How to classify sugar wash spirits?

Sugar, and all about sugar washes. Where the primary ingredient is sugar, and other things are just used as nutrients.

Moderator: Site Moderator

-Chad-
Novice
Posts: 8
Joined: Fri Jun 07, 2019 1:01 am

How to classify sugar wash spirits?

Post by -Chad- »

Im having trouble deciding what to call my spirit I'm distilling from a sugar wash.

It's not a whisky or a whiskey.
Not a brandy
Not a rum
Could become a vodka, but not with my little pot still.
Not a tequila
Not a Baijiu
Not anything...

Anyone have any input? I kind of like just calling it a sugar wash spirit, but I will probably use it to make a macerated liqueur or something. Then it can be called a liqueur, problem solved.

I have another spirit that has no classification, but I will save that madness for another time.
User avatar
NZChris
Master of Distillation
Posts: 13062
Joined: Tue Apr 23, 2013 2:42 am
Location: New Zealand

Re: How to classify sugar wash spirits?

Post by NZChris »

What is it? Write that on the bottle.

If that is too embarrassing, don't let anyone see it, write something else on the bottle, or make something better.
StillerBoy
Master of Distillation
Posts: 3387
Joined: Thu Dec 01, 2016 6:27 pm
Location: Ontario

Re: How to classify sugar wash spirits?

Post by StillerBoy »

Call it rubbing alcohol if you like the name alcohol..

Mars
" I know quite certainly that I myself have no special talent. Curiosity, Obsession and dogged endurance, combined with self-criticism, have brought me to my knowledge and understanding "

– Albert Einstein
User avatar
Expat
Site Donor
Site Donor
Posts: 2245
Joined: Fri Feb 24, 2012 3:58 pm

Re: How to classify sugar wash spirits?

Post by Expat »

-Chad- wrote:Im having trouble deciding what to call my spirit I'm distilling from a sugar wash.

It's not a whisky or a whiskey.
Not a brandy
Not a rum
Could become a vodka, but not with my little pot still.
Not a tequila
Not a Baijiu
Not anything...

Anyone have any input? I kind of like just calling it a sugar wash spirit, but I will probably use it to make a macerated liqueur or something. Then it can be called a liqueur, problem solved.

I have another spirit that has no classification, but I will save that madness for another time.
Technically it's actually a very very mild rum since most table sugar is extracted from sugar cane. Some people call it a Sugar head, or just Neutral after it's been through the still.

As Chris said though, just write what you made, doubtful that anyone really cares what the underlying alcohol base is anyways.
_____________________
EXPAT

Current boiler and pot head
Cross flow condenser
Modular 3" Boka - pics tbd
___________________
-Chad-
Novice
Posts: 8
Joined: Fri Jun 07, 2019 1:01 am

Re: How to classify sugar wash spirits?

Post by -Chad- »

Thanks for the input! I was wondering about if technically it would be a pseudo rum of sorts, but it doesn't matter much. It is just for my distilling hobby notes to keep myself organized. I think sugar wash alcohol neutral spirit will suffice, or SWANS for shorthand.
Boom! Settled, thanks guys.
User avatar
HDNB
Site Mod
Posts: 7360
Joined: Mon Feb 17, 2014 10:04 am
Location: the f-f-fu frozen north

Re: How to classify sugar wash spirits?

Post by HDNB »

brandy is made from fruit.
whiskey is made from grain
rum is made from sugar
vodka is made from anything and distilled to above 190 proof.
I finally quit drinking for good.

now i drink for evil.
Rob C
Novice
Posts: 2
Joined: Mon Jul 01, 2019 8:46 am

Re: How to classify sugar wash spirits?

Post by Rob C »

Hey there, Chad -

I’m originally from Brazil and the National spirit is cachaça (kah - shah - sah), usually made from freshly pressed sugarcane juice. Cachaça can be made from evaporated cane sugar or Pamela / rapadura (dark brown, very dense cakes of boiled off sugarcane juice often found in Latin American stores) but never molasses, brown, turbinado, white or other processed sugars.

That said, there are over 9,000 cachaça distilleries in Brazil and only a handful of products are exported to the US. Some representative brands include: Pitú (pee - tu), Ypioca (yip - pee - awka), 51, Leblon (lay - blom) and Sagatiba (sah - gah - chi - bah). Cachaça is sometimes classified as a rhum agricole but it is very distinct in flavor from other spirits classified as such.

