What'd ya'll make today?

[Bro-sephus]

Made about 5 ga of wash yesterday that is fermenting good today! My buddy who is a homebrewer and helluva beer maker gave me a jar of his lees from a blonde ale he'd made a week or so ago, had it sitting in a friends fridge till I grabbed it Saturday. Anyhow my grain bill was 2# crushed peated malt barley, 2# cracked field corn, 1# crystal malt barley and about 5# sugar (brown and cane... yeah, time to go to the store!) and a couple multivitamin and a tablespoon of citric acid. Gave me an initial reading of 1.050. Anyhow, I acclimated the beer yeast after pouring off the beer on top(yum!) and pitched after 30-40 minutes or so. Seemed to take longer to get going but it is HAPPY sitting in my garage just going to town!

[zouthernborne]

Doing a strip run of Pugirum at the moment. Got a BSW going in the garage. Thinking of doing an all-molasses and water wash next.

[RumRaider]

Been working on UJSM. On the 4th gen now. Been dumping most of the output from the last gen back into the next gen when I run it. Initially, I was not getting the output I expected. ABV is only jumping about 10% on average and total output is only increasing by about 20%. Looking back now, it seems about right though. Most importantly it's gotten smoother. It has a nice warmth (as opposed to "burn") to it. Think I'll just run straight mash (and tails) from now on. I know all the sophisticated folks love to oak this stuff but, I'm kinda groovin' on the corn flavor (also been adding some honey malt in the mash which I like). Also, a little 110-120 proof just goes so nice with a quiet moment.

[blind drunk]

I made some Kahlua with a mix of aged spiced rum and white dog. Not sure if the spices will hold their ground to the coffee's influence, but it's worth a try.

[NcHooch]

A little beer today:

Hound Dog Brown Ale
Type: All Grain
Batch Size: 5.50 gal
Brewer: NChooch , Asst Brewer: Mr. Hound
Taste Notes: Nut Brown Ale.


Amount Item Type % or IBU
6.00 lb Pale Malt (2 Row) US (2.0 SRM) Grain 57.1 %
1.00 lb Cara-Pils/Dextrine (2.0 SRM) Grain 9.5 %
1.00 lb Caramel/Crystal Malt - 60L (60.0 SRM) Grain 9.5 %
1.00 lb Munich Malt (9.0 SRM) Grain 9.5 %
0.50 lb Chocolate Malt (350.0 SRM) Grain 4.8 %
0.50 oz Chinook [11.00%] (60 min) Hops 22.8 IBU
0.50 oz Chinook [11.00%] (30 min) Hops 11.4 IBU
0.50 oz Williamette [4.90%] (30 min) Hops 1.0 IBU
1.10 items Whirlfloc Tablet (Boil 15.0 min) Misc
1.00 lb Brown Sugar, Light (8.0 SRM) Sugar 9.5 %
7.19 gal Piedmont, NC Water
1 Pkgs Nottingham (Danstar #-) Yeast-Ale

Sparging it out right now which seems to take forever... Heck of a nice day here tho, so just settin out on the deck enjoyin the birds (calls).

[NcHooch]

.....aaaaand I recon I'll followup with some piggyback to boot...
might as well, right?

[heartcut]

Sounds like the pig and the back are gonna turn out great.

[Durace11]

Over the long weekend I made the following:

Chai Cream Ale
Type: All Grain
Batch Size: 5 gal

6.00 lb Pale Malt (2 Row) US
1.00 lb Cara-Pils/Dextrine (2.0 SRM)
1.50 oz Liberty [5.00%] (First Wort)
0.50 oz Mt Hood [6.00%] (First Wort)
5.00 items Ruby Red Chai tea bag (Trader Joe's) (60 min)
1.00 items Whirlfloc Tablet (Boil 15.0 min)
1.00 oz Liberty [5.00%] (1 min)
2.00 lb Brown Sugar, Golden (1 min)
5.00 items Ruby Red Chai tea bag (Trader Joe's) (primary)
5.00 items Ruby Red Chai tea bag (Trader Joe's) (secondary)
1 Pkgs WLP080 Cream Ale Yeast

