Mash abv?

[Jakey505]

I saw Jimbo’s post about new distillers wanting to push abv’s. He says a mash should produce 6-8%.

As an experienced all grain beer brewer and someone who is new to this hobby and has not distilled anything, I can say that I understand wanting a higher abv mash. I don’t know all there is, so correct me please.

Now let’s face it - if someone is going to make the monetary investment in a still, then purchase ingredients and spend time to create their beverage, then shouldn’t they expect a reasonable output for the investment? What does it cost to get ingredients for a 5 gallon whiskey run - grains and yeast? I’m going to guess $25-$35. Plus the investment to create the mash and run the still.

I would think one would want to do at least a 10% mash. Simple math says 10% of a 5 gallon run is a half gallon. And my understanding is you don’t even get that, because of losses to the cuts.

So if someone is going to spend $25-$35 on ingredients and make the time investment, shouldn’t they end up with more than one bottle of whiskey? Aren’t there plenty of decent whiskeys one can just go buy for $25-$35 a bottle if that’s the case?

As I said, I am new to this and seeking to understand the input, investment, and output.

Thank You