Odin's Easy Gin

Patching246 · Post by **Patching246** » Wed Dec 09, 2015 4:30 am

Thanks guys,

Just removing the cork and placing a coffee filter on top for a few hours has made a big difference. Perhaps I didn't give it enough time to air? I assumed because it was all hearts, airing wouldn't help. But it seems to be.

Post by **still_stirrin** » Wed Dec 09, 2015 6:44 am

Patching,

Over Thanksgiving, I opened a bottle of Odin's EZ gin that I'd stashed for 3 months. When I first uncorked the bottle, the aroma off the bottle was very big botanicals...pepper & spice and the juniper was very subdued. I poured a shot over ice cubes and sampled.....delicious. Nosing the bottle again and the big botanical aroma was gone, leaving that sought after juniper and citrus aroma.

So, I concluded that the gin flavors and aroma do mature in the bottle and once opened again find that happy place where it balances well.

Cudos to Odin again for the lesson in "gin making" for us all. The recipe is truly a benchmark.
ss

BaxtersDad · Post by **BaxtersDad** » Wed Dec 09, 2015 9:07 am

still_stirrin wrote: Cudos to Odin again for the lesson in "gin making" for us all. The recipe is truly a benchmark.
ss

Amen to that, SS! And besides that, he is one of the most interesting people I have ever met! Sure glad I went up to Vancouver while he was there!

My Batch #2 of Odin's Easy Gin is getting the gin run on Friday. On Batch #1, I used a spice grinder (a coffee grinder dedicated to spice) on the juniper berries, and think it pulverized them too much. Plus I collected past 40% of the still charge (400 ml per litesr just equates to 40%, unless I am missng something). It was still damn fine after a month or so, but a little overpowering on the botanicals. For this batch, I crushed the juniper first in my Corona mill clone (Weston, $25 Amazon Prime!) set to its tightest setting, which did an excellent job - crushed them but did not pulverize. I finished the juniper in a big stainless bowl and a glass pint jar to make sure all the berries were crushed to expose the interior. I added fennel to the coriander and orange peel, since I like the licorice flavor, but only time will tell on that. I will strictly adhere to the limitation on quantity collected this time, and am very optimistic it will be significantly better than Batch #1!

Beerdude · Post by **Beerdude** » Thu Dec 10, 2015 4:13 am

With my first neutral spirit, i decided to give this recipe a go. Macerated for about 20 hours, then distilled with herbs in the pot with my pot still. Base was 1L birdwatchers at 45%. Collected 400ml with 74%. Left about 5% of the tangerine peel in the pot. Now i have a 0,7L bottle Gin on hand

Smells awesome, taste is a bit too spicy and citrusy yet, but maybe this will decline. Gin Tonic - here i am.

Thanks for this recipe

Devon · Post by **Devon** » Thu Dec 10, 2015 9:42 am

I got all my ingredients but where I work don't sell tangerines. Will satsumas do?

Post by **Bushman** » Thu Dec 10, 2015 9:52 am

Devon wrote:I got all my ingredients but where I work don't sell tangerines. Will satsumas do?

I am guessing the answer is yes as they are very close and both belong to a larger group called Manderins.

Devon · Post by **Devon** » Thu Dec 10, 2015 9:55 am

I thought we would do it but it seems we have every type of orange apart from tangerine. I shall see and adjust my recipe If it works

Beerdude · Post by **Beerdude** » Thu Dec 10, 2015 9:59 am

Sipping on it right now...question came to my mind:

when i stripped a run of neutrals, can i just use the lowwines (30-40%) and make the spiritrun with herbs (without citrus peel) in the pot to get this goddness of a gin? (mazeration for about 24h included)

Post by **still_stirrin** » Thu Dec 10, 2015 10:47 am

Beerdude wrote:...when i stripped a run of neutrals, can i just use the lowwines (30-40%) and make the spiritrun with herbs (without citrus peel) in the pot to get this goddness of a gin?...

Well, I can't answer for the "goddness" (sp?), but to make this gin you use the cleanest neutral hearts...not low wines. With low wines, you'll have heads and tails mixed in with the hearts.

I would recommend following Odin's recipe if you expect the same results. Venturing down a different path (process) will give questionable results, at best.
ss

Post by **S-Cackalacky** » Thu Dec 10, 2015 11:20 am

I think one of the reasons for using the hearts cut is because doing cuts afterwards using low wines would be difficult with the botanical flavors in it.

NZChris · Post by **NZChris** » Thu Dec 10, 2015 11:39 am

Beerdude wrote:Sipping on it right now...question came to my mind:

when i stripped a run of neutrals, can i just use the lowwines (30-40%) and make the spiritrun with herbs (without citrus peel) in the pot to get this goddness of a gin? (mazeration for about 24h included)

Yes, you can.
You then have the choices of throwing out most of your flavor with the heads and tails, or leaving the heads and tails in your gin. Your call. Just don't call it "Odin's Easy Gin" coz that it ain't.