Something Special Cider
Type: Cider
Batch Size: 6 gal
2.00 1 gallon Kirkland Fresh pressed Apple Juice
2.00 1 gallon Tree Top Apple Juice
2.00 96oz Kirkland Apple/Peach/Passion Fruit Juice mix
6.00 lb Brown Sugar, Golden
Cote des Blancs yeast

Plum Cherry mead
Type: Mead
Batch Size: 3 gal
1.00 1 gallon sage Honey
2.00 1 gallon filtered water
2.00 36oz Dried Plums(primary)
3.00 lb Dried Cherries(secondary)
Lavin D-47 yeast

Pear Cider
Type: Cider
Batch Size: 3 gal
1.00 1 gallon Kirkland Fresh pressed Apple Juice
1.00 1 gallon Tree Top Apple Juice
2.00 lb Brown Sugar, Golden
8.00 15oz Pear halves in juice(primary)
8.00 15oz Pear halves in juice(secondary)
Cote des Blancs yeast

[Frosteecat]

Running my Mixed Grain Recipe #3

Mixed Feed Wash
Recipe #3

13 lbs white sugar
2 lbs brown sugar
2 cups clover honey
3 lbs. snoqualmie lodge oats
3 tblsp vanilla paste
3 lbs Gambrinus honey malt 15-20 Lovibond
11.25 lbs mixed feed
4 gallons backset
8 gallons h20
3 pcs (about 1/8 cup) of sugar ginger (baker's/confectioners)
boil
3 gallon h20 cooling
3 bags stash peach tea
cool
pitch yeast

The beer alone is great...dry, slightly sour, slightly sweet....mmmmmmmmm.....beer.

I may piggyback the backset of this into a UJSM ferment. Then I'm going to run an "experimental" wash that consists of very high ABV backset and grain that's been working in a corner with Koji barley pellets in it. It is a priomordial soup right now and I am pretty interested to see what comes off it. I'll also be cooking up and preparing a mixed rice Koji ferment, along with prepping some Lemoncillo and a Kirschwasser variant made with Bing cherries.
Busy day...good thing I took the day off from work to sip and cook huh?

[DFitz]

Today I'm blending and bottling 6 gallons of of the triple distilled sugarhead from spent AG mashes. I let it air three days and popped the cover off jar #1. Smooth as silk. No heads odor or pallet. Very nice outcome on this run. So far I've found that every jar 1-12 of the first case in great quality. I may have stumbled upon something fantastic here! I charred a couple dozen oak sticks last week and am using about 40g per gallon. I'm thinking this will come off real nice over then next 2-3 months.

I also mixed up a gallon of this likker for a pantydropper. Diluted to 130 proof and its in 1/2 gallon jars sucking up those jamberries at the moment

The AG was temporarily halted as I wait for another grain order with continued efforts of finding the waxy corn variety locally. Waiting for some mechanical components to finish my paddle mixer build... Soon enough!

[Marshwalker]

Started a 5 gallon batch of Ancient Orange Clove Mead today.... Gonna do a viniger run in the new still this evening...started a crack corn n sugar mash for my sacrificial...really pumped up bubba!!!

[bentstick]

Someone else did a mead run here awhile ago,dont know how it turned out lost the thread! I have made mead is not to bad but damn the headache after sucks bad! Been thinking of trying to run it I will be waiting for results!

[Marshwalker]

I hear ya!!! I veered off the path just a bit on the ingredients because i couldnt find enough clover honey and won't be getting the Tupelo honey for another month....but found plenty orange... This is what I put in: 5 large oranges, 5 whole cloves, 1 1/2 Tbs of nutmeg, 1 Tbs of all spice, bout 120-150 raisins, 6 cinnamon sticks, 9 lbs of clover honey, 6 lbs of orange honey, 5 gallons of water and 5 tbs of bread yeast.

