Distilling beer

[JBAR9]

So the distilled beer has been done now and aging for five weeks. I cut a few half pints down to 45% abv and added french oak chips. They've been sitting in a dark lonely corner untouched the whole time. Well, I'm going to see the buddy who gave me the beer, so I figured I'd give it a little check taste. Its fucking good. I highly recommend this process to anyone. Good flavor and character (didn't lose much to the spirit run) and can't wait to see how she turns out in another 5-6 months. As I said above the yield was pretty low. From a 15 gallon keg (losing 3-4 gallons to foam and 2-3 gallons to a faulty worm) I only got about 50-60 ounces of 75% abv after cutting and blending. Obviously I could have attained more yield if I initially let the beer lose its carbonation and had a better worm. So for tips, let beer air out for a week or two and only charge the boiler halfway. Better yet to be safe with a slobberbox. Im hoping I can redo this process with uncarbonated beer from the start and my finished thumper. Get on it homebrewers-its damn good.

[bearriver]

I had a hopped whiskey in a Portland diner once. It was from a local Distillery, I'm not sure which. Was a wonderful whiskey. Very palatable, and was an excellent companion to my coffee that morning. I would absolutely drink it again.

[Jimbo]

... and was an excellent companion to my coffee that morning.

I need to try another batch, I distilled some beer a couple times. It was terrible, but the reason I distilled the beer is I wasnt crazy about it to begin with. so.....

shit in shit out?

[bearriver]

I think there is probably a magic hat trick to getting it to taste right. But shit in shit out is indeed how it goes. If your distilling beer you would not drink, then it seems obvious you would hate the whiskey made from it.

Could have been Rasputin 86 proof or more likely it was from Rouge distillery. Both are Oregon distilleries.

There is also an IPA style whiskey in Oregon that seems to be doing well, although I've never tried it.

[Jimbo]

It wasnt terrible beer, I just have high standards. With 6 kegs in the fridge and more waiting, if one of them doesnt rock my world it gets dumped, otherwise it will just sit in there and take up a slot until I find someone who likes it to pawn pints off on LOL. Life's too short for mediocre beer. I enjoy making it so its no big to shitcan a batch. Luckily not very often

[JBR]

It wasnt terrible beer, I just have high standards. With 6 kegs in the fridge and more waiting, if one of them doesnt rock my world it gets dumped, otherwise it will just sit in there and take up a slot until I find someone who likes it to pawn pints off on LOL. Life's too short for mediocre beer. I enjoy making it so its no big to shitcan a batch. Luckily not very often

Im with ya there I dumped a lot of beer not because it was terrible. Just because it sat around too long because there was alway something better next to it. Hardly ever drink to get drunk anymore just like to drink the stuff I enjoy the most!

[bellybuster]

I have some not so great friends that get invited when I have less than wonderful beer. Am I a bad person????

[Jimbo]

haha, not at all. They get free beer, you get to empty a keg and a slot on the lineup

Sometimes i blend em, if there's a pale ale for example thats meh, It aint so meh done up black and tan style with a big oatmeal breakfast stout

[Antler24]

Glad to hear people have had good results distilling beer. I have a batch (5 gallons) of not so good beer in the basement that's been bottled for close to 2 years I've been saving to use for my sacrificial run when I get my pot still built. It's been aging for a couple years, I should crack one open see how there coming along lol.

[JBAR9]

Handed off a few half pints to the brewery owner and head brewer at the joint that gave me the beer. They liked it so much I might just have myself a regular stream of beer to distill now. Said they were gonna take it down the road to the distillery and let them boys have a taste of some actually good liquor. I think I've done good.

[Antler24]

Handed off a few half pints to the brewery owner and head brewer at the joint that gave me the beer. They liked it so much I might just have myself a regular stream of beer to distill now. Said they were gonna take it down the road to the distillery and let them boys have a taste of some actually good liquor. I think I've done good.

That's good news glad to hear it turned out well. I'm not sure I'd want the local distillery knowing I'm runnin a still at home though...

[JBAR9]

Local distillery to the brew shop. I'm a couple hundred miles away. The distiller is a pretty nice guy though, just doesn't make a good product.

[mercmar]

haha this thread is awesome. glad no injuries from the blow out. has anyone thought about taking the beer and hitting it with some more yeast to eat up the malt back the brewer left in and then running it?

[squigglefunk]

meh, IMO beer does not make a good distillate, it pukes and tastes weird. Yes, I tried, and no thanks

[still_stirrin]

meh, IMO beer does not make a good distillate, it pukes and tastes weird. Yes, I tried, and no thanks

I have 2 liters of neutral spirit right now that I stripped from a couple of cases of “expired” Bud and Bud Lite that a local business disposed of (threw in the dumpster). After triple distilling and making cuts on each run, I got a product that makes an acceptable panty dropper.

But, I have also salvaged commercial IPAs before and the hop oil carryover makes them much less acceptable, except possibly for unique gin spirits.

However, when there are beers destined for the drain, I do “rescue” them to run through the still with the hope of giving them “life after exile”.
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