infused Apple Pie shine

[Loganmeister]

Hey Guys,
As you can tell by my number of posts, I'm pretty new. I've been reading up a storm and ideas of creativity are starting the emerge as I begin to understand some concepts.

I never made sugar shine and instead went straight to SF. Glad I did as I love the taste. However I am thinking I can make it even better or unique.

So fer I have done 4 stripping runs in a pot still leaving me with about 4 gallons. First question, what is the least amount of stripped spirits I can second distill in a 5 gallon SS pot?

As this can be counted as one distillation, I now will make my first run with a variation using a thumper and a shotgun condenser. I am using a 1/2 copper pipe into the 8 qt thumper. Will there be enough surface area to heat the contents of the thumper? I will be using backins in the thumper to reduce the temp. needed to evap. the likker. Any thoughts on that cooper pipe size and would it be a good idea to increase the pipe to 3/4 into the thumper for more surface area to heat the thumper?
?

Not only do I want to add backins to my thumper to prime it, I would like to infuse the stipping run with my recipie of Apple pie shine that follows:

1/2 gallon of apple juice
1/2 gallon of apple cider (musselman's brand)
3/4 cup white sugar
1 1/4 cups of brown sugar........for those that don't use brown sugar, you are losing out!
5 drops vanilla
dash of nutmeg
5 cinnamon sticks - ..............simmered for 20 min. (To make your shine for this recipe, add 3/4 shine)

My true question is this. Would the sugary content listed above infuse the flavors into my stripping runs to produce a sweeter more cider taste at the finish?. OR should I add yeast to the above mix and ferment it out then add it to the thumper. The above recipe I look forward to making a french apple cider aged sugar maple whiskey. I read about it, but can't remember the name of what this is called...........starts with a C. Or Would I technically be making that or a variation there of. hmm

My goal is to make an American Whiskey by definition as it will be a flavored whiskey. I plan to use sugar maple with white oak chips to try to duplicate the flavor faster using the nuke method. I hope to have a final spirit that is not only smooth from the triple distillation, but also infused with a more apple finish to smooth out the taste of the casting without it being too sweet. I just want strong apple notes without the syrupy taste.

Any thoughts or suggestions to make this happen is greatly appreciated. CHEERS

[Truckinbutch]

Think that you have the cart before the horse in your vapor path and need to spend more time reading here before you try this approach .

[bobtail]

Hey Guys,


I never made sugar shine and instead went straight to SF. Glad I did as I love the taste. However I am thinking I can make it even better or unique.

Just so you know, sweet feed is a sugar wash

[S-Cackalacky]

I don't think that apple pie will do much for you in a stripping run - might even screw up the run. All the sugar might cause foaming and puking and possibly even scorching. DRINK the apple pie while you kick back and do some more reading.

Just sayin',
S-C

[Shae]

Hey Guys,
As you can tell by my number of posts, I'm pretty new. I've been reading up a storm and ideas of creativity are starting the emerge as I begin to understand some concepts.

I never made sugar shine and instead went straight to SF. Glad I did as I love the taste. However I am thinking I can make it even better or unique.

So fer I have done 4 stripping runs in a pot still leaving me with about 4 gallons. First question, what is the least amount of stripped spirits I can second distill in a 5 gallon SS pot?

As this can be counted as one distillation, I now will make my first run with a variation using a thumper and a shotgun condenser. I am using a 1/2 copper pipe into the 8 qt thumper. Will there be enough surface area to heat the contents of the thumper? I will be using backins in the thumper to reduce the temp. needed to evap. the likker. Any thoughts on that cooper pipe size and would it be a good idea to increase the pipe to 3/4 into the thumper for more surface area to heat the thumper?
?

Not only do I want to add backins to my thumper to prime it, I would like to infuse the stipping run with my recipie of Apple pie shine that follows:

1/2 gallon of apple juice
1/2 gallon of apple cider (musselman's brand)
3/4 cup white sugar
1 1/4 cups of brown sugar........for those that don't use brown sugar, you are losing out!
5 drops vanilla
dash of nutmeg
5 cinnamon sticks - ..............simmered for 20 min. (To make your shine for this recipe, add 3/4 shine)

My true question is this. Would the sugary content listed above infuse the flavors into my stripping runs to produce a sweeter more cider taste at the finish?. OR should I add yeast to the above mix and ferment it out then add it to the thumper. The above recipe I look forward to making a french apple cider aged sugar maple whiskey. I read about it, but can't remember the name of what this is called...........starts with a C. Or Would I technically be making that or a variation there of. hmm

My goal is to make an American Whiskey by definition as it will be a flavored whiskey. I plan to use sugar maple with white oak chips to try to duplicate the flavor faster using the nuke method. I hope to have a final spirit that is not only smooth from the triple distillation, but also infused with a more apple finish to smooth out the taste of the casting without it being too sweet. I just want strong apple notes without the syrupy taste.

