What'd ya'll make today?

[frozenthunderbolt]

chuck in a bit of pectinase if you haven't already to deal with the marmalade

Yep - i'l try without this time and see just how cloudy the pectin makes it. That gives me a great excuse to then distill a test batch (when i wouldn't want pectin as it would create more methanol no?) Then if the distillate is crap and the wine is cloudy but tasty i can do subsequent batches with the pectinase

[Coyote]

I made a mess. . . .

[blind drunk]

Did a spirit run with a mix of rum and sugar head low wines. I accidentally mixed the two a while back. Good yield, good taste, but what is it ...

Long time coming and it felt good. Put me in the right mood.

[LWTCS]

It is likker
Enjoy Sir

[frozenthunderbolt]

doin a strip run on gen 7 rum after this i'll combine all generations with the 2-3 gal of aged (but sadly unmolded dunder w/ possible lactic infection) and do a final spirit run

[blind drunk]

doin a strip run on gen 7 rum after this i'll combine all generations with the 2-3 gal of aged (but sadly unmolded dunder w/ possible lactic infection) and do a final spirit run

Let us know how you like the lactic notes in your final distillate.

[RumBrewer]

Well, I'm running gen 1 + 2 (just saved 1 in a carboy) of sweet mash corn whiskey. So I guess it's like gen 1 and 1.5. Anyway, backset to be added and will makes me some sour mash in the near future.

[frozenthunderbolt]

doin a strip run on gen 7 rum after this i'll combine all generations with the 2-3 gal of aged (but sadly unmolded dunder w/ possible lactic infection) and do a final spirit run

Let us know how you like the lactic notes in your final distillate.

Would you advise against this BD? Havent done the 2nd run yet

[blind drunk]

Just curious. I had a lactic wash once and the lacticity really came through. I'm not sure I liked it, but I hate being a nay sayer. My impression was with some good aging, it could have been nice. It added a real smoothness, but too much up front lactic notes. Like I said, my entire wash was lactic. Don't know much about adding lactic dunder to a run, like you're doing.

[frozenthunderbolt]

Just curious. I had a lactic wash once and the lacticity really came through. I'm not sure I liked it, but I hate being a nay sayer. My impression was with some good aging, it could have been nice. It added a real smoothness, but too much up front lactic notes. Like I said, my entire wash was lactic. Don't know much about adding lactic dunder to a run, like you're doing.

Well i've got gen 8 bubbling away happily at the moment, my new plan is to re run gens 1-4 with the Lactic? dunder for more flavor, and do a careful spirit run on gens 5-8 with just their naturally developing complexity shining through (i hope). After this, i'll freeze a few L of dunder from my gen 8 run to kick off any future ferments. But i recon i'll be done with rum for a while!

[austontatious]

I started 2 20L sweet feed washes and a 20L apple cider. Going to run them all next weekend. I'm still learning where to make my cuts so I gotta start with a big quantity and cut it real narrow.

[Stillbilly]

Messing with some ingredients.
>>
Boil everything for 60 minutes
50 lb sugar
5.5 gal water
4 lb box Grape-Nuts ceral
4 chopped up potato's
4 chuncks baked white oak
1 lemon juice
A litttle epsome

transfer to Brute barrel, top with well water till the gravity is in 1.06 - 07 range, add some yeast nutrient, 1 - 1.5 cups bakers yeast, let er rip.
My VM still peaks around 86-87 abv so some flavor carries over.

Cheers

[rad14701]

4 chuncks baked white oak

And this ingredient is for what purpose...???

[Prairiepiss]

4 chuncks baked white oak

And this ingredient is for what purpose...???

Preoaking?

[Stillbilly]

wait n see..

[Stillbilly]

Preoaking? [/quote]

haha, yes, It's a preemptive preoaking process.. likely will do little i know, but an experiment in the making.

Native Americans used to boil and eat the acorns.
Curious if cracked acorns have ever been used for flavoring during the boil.. have a few white oaks near me...

[frozenthunderbolt]

Just curious. I had a lactic wash once and the lacticity really came through. I'm not sure I liked it, but I hate being a nay sayer. My impression was with some good aging, it could have been nice. It added a real smoothness, but too much up front lactic notes. Like I said, my entire wash was lactic. Don't know much about adding lactic dunder to a run, like you're doing.

Well i've got gen 8 bubbling away happily at the moment, my new plan is to re run gens 1-4 with the Lactic? dunder for more flavor, and do a careful spirit run on gens 5-8 with just their naturally developing complexity shining through (i hope). After this, i'll freeze a few L of dunder from my gen 8 run to kick off any future ferments. But i recon i'll be done with rum for a while!

Just ran this with gens 1-4 and the backset - Far and away the best rum i've ever tasted and certainly the best i've ever made. Possible the best spirit i've ever made! And its not eve touched oak yet! Should i use second use oak for it, or just a smaller amount of fresh toasted/chared?

