Jimbo wrote:Bourbon is fun. The corn is the biggest challenge. Go small, like corn meal, and cook it properly. I steep cook with boiling water over it, stirrer going, high temp enzymes, with a blanket wrapped around the barrel, for 2 hours. WIth cracked corn, and no drill going, cook for 3 hours.
High temp enzymes.
Amylase?
I see it available on Ebay around $8 per pound.
This looks like it would be in my wheelhouse.
High temp is different than straight Amylase. Amylase will denature at the 185-190F temp youll have with boiling water over the corn. Woodshed sells it here. Do a search on high temp enzymes, youll find the link
Jimbo wrote:High temp is different than straight Amylase. Amylase will denature at the 185-190F temp youll have with boiling water over the corn. Woodshed sells it here. Do a search on high temp enzymes, youll find the link
Thanks Jimbo, I talked with Steve & am ordering a kit from him.
So starts the bourbon adventure!
BTW I love Wheated Bourbons, have read a bunch of what you have written here about that and will no doubt be going that direction for my first attempt.
Last night I filled a liter glass bottle with the rum from the Balcones barrel and brought it in the house in preparation for Thanksgiving.
This bottle is one with the flip top & rubber seal.
I put the top on and put it on a shelf, then a very bad thing happened.
As it warmed from outside temp to inside temp there was expansion inside the container and there was no where for that to go as I hadn't left a lot of headroom.
It's likely that the glass had a flaw or was simply too weak & thin to handle the pressure.
It exploded and sent precious rum all over the shelf, everything below it and all over the bathroom and laundry room floor.
After I cleaned I heard a couple comments about how the house smelled, I chose to ignore them.
I learned something, at least there's that small silver lining.
nerdybrewer wrote:Last night I filled a liter glass bottle with the rum from the Balcones barrel and brought it in the house in preparation for Thanksgiving.
This bottle is one with the flip top & rubber seal.
I put the top on and put it on a shelf, then a very bad thing happened.
As it warmed from outside temp to inside temp there was expansion inside the container and there was no where for that to go as I hadn't left a lot of headroom.
It's likely that the glass had a flaw or was simply too weak & thin to handle the pressure.
It exploded and sent precious rum all over the shelf, everything below it and all over the bathroom and laundry room floor.
After I cleaned I heard a couple comments about how the house smelled, I chose to ignore them.
I learned something, at least there's that small silver lining.
I'm both amused and very, very sad. Soldier down.
However, MCH can feel your pain. He learned that lesson.
"Come on you stranger, you legend, you martyr, and shine!
You reached for the secret too soon, you cried for the moon.
Shine on you crazy diamond."
Posted about this in the Buccaneer Bob's thread but thought it belongs here too.
After 6 more weeks of aging...
I filled a bottle from my Balcone's barrel last night.
What I've done is to age the rum in a Black Swan barrel for 6+ months and my single malt scotch in the Balcone's.
Then I transferred the scotch into the Black Swan and the rum into the Balcone's barrel.
My reasoning is that different barrels impart different character into the spirit during aging.
For instance the scotch from the Balcone barrel was very reddish in color while the rum came out a golden color.
Flavor and smell were also different, I realize part of that is due to the source of the spirit but the barrel also gives something to smell and taste.
So it's been about 6 weeks and I wanted to see how my rum was doing.
I have to say I am very happy, this rum was already very good but it has taken on new character and is quickly becoming (if I say so myself) great.
It's taken on a spicy vanilla flavor and smell it didn't have before.
Now at 8 months old it is clearly the best rum I've ever had, there isn't a commercial rum I've tried that is better than this (IMHO).
This really is a rewarding hobby!