Any thoughts or suggestions to make this happen is greatly appreciated. CHEERS

I'm fairly new, too, but I have some observations.

You'll need to dilute your low wines to 40% or lower for your spirit run, so you already have too much volume. I wouldn't do less than however much spirit you'll need to use a gallon of water to dilute.

It's not the tube into the thumper that adds heat, it's the hot vapor. So the size of the tube doesn't matter.

I don't understand why you would put sugar into your stripping run. Sugar will not be carried through the distillation process, and could only scorch in your boiler. Why not ferment all that out, then strip the resulting wash? That is what will carry the flavor through. Since you're not using any grain, you really don't have a whiskey. You'll have a hard cider, which you'll distill into apple brandy.

It's also not clear what you mean by "backins." If you mean backset, the stuff that's left in the boiler after you finish a run, that won't help you in your thumper, since you've already removed most of the alcohol from it. You need to add something higher in alcohol into your thumper, or it will condense alcohol until the temp is high enough to reevaporate the alcohol, and your output will be reduced.

[dakotasnake]

not always the case, if you wanted a nuetral for instance just water in the thumper works. an apple brandie? apple juice will give it more flavor in the thumper. corn? a little of the mash in the thumper, get the idea?

[Loganmeister]

Think that you have the cart before the horse in your vapor path and need to spend more time reading here before you try this approach .

Advise taken Truck.......I think right now I am just on information overload and my mind is trying to make sense of it all. For all I know, it sounds like I am after an apple brandy type whiskey that is aged in sugar maple an white oak with cinnamon and nutmeg perhaps. IDK. Like a Calvaso but with a more pronounced whiskey taste. Heck, to get that maybe I could just use less of the Apple Cider in a Calvaso recipe. hmmmmm

[Loganmeister]

I don't think that apple pie will do much for you in a stripping run - might even screw up the run. All the sugar might cause foaming and puking and possibly even scorching. DRINK the apple pie while you kick back and do some more reading.

Just sayin',
S-C

Thank for the advice.....My first run of "Three Finger Jack Apple Pie" is in hand...........cheers.

[Loganmeister]

not always the case, if you wanted a nuetral for instance just water in the thumper works. an apple brandie? apple juice will give it more flavor in the thumper. corn? a little of the mash in the thumper, get the idea?

Now it makes sense.......quick and easy. You have to love those Ah Ha moments. Thanks for the thoughts as I was just reading about how thumpers infuse the flavors into the spirits......followed that with an oaking with cinnamon and nutmeg and I think I have what I was looking for. thanks

[Loganmeister]

Hey Guys,


I never made sugar shine and instead went straight to SF. Glad I did as I love the taste. However I am thinking I can make it even better or unique.

Just so you know, sweet feed is a sugar wash

Thanks Bob. yeah, that makes sense now as maybe the sweet feed only acts as a "flavoring" of sorts. I thought that since it is held at 150 degress and it had Barley in the mix, that conversion was going on..........when it wasn't as the barley had not been malted hence the need to sugar it..... Gotcha

[Jimbo]

DRINK the apple pie while you kick back and do some more reading.

Just sayin',
S-C

Now thats funny there S-C.

Logan, to yoru question about how much do you need to run in a 5g still. If youre fired from below, not electric, you can run a gallon or less in there. Water expands 1600 times going to vapor. It will find its way to yoru condenser just fine. If youre electric you gotsta keep that element wet.

[Loganmeister]

Hey Guys,
As you can tell by my number of posts, I'm pretty new. I've been reading up a storm and ideas of creativity are starting the emerge as I begin to understand some concepts.

I never made sugar shine and instead went straight to SF. Glad I did as I love the taste. However I am thinking I can make it even better or unique.

So fer I have done 4 stripping runs in a pot still leaving me with about 4 gallons. First question, what is the least amount of stripped spirits I can second distill in a 5 gallon SS pot?

As this can be counted as one distillation, I now will make my first run with a variation using a thumper and a shotgun condenser. I am using a 1/2 copper pipe into the 8 qt thumper. Will there be enough surface area to heat the contents of the thumper? I will be using backins in the thumper to reduce the temp. needed to evap. the likker. Any thoughts on that cooper pipe size and would it be a good idea to increase the pipe to 3/4 into the thumper for more surface area to heat the thumper?
?