At any rate, there’s a lot of varieties in the process, including the addition of flaked maize or citrus in the wash. Generally speaking, the cachaça is pot distilled to retain a fair amount of flavor although some distilleries will run it through multiple times or in a series.

Cachaça can be plain, like silver tequila or aged in charred as well as uncharted woods. Brazil has a variety of different species of woods, each of which add distinct flavors to the finished product. Generally speaking, silver cachaça is the main ingredient in the caipirinha, Brazil’s national cocktail.

I’ve also seen a gluten free sugar wash based column distilled vodka in the US but the name escapes me at the moment.

That’s all probably a little TMI but it’s a long winded way of saying you may be making a cachaça without realizing it.

Hope that helps!

Warmly,

Rob
User avatar
Single Malt Yinzer
Trainee
Posts: 973
Joined: Fri Sep 23, 2016 3:20 pm

Re: How to classify sugar wash spirits?

Post by Single Malt Yinzer »

https://homedistiller.org/wiki/index.php/Sugarheads" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

https://homedistiller.org/wiki/index.php/index.ph ... tyle_Guide" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow
User avatar
fizzix
Site Donor
Site Donor
Posts: 3698
Joined: Tue Dec 05, 2017 4:08 pm

Re: How to classify sugar wash spirits?

Post by fizzix »

I've found "White Lightning" and "Corn Squeezin's" provoke an interest and scrutiny beyond other names.
decoy
Rumrunner
Posts: 676
Joined: Fri Jan 06, 2006 4:21 pm

Re: How to classify sugar wash spirits?

Post by decoy »

Rob C wrote:Hey there, Chad -

I’m originally from Brazil and the National spirit is cachaça (kah - shah - sah), usually made from freshly pressed sugarcane juice. Cachaça can be made from evaporated cane sugar or Pamela / rapadura (dark brown, very dense cakes of boiled off sugarcane juice often found in Latin American stores) but never molasses, brown, turbinado, white or other processed sugars.

That said, there are over 9,000 cachaça distilleries in Brazil and only a handful of products are exported to the US. Some representative brands include: Pitú (pee - tu), Ypioca (yip - pee - awka), 51, Leblon (lay - blom) and Sagatiba (sah - gah - chi - bah). Cachaça is sometimes classified as a rhum agricole but it is very distinct in flavor from other spirits classified as such.

At any rate, there’s a lot of varieties in the process, including the addition of flaked maize or citrus in the wash. Generally speaking, the cachaça is pot distilled to retain a fair amount of flavor although some distilleries will run it through multiple times or in a series.

Cachaça can be plain, like silver tequila or aged in charred as well as uncharted woods. Brazil has a variety of different species of woods, each of which add distinct flavors to the finished product. Generally speaking, silver cachaça is the main ingredient in the caipirinha, Brazil’s national cocktail.

I’ve also seen a gluten free sugar wash based column distilled vodka in the US but the name escapes me at the moment.

That’s all probably a little TMI but it’s a long winded way of saying you may be making a cachaça without realizing it.

Hope that helps!

Warmly,

Rob
Hi Rob
Your post was informative, I would love to hear more, perhaps you might like to start a separate thread under viewforum.php?f=9
And title it something like "Native Spirits of Brazil"

Cheers
User avatar
6 Row Joe
Rumrunner
Posts: 738
Joined: Mon Apr 16, 2018 1:16 pm

Re: How to classify sugar wash spirits?

Post by 6 Row Joe »

Neutral spirit. Not a classy name though.
I don't drink alcohol, I drink distilled spirits.
Therefore I'm not a alcoholic, I'm spiritual.
metalsmith
Bootlegger
Posts: 147
Joined: Sat Feb 26, 2011 6:15 pm

Re: How to classify sugar wash spirits?

Post by metalsmith »

fizzix wrote:I've found "White Lightning" and "Corn Squeezin's" provoke an interest and scrutiny beyond other names.

“Squeeze”. Could be sterno. Think Androma strain. I guess I am admitting my age.....
User avatar
cranky
Master of Distillation
Posts: 6505
Joined: Fri Sep 27, 2013 3:18 pm
Location: Pacific Northwest

Re: How to classify sugar wash spirits?

Post by cranky »

I call mine "Unicorn Sweat" :mrgreen:
CuWhistle
Rumrunner
Posts: 732
Joined: Sun May 27, 2012 1:05 pm
Location: Terra Australis

Re: How to classify sugar wash spirits?