BaxtersDad · Post by **BaxtersDad** » Fri Dec 11, 2015 10:11 am

OK, right in the middle of gin run on Batch #2 of Odin's Easy Gin right now! 11 qts from the spirit run (7 qts collected, diluted with 4 qts distilled water to 45% ABV) were macerated for two days with juniper, coriander, dried orange peel and fenne. Botanicals went in the pot, and I am distilling low and slow. I discarded 30 ml, and then started collecting. Rough estimate of first two quarts collected based on still head temperature (holding around 178 dF) is an ABV somewhere north of 80%, probably by a couple of points but I will do a temperature corrected measurement with the proof / tralle hydrometer when I am done. Assuming about 80% ABV, I collected 5 ml and diluted with 5 ml distilled water for a preliminary sniff and taste - my verdict, in which my wife concurs, is that this batch is a home run! The botanicals are not nearly so far forward or, as I described it for Batch #1, almost overpowering. In fairness to Batch #1, it has finally mellowed out quite a bit. It is going to be very hard keeping our hands off Batch #2 for a month or so, but we still have about 3 qts of Batch #1, and that plus purchased gin will have to see us through I guess!

There was a lot of work in this one, preparing and fermenting 14 gallons of sugar wash, two 7 gallon stripping runs, a spirit run and now a gin run. From an ingredients standpoint, this is very economical (Fred Meyer has 25 lbs of sugar for $13, quite a bit cheaper than CostCo!), but from a time standpoint (especially with my little MH pot still) is is a BIG investment of time! It is a good thing I like sitting here watching the jars a-fillin', and fiddling with my computer reading HD!

Devon · Post by **Devon** » Fri Dec 11, 2015 10:29 am

Here's what I've made so far

Post by **Odin** » Sun Dec 13, 2015 5:27 pm

Looking good, Devon!

Bax, great to hear you like it!

Odin.

Devon · Post by **Devon** » Sun Dec 13, 2015 6:30 pm

Thanks. It smells great.

Patching246 · Post by **Patching246** » Thu Dec 17, 2015 11:55 am

So after making my gin, which is maturing nicely now, I dumped what was left in the boiler into a collection vessel. I assume because this is pure hearts it will redistill nicely into a neutral (once I've saved up enough). I forgot to remove the botanicals though, and they've been sat in there for 18 days. I've got an an almost pure black liquid. I can't see the sun if I hold it up!! Will this still be okay if I run it again? If I can get close to azeo, it should come out okay right?

Post by **still_stirrin** » Thu Dec 17, 2015 2:24 pm

Patching246 wrote:So after making my gin, which is maturing nicely now, I dumped what was left in the boiler into a collection vessel. I assume because this is pure hearts it will redistill nicely into a neutral (once I've saved up enough).

It WAS hearts...before you redistilled it. Now, it mostly water and syrup (botanical sludge). I always dump it out and clean the boiler good to remove the flavors. I like to have the gin still clean after a run, so it is clean for the next run.

Patching246 wrote:I forgot to remove the botanicals though, and they've been sat in there for 18 days. I've got an an almost pure black liquid. I can't see the sun if I hold it up!! Will this still be okay if I run it again? If I can get close to azeo, it should come out okay right?

I'd dump it and get to cleaning things up. Azeo...I'd doubt it. But go ahead and knock yourself out. Let us know what you get...
ss

Patching246 · Post by **Patching246** » Thu Dec 17, 2015 2:38 pm

Explain this to me:

I start out with 4 litres of 40% macerated gin.

I collect 1.6 litres of gin @ 60%

In theory - I could have collected (using calculator on homepage) 2.53 litres at this rate, so there is just shy of a litre of perfectly good hearts in that wash. Right?

Surely that is worth trying to save? Would I do better in the future to run my 1.6l and then change vessels and collect the another litre of tails and save them up?

Post by **still_stirrin** » Thu Dec 17, 2015 4:50 pm

According to Odin's recipe you should've gotten 400ml at 70-80%ABV per liter of wash, which would've pulled more of the alcohol out of the boiler. You didn't do as well, so you did leave more of the alcohol in the boiler...about 2.4 liters at approximately 24-25%ABV.

Now, because it is macerated and heavily steeped in the botanicals, I seriously doubt you'll get a clean neutral out of the leftover backset, even if you run it through your reflux still. Maybe you can salvage another 750-850ml out of the boiler, but you'll have to work to clean it up.

Go ahead and try to see what you can do. No harm in trying, right?

I'm a bit confused why your gin distillate was only 60%ABV when you ran it. Mine came off at 73-74%ABV...but I did run the wash at 43% like Odin recommended. Maybe that accounts for the difference. Also, I ran 2 liters and collected 900ml, so I did drive a little deeper than you did.