I'm gonna buy a couple more carboys and try a batch with straight tupelo raw honey..and make some strawberry wine (grown locally)

I haven't had any mead in quit a while and this will be my first attempt at it...we'll see

[Frosteecat]

Put up my Kirschwasser yesterday after adding a ratio of 2-1 white to brown sugar. Decided to put it in a 750 ml bottle that had some used oak chips and a tiny amount of oaked whiskey in the bottom. Let it sit for several hours in the sugar, then added @42% ABV mixed grain liquor to the top and a 1/2 tsp of Pectic Enzyme. Like any good cook I taste my recipes as they go...it is already taking on a beautiful red hue (I used about 2.5 lbd of Bing cherries with the stems snipped off and holes poked in each cherry). It is sweet but wonderful! This is going to be really good when finished!

[frozenthunderbolt]

Started 3 21L batches of bird watchers
23L of lager - from a kit
23L stout kit + oats, treacle and cocoa for more complex flavours
2 21 L batches of UJSSM
and ran a 1.5 9th gen rum

A good day!

[madmace]

Banana Rum,Brandy?
Started with 27 large very ripe bananas,cut both ends off and removed peels.Added 2 gals water to pot with bananas and beat with blender stick till liquified.Added 2 tsp amylase and 2 beanos.1 cup flaked barley,1 cup cracked corn,1 cup flaked wheat. 2 1/2 tsp Dap,1 tsp yeast nutrient,and 1 multi vitamin.Put on stove and started to bring up to temp (140-145 f),. and I also added the peels at this time to the pot, along with a tsp of bakers yeast to give a little xtra nutrients. When mash was approx 90 F I took about 8 oz of mash liquid and added 1/2 tsp dap and 1/4 tsp nutrient with 1 1/2 TBLS Bakers yeast, and 1/2 TBLS Distillers yeast and set aside for a yeast starter. Held at 140-145 f for one hr ,at this time I put 4lbs of sugur that was inverted with a quart of H2o .Then I removed the peels and removed any juice from them I could. I topped off to 4 gal with cold water.When it was 90 f I pitched the yeast starter and stirred well. Within 15 min it was off gasing, and in 1 hr it was boiling. I have a huge fruit cap that I have been stirring back every hr or so to prevent drying or mold development.Could not even begin to take SG due to its consistensy. Will post later on any further developments or at least when run and how see turned out.

[madmace]

Well today ran my first UJSM. Had done 2 5 gal fermerts of it so I would have plenty of sweets to add and make it so I would not have to do stripping runs. I run a pot and could not get 80-70% on one run. I ended up with 4 1/2 pints of 80-70% goodness. Used a gallon of sweets. 2 gal H2o and 1 gal backset .Initially I used the 7 lbs cracked corn, and 4 pounds fresh frozen. I pureed 2 lbs of the fresh and added just the juice I strianed out of it, then I pureed the other 2 pounds and added all of that, I do not know if it changed it all that much , but for a non whiskey drinker that shit sure is good. cant wait till I hit the 3-4 generation of it. Thanks uncle jesse

[bentstick]

Well today ran my first UJSM. Had done 2 5 gal fermerts of it so I would have plenty of sweets to add and make it so I would not have to do stripping runs. I run a pot and could not get 80-70% on one run. I ended up with 4 1/2 pints of 80-70% goodness. Used a gallon of sweets. 2 gal H2o and 1 gal backset .Initially I used the 7 lbs cracked corn, and 4 pounds fresh frozen. I pureed 2 lbs of the fresh and added just the juice I strianed out of it, then I pureed the other 2 pounds and added all of that, I do not know if it changed it all that much , but for a non whiskey drinker that shit sure is good. cant wait till I hit the 3-4 generation of it. Thanks uncle jesse

[quote=

Wait until ya get father than that, I also add sweet corn every two ferments, it does change the taste!
Have fun! Be safe! You are now at the point of no return! You have been assimilated.

[zouthernborne]

Doing a triple distillation of BSW, and started a small scotch grain wash that probably won't yield more than a pint or so. But I'm stillin!