[blind drunk]

Just ran this with gens 1-4 and the backset - Far and away the best rum i've ever tasted and certainly the best i've ever made. Possible the best spirit i've ever made!

Thanks for the update. Really glad it worked out so well.

[Rocketboy]

Running 1 1/2 gallons of feints from three runs of an all-grain barley mash. Running through my 2" boka nice and slow, should end up with some nice, tight-cut, dry whiskey for oaking. I have a couple dozen charred oak sticks that have been soaking in a gallon of Sherry for six months. The oak smells amazing, should impart some nice flavors into the barley spirits. I'll keep ya posted.

[Large Sarge]

Today was beer (Much, much better at brewing beer than still'n). 11 Gallons of an Amber Lager are fermenting in a 50 degree fridge. Nailed the numbers. Should be tasty in a couple of months.

[Rocketboy]

Started a great recipe of cracked corn, 6-row sweet barley, toasted wheat germ. Should get around 8 gallons of 10-12% wash in a week or so. Pitched yeast last night, should be ready for the still on Saturday. I've run this before with excellent results, drinkable right off the still but even better after a couple months on oak. Can't wait until the my main stash of this one is done oaking in a couple years, should rival some of the better bourbons.

[HookLine]

Finally got some time to run a couple of charges of whisky feints. A mix from separate rice malt extract, barley malt extract, and all-grain barley malt/corn/rye runs. Been sitting there for well over a year, so might have been a little ageing/maturing going on to help things along.

Gave them the hydrosol treatment (well worth it, highly recommend making it a standard part of your flavoured spirit process, for pot still runs).

First did spirit runs through the pot still, with 150 mm of packing and a desk fan pointing straight at the pot column to get a little extra reflux. Ran about 20% slower than usual, and made tight conservative cuts.

Nice yield. Very good taste and quantity. Lovely blend.

Then ran the collected feints from both pot runs through the reflux column, also with some fairly tight cuts. Got almost as much again. Also a nice result, though much lighter in flavour of course.

[frozenthunderbolt]

Gave them the hydrosol treatment (well worth it, highly recommend making it a standard part of your flavored spirit process, for pot still runs).

Can you expand on this Hook? I thought that Hydrosols where steam extractions of plants - essentially essential oils, or are you just being flowery in your description of distillation!

[heartcut]

Stilled a sugar piggyback from a strong wheat ale this weekend. Tasted good right out of the parrot. AG barley is great after wood and aging, but this sugar wash is better white. Ground up 2 lb of pale malt, dumped it on the spent grain with a few gallons of hot backset, added more sugar, CaCO3 and vitamin B and we're off again.

[NcHooch]

i did this today:

Partial mash "Bourbon"
3.5 pounds cracked corn
1 pound oats
1 pound crushed 6-row malt
4 pounds corn sugar
2 pounds brown sugar
safeale 05
**
cook cracked corn and oats in 2.5 gals water to gel
cool to 145
add 6-row malt and mash for 1 hour (starch test optional)
Dump into fermenter, stir in all the sugar, and top to the 6 gallon mark with cold water
as long as your temp is 90 or less, pitch the yeast and cap it.
Done
**
SG ;

[NcHooch]

Stilled a sugar piggyback from a strong wheat ale this weekend. Tasted good right out of the parrot. AG barley is great after wood and aging, but this sugar wash is better white. Ground up 2 lb of pale malt, dumped it on the spent grain with a few gallons of hot backset, added more sugar, CaCO3 and vitamin B and we're off again.

Mmmm, Piggyback !
Somethin about piggyback white, it's damn heavenly eh heartcut?

[heartcut]

Mmmm, Piggyback !
Somethin about piggyback white, it's damn heavenly eh heartcut?

Was heavenly on Sunday, going to check it again tonight. Great concept, piggyback guru!

[whiskeytripping]

That sounds like its gonna be tasty NcHooch, eventually I want to get more into the cooking methods one day. I made a little UJSSM and I changed it up from the last solid corn runs I did before.
I used
2#'s malted 2 row barley
2#'s malted rye
4#'s steam rolled corn
7#'s sugar

I'm really hoping the rye adds some extra flavor to the drink
Do you favor the 6 row over the 2 row?
And I guess I could add some brown sugar next time and it guess it adds a little rum flavor to the mix?
Thanks for the info guys

[Frosteecat]

I'm still waiting for a mixed grain to finish/clear...she's slowing down but I did a 12 gallon or so wash so its a little longer than the 5 gallons I'm used to.
Need to get a proper cycle going so I'm always stilling something on the wknd if I want. I have a UJSSM grocery list sitting in my trunk right now and a few bags of rice and koji I need to work out and my supply is running low....what a crisis!

[whiskeytripping]

I run 2- 6 gallon washes at a time myself frosteecat, I forgot to put the 6 gallons of water earlier. This is a new batch of UJSSM so it will absorb a pretty good bit of liquid being the first run with dry materials, but I normally like to run 12 gallons of wash at a time. I'm fixing to have to start drinking more it's so fun to play around and experiment