the shed door. A two thirds full bottle has enough O2 in the headspace, plus you add more every time you pour a drink.