[Samohon]

Filtered, Tempered and Bottled some 2YO UJSSM from my 10L oak barrel.
I was amazed how good it was 6 months ago, but it just keeps getting better. Really nice whiskey... Thanks UJ...

Also, done 2 x 20L batches of Sarah Hughes Ruby Red Bitter (beer)... 4.5% abv, I never let my stocks go low with this.

[zouthernborne]

2 YO? I bet that is some tasty booze. And that beer sounds good too. I could do with a good homebrew right about now.

[chris_adams]

Made my mash weeks ago and it's already done fermenting, I let it sit for a few days since I still got no time to hit it. I probably will check the stuff tonight if everything's alright and clean my still. I'll force time so I can distill it this weekend.

[Frosteecat]

I'm taking a cabinet, putting it on its side and putting casters on the bottom so I can put all of my carboys and giant fermenter in it and wheel it around the damn room so I can siphon where I damn well please! I'm getting too old to hoist 160 fluid lbs. of UJSSM above my waist and tip it into the boiler without spilling it all over the place. Hoping it will hold at least 4 or 5 5Gallons & the fermenter. Hoping I might be able to run my UJSSM tomorrow...it's been going for a week now.



Will also try to steam and inoculate some rice with Koji for Awamori liquor.

[whiskeytripping]

A batch of sweet feed whiskey. I have a 13 gallon fermentor, so here's the grain bill

6" of sweet feed in bottom (molasses and oats mostly with a little barley, little corn too)
4#'s of steam rolled corn, (washed and rinsed and all floaters thrown out)
6 gallons water
3 beans tablets crushed
5#'s of white sugar
.5#'s of a dark brown sugar

After filling container up 6", I added the corn, sugar, then poured 3 gallons of boiling water over the top, added the beano tablets after about 20 min, let it set 90 min, then added 3 more gallons of cold water on top. I then added 4 cups of a current UJSSM trub or dunder that had a red star champagne yeast in it (I ran out of that particular yeast so I added it to this container) hope it kicks off good, I'm sure it will.

[Prairiepiss]

Started my first ever rum ferment. With a little input from LWTCS. I came up with this.

2.5 gal Blackstrap.
10 lbs Panela.
32 lbs sugar.
Water to total 35 gallons.
SG 1.080.

Waiting for it to cool down. Will pitch yeast tommaro.

This stuff smells great. Like a mix between grape juice, prune juice, with an earthy note. Being my first I had no dunder. But I will have plenty after this is all ran out. Will be starting a dunder pit. I have enough blackstrap and sugar to do another batch. So just need to collect the panela for the next one. Can't wait to run it with the new addition.

[rtalbigr]

PP, you running this through a pot or a column?

Big R

[Prairiepiss]

PP, you running this through a pot or a column?

Big R

Yes!

Inline bubblecap under a short column. But I will have enough I mite just run it different each run. Be a good way to see what the still will do.

[Frosteecat]

Put up some quarts of strawberries and blueberries last night. Froze the fruit first then warmed up in a water bath, added white and brown sugar and a couple of pieces of medium toast oak. Will ad citric acid and @50% to fill once the sugar breaks it down a bit. Used the same process for my Kirschwasser and it is great after just a couple weeks.

[whiskeytripping]

Hello, I was just wondering Mr P, are you going to make a special pot still dedicated to just Rum for your Rum your making? I had someone tell me it dirty's up everything. I'm not sure myself, I haven't ever made it. After he told me that I never made it due to that reason, he might have been full of sh#t though. Let us know how it turns out. I bet it will have a good taste

[HookLine]

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!

Sorry, missed this one.

Hydrosol in this case is just diluting the feints (with any tails in them) below 30% (25-30%) ABV. Letting it sit for 24 hours. Then carefully draining off the liquid from below, leaving the top 50-100 mm layer behind. The drained off liquid is the still charge.

Reason for doing this is that diluting to that level allows the fusel oils to separate from the rest and float on the surface. So leaving that top layer behind leaves a lot of the fusel oils behind. Which makes for a lot cleaner product when you are using any tails feints in the charge.