Post by CuWhistle »

Rhymes with pooch.
nateboussad
Novice
Posts: 26
Joined: Mon Jan 07, 2019 3:35 pm

Re: How to classify sugar wash spirits?

Post by nateboussad »

It dont bother me a bit to run cloudy stuff but I aint as picky as some. As thin as that wash bound to be with sugar water and nutes..cant envision the murkiness being much of an issue. If you put it back in lockdown and the yeast are still working a bit it should be just fine. I have went months on some washes and they came out just fine. Hope it goes well. Sure it will. If it aint fitting give it to the drunks down at the local watering hole. You would be surprised at what folks will trade for that stuff.
User avatar
SwollenGoat23
Site Donor
Site Donor
Posts: 133
Joined: Thu Jan 17, 2019 1:16 pm
Location: South Louisiana

Re: How to classify sugar wash spirits?

Post by SwollenGoat23 »

CuWhistle wrote:Rhymes with pooch.
Ooo, Ooo, Ooo....PICK ME (hand waving) PICK ME!....I KNOW THIS ONE! !
User avatar
still_stirrin
Master of Distillation
Posts: 10337
Joined: Tue Mar 18, 2014 7:01 am
Location: where the buffalo roam, and the deer & antelope play

Re: How to classify sugar wash spirits?

Post by still_stirrin »

SwollenGoat23 wrote:
CuWhistle wrote:Rhymes with pooch.
Ooo, Ooo, Ooo....PICK ME (hand waving) PICK ME!....I KNOW THIS ONE! !
Grog???
My LM/VM & Potstill: My build thread
My Cadco hotplate modification thread: Hotplate Build
My stock pot gin still: stock pot potstill
My 5-grain Bourbon recipe: Special K
User avatar
SwollenGoat23
Site Donor
Site Donor
Posts: 133
Joined: Thu Jan 17, 2019 1:16 pm
Location: South Louisiana

Re: How to classify sugar wash spirits?

Post by SwollenGoat23 »

still_stirrin wrote:
SwollenGoat23 wrote:
CuWhistle wrote:Rhymes with pooch.
Ooo, Ooo, Ooo....PICK ME (hand waving) PICK ME!....I KNOW THIS ONE! !
Grog???
Ooo, Ooo, Ooo (squriming in seat)...PLEASE! AW MAN! PICK ME! PICK ME! I REALLY KNOW THIS ONE I PROMISE! Ooo, Ooo.....mmmmm....
User avatar
bluefish_dist
Distiller
Posts: 1502
Joined: Fri Jan 16, 2015 10:13 am
Location: Eastern Ia

Re: How to classify sugar wash spirits?

Post by bluefish_dist »

Officially it is probably rum if it’s made from sugarcane and nothing else. As a home distiller, you can call it whatever you want. On the commercial side, anything not in a defined class/type is a distilled spirit specialty and have a note on the front saying distilled from xxxx
Last edited by bluefish_dist on Tue Jul 30, 2019 7:40 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Formerly
Dsp-CO-20051
User avatar
thecroweater
retired
Posts: 6079
Joined: Wed Mar 14, 2012 9:04 am
Location: Central Highlands Vic. Australia

Re: How to classify sugar wash spirits?

Post by thecroweater »

Sugar Shine is not rum
Ok I'm going to wade in here and correct some misinformation. Sugar shine is not light rum, pseudo rum or really in any way related to rum any more than any other spirit. All alcohol is made from sugar in one form or another and fully refined white sugar is mainly glucose and fruticose common to whisky brandy and about everything else. Rum is a product of the stuff that is not in white sugar, the stuff that was removed so if you are making sugar shine and you think it has some similarity to rum that similarity is alcohol and nothing more unless you think your refined sugar is somehow not refined.
I see this horse shit bandied around from time to time that if it has sugar in it your spirit is rum or somehow rum related. News flash: if you have alcohol then your ferment had sugar in it weather you added it directly or it was in the ingredients you added and it is that logical.
There is not a lot of flavour to plain old white sugar and that is why it has so many uses. So if your sugar shine has a distinguishable flavour then it is esters produced by an interaction of your given yeast and nutrients which is pretty unlikely to be rum like unless your nutrients are derived from sugar cane ( like say molasses) in which case and the only way you do in fact have a light rum.
Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety. Benjamin Franklin
nateboussad
Novice
Posts: 26
Joined: Mon Jan 07, 2019 3:35 pm

Re: How to classify sugar wash spirits?

