Birdwatchers sugar wash recipe

[Navy vet]

Sorry if you guys have already covered this in this post but i got tired of reading after about page 27...lol

You were so close....... Look a few posts above yours. There is a calculator for bird watchers.
Good luck..

[hopkins21]

lol...figures.....thank you

[magnetic_copper]

I have tried this recipe twice and both times were fantastic. It took me about 10 days to ferment from 1.06 to .98 at 22 C. On the calculator it says to use whole lemons, are they supposed to be cut in half? Also, as mentioned previously it does have an off tomato smell when distilled, but you cant taste it when drinking. Has anyone here ever tried using carbon to remove it to make it completely neutral or double distilled it and if so can you share the results.

Thanks.

[maximum liberty 101]

Over yeasted Birdwatcher...

Hey guys, I've been lingering around HD for a couple of months now. Completed the mini Boka 2 weekends ago. Put together my first birdwatcher sugar mash Friday. Ran first vinegar through the mini on Saturday. Thanks to everyone for all the great info here.

I just realized that I over yeasted the Birdwatcher sugar wash. Scaled it down to 1/4 or 10lbs sugar. So, instead of 2 oz, it received 8oz yeast. It was still bubbling last night(Sun) when I stirred it.

Can anyone tell me what to expect? Thanks in advance.

[Navy vet]

You shouldn't have a problem, the first thing yeast will do after pitching is hopefully reproduce with O2 present before going to work on the sugar. Rack when finished and let settle. You wont be disappointed.
Reminds me of The Three Stooges short, when they were making beer and they All put the yeast in.....

[Navy vet]

I have tried this recipe twice and both times were fantastic. It took me about 10 days to ferment from 1.06 to .98 at 22 C. On the calculator it says to use whole lemons, are they supposed to be cut in half? Also, as mentioned previously it does have an off tomato smell when distilled, but you cant taste it when drinking. Has anyone here ever tried using carbon to remove it to make it completely neutral or double distilled it and if so can you share the results.

Thanks.

Juice the lemons and remove the pulp. Juice only in the wash.

[frozenthunderbolt]

[quote="magnetic_copper"]Also, as mentioned previously it does have an off tomato smell when distilled, but you cant taste it when drinking. Has anyone here ever tried using carbon to remove it to make it completely neutral or double distilled it and if so can you share the results.[quote]

First distillation run it hard - a stripping run pull the alcohol fast, dont worry about cuts except for some fores.

2nd distillation (depending on the size of your still) combine a coupple of stripping runs and then cut it back to 30% (more dilution = less flavour)
If you runnin a pot still; run it low and slow
If you running a reflux give it good time to reach equilibrium before and after taking fores and heads.
Make good cuts on this run and you should be fine.

[MDH]

Distill once. Add about a teaspoon sodium hydroxide to the low wines and leave it for a week, this will react most if not all of the fatty acid/esters. Add a half teaspoon of ascorbic acid and a tiny bit of copper sulfate to the low wines, this will remove any sulfur compounds. Distill it for a second time and then a third, store the distillate at around 80% it in a half-full jug. Aerate it by shaking and open the lid briefly after doing so, then dilute to 40% using filtered water and bottle.

This will work even with a pot still.

[Beavercreek]

I'm going to try this recipe and converted it to weight for a five gallon ferment, here it's what I came up with.
169 grams tomato paste
23 grams lemon juice
4.5 kg sugar
56 grams yeast
Fill fermenting bucket to five gallons

[maximum liberty 101]

I ran my first ever stripping run Sunday. 6gal BW with 4x the recommended yeast by accident. Took 3 days to completely ferment and sat fermented for 5 days before I ran it. Here is what I got:

Head Temp at start 170F
Qty(ml) %ABV
300 65
300 62
450 59
450 58
450 56
450 53
450 50
450 49 (Sweet Smell Detected)
450 43 (Slightly Cloudy)
900 33 (Slightly Cloudy) Head Temp
Head Temp at finish 204F

I seriously can't tell a lot of difference in smell, taste or texture across this entire panel. It's all crystal clear except the last two samples.

Since the first sample is above 61, I'm guessing the mash was above 10%...

