Help a fellow distiller!!!

PUGIDOGS · Post by **PUGIDOGS** » Thu Jan 03, 2008 12:53 pm

When I started doing this not to long ago I knew of only one other guy nearby that made his own. He is kinda a grumpy old fart and I only knew of him and did not know him. So anyhow one day I brought him a bottle of my finest 1 month old UJSM to maybe pick his brain a little. He thanked me and swoshed me out the door, no brain picking going to happen with him.

A month goes by and I get a call from the old fart. He did not know who I was and it took him awile to find me. He said that my finest was the best he had ever had and wanted me to take his 10 gallons or so of his and rerun it to clean it up, and pick my brain ( which is slim pickens ). I have had a taste of his before, I think his problem is he just cannot make good cuts, or no cuts at all. He will be over in the next week to rerun it. I will find out what he did wrong and try to post back, I think this will be interesting to see....Pugi

Post by **Uncle Jesse** » Thu Jan 03, 2008 3:55 pm

ha!

teach him well and make us proud!

Post by **shadylane** » Fri Jan 04, 2008 4:56 am

You have something he dosn't. Its access to the internet. Sure wish I'd had it years ago.

showrguy · Post by **showrguy** » Fri Jan 04, 2008 7:18 am

that's a funny story pugi...
that same thing kinda happened to me...
the guy said "you don't need to ask me anything, you already know a hell of alot more than i do"......... i don't think he's internet freindly either ??

Post by **Tater** » Fri Jan 04, 2008 7:32 am

Got a few old timers that like mine as well.However I bet ya learn something from him . he just doesn't realize that he knows it.Two brothers in there 70ds that do a run of apple brandy every year the old way with wood fire and a mud and rock furnace.They say they like my apple better.suppose to sit with them this year if all goes well when they do theres.Ive drank their product and figure its the cuts that make the difference.Their still is a 25 gallon copper still pop riveted and soldered together.Been close to 30 years since Ive been to a setup like that.

PUGIDOGS · Post by **PUGIDOGS** » Fri Jan 04, 2008 7:48 am

shadylane wrote:You have something he dosn't. Its access to the internet. Sure wish I'd had it years ago.

OH for sure Shady, I doubt I would have even started without it. There is so much valuable information on this web site it. I am sure old timers could learn a thing or two from it.

Tater, believe me I am going to keep an open mind !!! I hope to learn something from him. I do know that most of his stuff is fruit based, something I know little about.....Pugi

Post by **HookLine** » Sat Jan 05, 2008 7:09 pm

PUGIDOGS wrote:
shadylane wrote:You have something he dosn't. Its access to the internet. Sure wish I'd had it years ago.
OH for sure Shady, I doubt I would have even started without it. There is so much valuable information on this web site it.

I DEFINITELY would not have started if it wasn't for the

intertubes and this site in particular.

tater wrote:Their still is a 25 gallon copper still pop riveted and soldered together. Been close to 30 years since Ive been to a setup like that.

You know that solder is lead free?

Post by **Tater** » Sat Jan 05, 2008 7:31 pm

nope gonna check it though.

PUGIDOGS · Post by **PUGIDOGS** » Sat Jan 05, 2008 7:57 pm

I swung by the old boys house today to see what kind of a beast we are dealing with. Brought my hydrometer ( he does not own one ) It is sittin about 65 ABV and tastes like shit. His current still is a converted aluminum pressure cooker and the mash was a combo cherrie / peaches. He likes a high ABV and no taste so it looks like I will run it off as a nuetral. He will be here in the morning to hopefully take care of his off taste problem. Let you know...Pugi

duds2u · Post by **duds2u** » Sat Jan 05, 2008 11:21 pm

Good Luck Mate,
I ws at the point of giving up distilling because I didn't like the product I wa making when I found a ouple of web sites. Sure glad I did 'cos I really like my malt whisky---- NOW.
Thanks Harry, but that's another story

tracker0945 · Post by **tracker0945** » Sat Jan 05, 2008 11:33 pm

You're right Duds, the first few brews of mine were really nothing to write home about.
I am sometimes a bit suspicious or wary of posters expounding the exotic and absolutely outstanding tastes of their very first production run. Mine tasted and smelt more like someones wet jocks --- not that I am in the habit of regularly sniffing them

Post by **Uncle Jesse** » Sat Jan 05, 2008 11:44 pm

since I was self-taught I distilled for a few months before I bothered trying any of the stuff I was producing. Even then it wasn't what I'd call great.

mbasketcase13 · Post by **mbasketcase13** » Sun Jan 06, 2008 7:37 am

i can't tell good from bad cause i don't drink that much to begin with, but i do know what i like and don't like and the likes are getting more and more, maybe my taste buds are gettiing numb i still make some i don't care for or maybe i'm trying to hard for perfection or the perfect sip. some of the old timers said its as good as they've ever had but after drinking theirs that ain't sayin much. i guess i'll just keep trying

Uncle Remus · Post by **Uncle Remus** » Sun Jan 06, 2008 8:15 pm

Any of the old timers I knew who ran stills (which were few) they were only interested in the octane. I don't think they did any kind of a cut at all. I drank some stuff made from oranges, one of the old boys made. It would knock you on your ass after a couple of shots for sure, but it was like drinking diesel fuel, and man it gave you a hangover.

Some of the whiskey's I have barreled now, rate right up there with premium commercial spirits (so I'm tole...