Not only do I want to add backins to my thumper to prime it, I would like to infuse the stipping run with my recipie of Apple pie shine that follows:

1/2 gallon of apple juice
1/2 gallon of apple cider (musselman's brand)
3/4 cup white sugar
1 1/4 cups of brown sugar........for those that don't use brown sugar, you are losing out!
5 drops vanilla
dash of nutmeg
5 cinnamon sticks - ..............simmered for 20 min. (To make your shine for this recipe, add 3/4 shine)

My true question is this. Would the sugary content listed above infuse the flavors into my stripping runs to produce a sweeter more cider taste at the finish?. OR should I add yeast to the above mix and ferment it out then add it to the thumper. The above recipe I look forward to making a french apple cider aged sugar maple whiskey. I read about it, but can't remember the name of what this is called...........starts with a C. Or Would I technically be making that or a variation there of. hmm

My goal is to make an American Whiskey by definition as it will be a flavored whiskey. I plan to use sugar maple with white oak chips to try to duplicate the flavor faster using the nuke method. I hope to have a final spirit that is not only smooth from the triple distillation, but also infused with a more apple finish to smooth out the taste of the casting without it being too sweet. I just want strong apple notes without the syrupy taste.

Any thoughts or suggestions to make this happen is greatly appreciated. CHEERS

I'm fairly new, too, but I have some observations.

You'll need to dilute your low wines to 40% or lower for your spirit run, so you already have too much volume. I wouldn't do less than however much spirit you'll need to use a gallon of water to dilute.

It's not the tube into the thumper that adds heat, it's the hot vapor. So the size of the tube doesn't matter.

I don't understand why you would put sugar into your stripping run. Sugar will not be carried through the distillation process, and could only scorch in your boiler. Why not ferment all that out, then strip the resulting wash? That is what will carry the flavor through. Since you're not using any grain, you really don't have a whiskey. You'll have a hard cider, which you'll distill into apple brandy.

It's also not clear what you mean by "backins." If you mean backset, the stuff that's left in the boiler after you finish a run, that won't help you in your thumper, since you've already removed most of the alcohol from it. You need to add something higher in alcohol into your thumper, or it will condense alcohol until the temp is high enough to reevaporate the alcohol, and your output will be reduced.

SO much to learn huh with this fine art. Since I used sweet feed, I thought I would have have grains..........but perhaps not as I did not use a malted barley for conversion. somehow I thought there would be more vapor to heat the thumper if it had larger surface area. Then again, there will not be that much liquid in the thumper. I just worded it wrong...........sippin does that to me ya know.

I also worded it wrong when I mentioned my thumper as a first run.....when I meant to say it will be the first use of my thumper set up. And backins........its is what the old timers call what we now call feints..........as this stuff goes "backin" to the main pot on the next distill or thumper to charge it. Yeah, I have an old boy neighbor that gave me the bug to learn this fun hobby.........that is what they called it I guess back in the day. I had to learn a whole new language when I came to the site. And yes, it would be considered an apple brandy as I just learned. I just don't want the syrupy taste and want the apple and cinnamon favor to finish and complement the oak smokey flavoring. I'm looking to get a Jamison's Irish Whiskey taste and smooth finish with apple and cinnamon notes thrown in but not over powering. Hmmmm then I am thinking maybe apple wood would do that............wow so many options to try.

[Loganmeister]

DRINK the apple pie while you kick back and do some more reading.

Just sayin',
S-C

Now thats funny there S-C.

Logan, to yoru question about how much do you need to run in a 5g still. If youre fired from below, not electric, you can run a gallon or less in there. Water expands 1600 times going to vapor. It will find its way to yoru condenser just fine. If youre electric you gotsta keep that element wet.

yeah, I have to agree it was funny, but he was so right. I thought. "maybe I should just sip some more and read" then I thought, "What the hell I have been reading for 3 hours, I will just put my ego aside and just put my idea out there. It's hard to run with the college kids, when I are only in pre-school with what I only know.......then again, maybe that would be like 2nd grade...........at what point can I say I graduated High School with all there is to learn about distilling?

I'll be running the spirits run on propane so cool........didn't know that. Stripped it on the stove. I also just learned that I have to take my spirits down to 40% abv then run the spirits.........wow........I have a lot to run now.............off to Cold Springs for some more spring water...........directly from mother earths natural glacier springwater..............so full of oxygen it gives me a "buzz" just drinking the water.