[WV Shine]

Have you tried watering the samples down to around 30% and then tasting/smelling? Sometimes that makes it easier to pick up on the flavors. If you ran super fast it may be smeared together pretty bad, which would make differentiation harder When ya do your spirit run you'll be able to pick up on the changes more easily.

[frozenthunderbolt]

Have you tried watering the samples down to around 30% and then tasting/smelling? Sometimes that makes it easier to pick up on the flavors. If you ran super fast it may be smeared together pretty bad, which would make differentiation harder When ya do your spirit run you'll be able to pick up on the changes more easily.

1+
if you water the samples down with hot water it will make the changes jar-to-jar even clearer again

[Undies]

1+
if you water the samples down with hot water it will make the changes jar-to-jar even clearer again

Great tip! Thanks.


Birdwatchers ingredients calculator: http://shuggo.com/birdwatchers/

[Cyclops]

Great tip! Thanks.


Birdwatchers ingredients calculator: http://shuggo.com/birdwatchers/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

You should be given a medal for this. Makes it so much easier to work it all out

[KyRain]

I just completed a 6 gal run of BW. This is truly a fantastic recipe.

[hopkins21]

Maybe you have already answered this, but why do you not put it in an a sealed ferment bucket with a water filled airlock after mixing instead of on the third day.....or can you. I was just curious, I noticed in the first of this thread it say to put in airlock on third day.

[Undies]

Maybe you have already answered this, but why do you not put it in an a sealed ferment bucket with a water filled airlock after mixing instead of on the third day.....or can you. I was just curious, I noticed in the first of this thread it say to put in airlock on third day.

All quiet on the Birdwatchers front then...

I've read the entire BW thread, but don't remember that being mentioned. Not doubting it, but I don't remember it being such a prevalent suggestion.

I throw all the ingredients in, then rest the lid on loosely and let it do it's work. It gives off carbon dioxide fast enough to keep the nasties out. It can really bubble and foam up quickly over the first few hours, so maybe that's why someone suggested not to put the airlock on on the beginning. The Epsom salts seem to help the over-foaming somewhat. The airlock is good for judging whether the yeast is still alive, otherwise it can be hard to tell if it's still producing carbon dioxide.

Hope this is all correct, and helps.

http://shuggo.com/birdwatchers/

[maheel]

i dont bother with airlocks and bubblers or a sealing lid....

about 3 hours after picthing the yeast i lift the lid and have a look
if there is a foam in there it's working

i drop the lid back on and leave it alone for a few weeks

if nothing has happend i have a look after a couple more hours... then maybe i would need to "worry"
but i have never had a BW fail and i have made plenty of it

[hilbilly]

Maheel, have you ever had a wash get infected?

I've only used BW to date and have been afraid of getting an infection, so I have been racking into a glass carboy after about a week, when the SG is down to 0.99 (less than 1.000) and watch as it clears. Usually leave it for another week, just to clear some more. A lot of settlement takes place and it really clears the wash up during this time. When it is reasonably clear and bubbling almost stopped, it gets used. I like being able to see the clarity through the glass, but that adds a lot more time and effort to the overall process. It would certainly be less work to just leave it in the fermenter, then go straight into the boiler.

[Beavercreek]

I just fermented my first batch of birdwatchers under airlock and it worked fine. I can't imagine how fermenting without airlock would improve the product (but I'm still pretty new to this).

Maybe you have already answered this, but why do you not put it in an a sealed ferment bucket with a water filled airlock after mixing instead of on the third day.....or can you. I was just curious, I noticed in the first of this thread it say to put in airlock on third day.

[Undies]

i dont bother with airlocks and bubblers or a sealing lid....

When I started using BW, I was fastidiously clean. Disinfecting everything, using bottle wash, etc. I slowly became more relaxed about it all, and now I only rinse my equipment with tap water before starting. Once I've throw in the yeast, I try not to open the (loosely placed) lid too often, and that's it. I've never had any kind of infection.

http://shuggo.com/birdwatchers/

[hopkins21]

Place cover loosely, to let CO2 escape, keeping flying nasties out. There is so much CO2 coming off; there is no need to worry about oxygen coming in contact.

Place bottomless styrofoam box over fermenter. Dangle lit lightbulb through small hole in lid. Bulb must be strong enough to keep the mixture at a steady range of 30C-35C for entire fermentation. Size of bulb depends on room temperature. Stick your digital thermometer through side of box to track inside temperature.