)

The advantage we have today is knowledge and the access to it, for sure. Forums like this are truly priceless. We all discuss what we did, and learn from all of our mistakes collectively. For the most part the old boys never knew a fraction as much as we do now.

The web is such a wonderful resource for do it yourselfers like us.

punkin · Post by **punkin** » Sun Jan 06, 2008 8:24 pm

The web is such a wonderful resource for do it yourselfers like us.

Amen.

PUGIDOGS · Post by **PUGIDOGS** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 8:05 am

Well the old boy come over yesterday. He brought 2 1/2 gallons. We added in another 2 gallons of water and charged up the Bokakob. It took a little while to get it up to temp and let it equilize and so we had some time to talk. He learned from his grandad at a young age and has been makin it the same way ever since. He charges the still gets it up to temp and throws out the first shot glass. This was only to clean out the pipes. He then keeps everything untill it gets hard to light in a spoon. He definately knows how to run a still. He kept saying aren't you going to turn the temp down or crank it up we are in the middle. Just stuff like that. I tried to explain fractioning distilling to him. Not sure if I ever got through to him. I can run my still at an azeotopic mixture but it is painfully slow, we were both a little time constrained so we ran it off at 94%, it cleaned up very nice. I ended up with 450ml of foreshots

pure methonal. 350ml of heads, 4500ml of very nice neutral , the temp started to rise so I shut it off. He was a little suprized about not extracting the last of it, so I started it back up and showed him what was left. He agreed it was not drinkable so we called it a day. More on next post......

PUGIDOGS · Post by **PUGIDOGS** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 8:15 am

So we went are different ways and later that night my door bell rings, This nice older guy brought me this.

He explained that when his grandad had passed this was one of many that was sitting by the still and he wanted me to have it. He got it 40 years ago and has never removed the cork. It is empty. I tried to nicely refuse to take it but he insisted. Now what am I going to do with it. It would be nice to fill it with whisky, head to the hills by a creek, sit down and listen to the stories it could tell me.....Pugi

junkyard dawg · Post by **junkyard dawg** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 10:42 am

good story

Butch50 · Post by **Butch50** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 11:28 am

I'll meet you at the creek with a cane pole.

CatharticusX · Post by **CatharticusX** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 2:25 pm

Great story. I had a similar experience with absinthe a couple of weeks ago. There's a guy known here and even in surrounding states for his absinthe. I tried his once, knew it was distilled, but it still tasted like wormwood. Whatever...better than mine.

Met him again recently and happened to have a flask in my pocket. I offered him a sample. He aasked me if it had wormwood in it and I told him I used the amount from the 1855 recipe. We ended up talking shop for quite some time--he gave me some great tips and I hooked him up with the pontica source.

I took a little extra pleasure at noting that during the conversation somebody came up and offered him a taste of undistilled absinthe and Diet Pepsi.

(If you gagged a little just now, you have no doubt been what my wife describes as "bitten by the fairy.")

Congrats on the jug. It just needs the XXX on the side of it to look straight out of an old Snuffy Smith cartoon.

-cx

Old_Blue · Post by **Old_Blue** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 2:35 pm

I like the jug.
I got one of those in a 2 gallon size that belonged to my grandpa. I'm afraid to use it though because I understand that lead

was sometimes used in the glaze way back when. I don't know this, just something I heard. Maybe someone that's got experience with pottery can correct me if I'm wrong.

goose eye · Post by **goose eye** » Tue Jan 08, 2008 4:14 am

aint never heard of no one keepin it all but on low wine charge.
he dont no nothin bout backins or beads. im betin he no more
than he was able to say. watch him run his outfit he let you.

them xxx on side show how many times it ben run

yup there is lead in some of them ole glaze

so im tole

PUGIDOGS · Post by **PUGIDOGS** » Tue Jan 08, 2008 1:05 pm

goose eye wrote:aint never heard of no one keepin it all but on low wine charge.
he dont no nothin bout backins or beads. im betin he no more
than he was able to say. watch him run his outfit he let you.

them xxx on side show how many times it ben run

yup there is lead in some of them ole glaze

so im tole

Goose, he ran everything 3 times (XXX) so I guess he was on low wine charge.

He did not know how to read the beads but I brought out several different bottles that all contained different proof for him to taste. He would pour a little in a glass and take 2 BIG breaths through his nose than sip a little swooshing around his mouth several times then swollow. He was usually within 5 proof of actual. The worst he did was 10 proof off. I gave him 195, 135, 90 and two different 80's.....Pugi

Post by **HookLine** » Tue Jan 08, 2008 2:52 pm

PUGIDOGS wrote:He did not know how to read the beads but I brought out several different bottles that all contained different proof for him to taste. He would pour a little in a glass and take 2 BIG breaths through his nose than sip a little swooshing around his mouth several times then swollow. He was usually within 5 proof of actual. The worst he did was 10 proof off. I gave him 195, 135, 90 and two different 80's.....Pugi

Sort of experience money can't buy.

goose eye · Post by **goose eye** » Tue Jan 08, 2008 3:20 pm

yup dont dout he can.
these boys i no aint that good to proof by tastein.
after first taste they cant taste much after that if it 100+.
if he will let you sit an watch how he do thangs. dont be interuptin
an tellin him how you would do it just a be awatchin an listen.
he a brave man for comein to you. guard his secret well.

so im tole

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