All I can say is that quality outweighs quantity. What you got is a very tasty gin, I'm sure. Oh, and I like to pour my gin at 80 proof instead of 70 proof like most commercial gins. Clear (no louche) and a very crisp, satisfying flavor.
ss

Patching246 · Post by **Patching246** » Thu Dec 17, 2015 5:43 pm

Sorry my mistake, I was just plucking figures out of my a** as an example. Yes, ABV was low 70s and was macerated a 43%. Still... want not, waste not. I'll stick em in the shed and run them through one day. Might make nice base for... GIN

Plaincrazy · Post by **Plaincrazy** » Fri Dec 18, 2015 5:40 pm

Just put the lids on 4 jars of neutral with berries, coriander, and orange rind. I added some fennel as well, seemed like a good idea. Smells awesome and can't wait to run it though the still two weeks from now

Thanks for the recipe Odin

NZChris · Post by **NZChris** » Fri Dec 18, 2015 9:16 pm

Don't wait. Run it tomorrow, it'll be fine, and it'll be ready enough for Xmas and New Years drinkies. Do a long steep for later.

I don't know about the fennel in gin though. It's great in Absinthe.

Plaincrazy · Post by **Plaincrazy** » Sun Dec 20, 2015 10:59 am

I'm confused, why would you want me to run it early when you suggest doing a long steep later?
Although it already has a lot of colour from the berries I think the orange rind will need more time to come through....

Devon · Post by **Devon** » Sun Dec 20, 2015 12:14 pm

My orange rind came through pretty quickly, as soon as I lift the lid I can smell the orange zest.

NZChris · Post by **NZChris** » Sun Dec 20, 2015 1:50 pm

Plaincrazy wrote:I'm confused, why would you want me to run it early when you suggest doing a long steep later?
Although it already has a lot of colour from the berries I think the orange rind will need more time to come through....

I was suggesting running this one early for Xmas drinks, and doing another one later using Odin's recommendations. I've never actually done the two week steep recommended by Odin.

I've tasted the leftovers after a steep that was only for the few minutes it took me to put the still together. It was quite tasteless. The heat boils off the flavors we want without any steep at all. I'm sure that there is some advantage to a long steep, but I doubt it's a lot.
The flavors from citrus and mango peel don't need steeping at all. They will come over even if they are freshly peeled into the gin basket on stilling day.

kiwi Bruce · Post by **kiwi Bruce** » Sun Dec 20, 2015 2:03 pm

Chris, how difficult is it to get a mild passionfruit flavor to come over in a vodka or a gin?

Plaincrazy · Post by **Plaincrazy** » Sun Dec 20, 2015 2:21 pm

NZChris wrote:I was suggesting running this one early for Xmas drinks, and doing another one later using Odin's recommendations

Got it, I'm in no rush. Not a big gin drinker, and I have lots of whiskey and rum in stock to keep me busy

NZChris · Post by **NZChris** » Sun Dec 20, 2015 2:41 pm

kiwi Bruce wrote:Chris, how difficult is it to get a mild passionfruit flavor to come over in a vodka or a gin?

I've never given it a try, or a thought. Is there flavor in the skin? Try chewing on a skin, (they're out of season here). It might be easiest to add natural essence, as do 42 Below.

DrMalt · Post by **DrMalt** » Mon Dec 21, 2015 11:41 am

My first attempt at OEG was last night. I macerated the herbs for about 36 hours total and pulled the orange rind out of the boiler but left everything else in. The weight of the Mandarin orange peel was 5.3 grams when I added it to the 1 L of 45% abv neutral.

The first 200 ml collected (after a 10 ml cut) came out at 162 proof and the second 200 ml was 152 proof. I collected another 200 ml at 84 proof that will go into the next run. It tastes like harsh Triplesec. I used the head portion of my Bok and it worked very well I think.

I blended the 2 portions with 340 ml of distilled water which gave me 740 ml at 42% abv. Smells great! Flavor is sharp and each of the 3 botanicals is distinct. Going to be hard to let this age I think, I will be doing 3 more runs over the next week adding a new botanical each time. Licorice root first.

Devon · Post by **Devon** » Mon Dec 21, 2015 1:11 pm

I've got a few more days before I will need to consider running this through a still, however I have a pot still head that I built in preparation for a keg which was supposed to be turning up but the keg supplier has got some
Issues. So can I use this still with the packing removed?

Home Distiller

Odin's Easy Gin

Re: Odin's Easy Gin

Re: Odin's Easy Gin

Re: Odin's Easy Gin

Re: Odin's Easy Gin

Re: Odin's Easy Gin

Re: Odin's Easy Gin

Re: Odin's Easy Gin

Re: Odin's Easy Gin

Re: Odin's Easy Gin

Re: Odin's Easy Gin

Re: Odin's Easy Gin

Re: Odin's Easy Gin

Re: Odin's Easy Gin

Re: Odin's Easy Gin

Re: Odin's Easy Gin

Re: Odin's Easy Gin

Re: Odin's Easy Gin

Re: Odin's Easy Gin

Re: Odin's Easy Gin

Re: Odin's Easy Gin

Re: Odin's Easy Gin

Re: Odin's Easy Gin

Re: Odin's Easy Gin

Re: Odin's Easy Gin

Re: Odin's Easy Gin

Re: Odin's Easy Gin

Re: Odin's Easy Gin

Re: Odin's Easy Gin

Re: Odin's Easy Gin

Re: Odin's Easy Gin