{A good idea would be to set up with water a day before you begin wash to determine the size of light bulb to maintain water/wash in the 30-35C range.}

Check SG and temperature daily

Stir daily

On day three, syphon contents evenly into four 23 liter airlocked carboys

Undies ,This is why I asked if it mattered or not. But I went ahead and just airlocked it from the get go...thanks for all the input guys.

[maheel]

Maheel, have you ever had a wash get infected?
.

i have never EVER had a BW get infected
had one get a little funky after i took 40L out of the 80L barrel and some fruit flies made it in there...
but it was not "infected" just a bit funky

to check the FG i just lift the lid and "drop" the hydo into the barrel take a reading and remove
i then drop the hydro in some heads to clean it

i often let BW sit around for months and strip them when i have time never been a drama to me.


1000's of beer brewers prefer gladwrap to airlocks, nothing to clean just throw it away and use a new bit next ferment
no flies trying to crawl into them. no issues if you move the barrel. Who has had a airlock suck liquid "into" the fermnt barrel when moving it.... ?

i am very clean in my beer brewing but with BW i dont clean as thoroughly

[Devonhomebrew]

Okay i know im not new to distilling but im still worried about foreshots ive distilled 80L of birdwatchers mash into 20L of low wines with literally no cuts and no foreshots cut either on my spirit run do i take 1L of fores of from the low wines because i usaully take 250ml per 20L of mash but i usaully only make 20L of mash at any one time then spirit run 5l of low wines with 3L of water so my boiler doesnt run dry whilst i distill?

[Undies]

Okay i know im not new to distilling but im still worried about foreshots ive distilled 80L of birdwatchers mash into 20L of low wines with literally no cuts and no foreshots cut either on my spirit run do i take 1L of fores of from the low wines because i usaully take 250ml per 20L of mash but i usaully only make 20L of mash at any one time then spirit run 5l of low wines with 3L of water so my boiler doesnt run dry whilst i distill?

I see it as you wanting to take 25ml of ethanol per 20L of mash. So, you had 80l, so you want to remove 100ml of ethanol. So, depending on the ABV of what is coming out, you can determine how much to remove. And by ethanol, I mean ethanol as it is mixed with water as it comes out.

Otherwise, just be cautious and take out too much.

[Cardinalbags]

I've taken up doing BW in 80l batches using a 120 L barrel. I use a Paint mixer attachment on a cordless drill to make sure all the ingredients are well mixed. Pitch in the yeast, one final stir. Then in goes the 200 w aquarium heater and aquarium circulation pump. I made up a large scale airlock as that barrel starts producing right away. I wrap the barrel with a blanket and leave for 10-12 days. It never fails (so far, touch wood) to ferment out to 0.985 reliably in that time. The krausen breaks down after the first day due to the constant agitation from the aquarium circulator.

I use nothing but RO water in the mix.

With my new 50l keg boiler I will be dong my strip runs on a Saturday in two batches to get to about 20l of 40%abv and then turn around and do the spirit run the following day. Seeing as I make most of it into the wife's gin, she cant complain that i am not doing enough yard work or some other damn thing she has on the Honeydew list.

I collect everything on the strip runs and then cut into 400 ml jars on the spirit runs from fores to tails. Makes for a lot of small jars but very easy for making cuts. The wife does not like any sweet in her Gin so she gets the best early hearts. i keep the late hearts and just a hint of tails for my vodkas. The rest goes into the feints jar.

[Cyclops]

i have just put a batch of this on and found that i didnt get any Krausen, it is definetly fermenting though as its fizzing like crazy, i am fermenting at 30C

Is this normal?

[Beerbrewer]

Seems pretty normal. Mine does the same except it takes around a month to ferment out. I am using a ale yeast so I will try bakers next time.

[Bushman]

i have just put a batch of this on and found that i didnt get any Krausen, it is definetly fermenting though as its fizzing like crazy, i am fermenting at 30C

Is this normal?

With birdwatchers I usually get krausen at the beginning but settles out fairly fast. I usually keep my fermentation room at between 25-28C so your 30C should be fine as I haven't taken an actual temp of the fermentation in sometime.

[BoisBlancBoy]

Instead of using juice from freshly squeezed lemons is there a problem using bottles lemon juice?