Post by nateboussad »

It dont bother me a bit to run cloudy stuff but I aint as picky as some. As thin as that wash bound to be with sugar water and nutes..cant envision the murkiness being much of an issue. If you put it back in lockdown and the yeast are still working a bit it should be just fine. I have went months on some washes and they came out just fine. Hope it goes well. Sure it will
User avatar
Birrofilo
Site Donor
Site Donor
Posts: 414
Joined: Sat Mar 10, 2018 2:42 pm
Location: Caput mundi

Re: How to classify sugar wash spirits?

Post by Birrofilo »

It's a DOFS, Distillate of Fermented Sucrose.

If you make if from dextrose, it's a DOFD.

In Italy it would be "acquavite di zucchero".

There is no way you can make give such a drink a name giving it personality, it's a white slate where you write your poems :-)
cayars
Distiller
Posts: 1687
Joined: Fri Aug 23, 2019 8:08 am

Re: How to classify sugar wash spirits?

Post by cayars »

-Chad- wrote: Mon Jun 24, 2019 3:33 am Anyone have any input? I kind of like just calling it a sugar wash spirit, but I will probably use it to make a macerated liqueur or something. Then it can be called a liqueur, problem solved.
How about just calling it Moonshine? :)
Programmer specializing in process control for ExxonMobil (ethanol refinery control), WT, Omron, Bosch, Honeywell & Boeing.
More than a decade working for NASA & FAA Tech with computer code used on Space Shuttles and some airline flight recorders.
User avatar
Durhommer
Distiller
Posts: 2399
Joined: Tue Mar 12, 2019 11:23 am

Re: How to classify sugar wash spirits?

Post by Durhommer »

So I can keep calling my spirits "Buffalo piss" all I want to
You have two ears and one mouth for a reason....
kimbodious
Distiller
Posts: 1198
Joined: Fri Apr 17, 2015 3:57 pm
Location: Far northern tropics of Australia.

Re: How to classify sugar wash spirits?

Post by kimbodious »

Yeah I give my spirits and liqueurs unique names. Yes some are comparable in flavour and application to store-bought but different enough not to bother with direct comparisons.
Anise based liqueur - Pimpinella
Cinnamon based liqueur - Qinnamon
Orange and lemon myrtle based liqueur - O’sec
Lemon myrtle flavoured neutral - Citral
Wheat-bran based spirit - Lyburn
--
50L Beer keg boiler, 2200W element
Modular 2" Pot Still
opinions are free and everybody has them, experience costs you time
User avatar
Teddysad
Site Donor
Site Donor
Posts: 394
Joined: Wed Dec 30, 2009 1:38 pm
Location: Canterbury. New Zealand

Re: How to classify sugar wash spirits?

Post by Teddysad »

Just call it what it is. ...a solution!
You can lead a horse to drink, but you cant make it water!
You can lead a horticulture but can you teach a prototype?

Proverbs 31:6-7
User avatar
Desvio
Site Donor
Site Donor
Posts: 296
Joined: Sun Feb 15, 2015 10:35 pm
Location: Pacific Northwest

Re: How to classify sugar wash spirits?

Post by Desvio »

I generally call my stuff homebrew (beer), beer (whiskey), cider (brandy), rice wine (baijiu), Koolaid (sugar wash based stuff). Those who know I distill know what I'm talking about and know to keep their traps shut, those who don't have no idea I distill and think it's what I called it.
People say that I'm a bad influence. I say the world's already f#cked -- I'm just adding to it.
Greenhorse
Novice
Posts: 10
Joined: Sat Feb 13, 2016 4:34 pm

Re: How to classify sugar wash spirits?

Post by Greenhorse »

Wouldn’t it be a Vodka?
User avatar
Yummyrum
Global moderator
Posts: 7652
Joined: Sat Jul 06, 2013 2:23 am
Location: Fraser Coast QLD Aussie

Re: How to classify sugar wash spirits?

Post by Yummyrum »

Well I still make a lot of sugar wash which is refluxed into a Neutral . I have no shame in saying I buy essences from the HBS and make Gin and Brown Stuff . Brown stuff is what my mrs calls it . Could be Whiskey , Whisky or Rum ( puke) ... she drinks it all . I even have a joke with the HBS owner everytime I go in for “Brown Stuff “ :D

Lol ... I think he gets it now he’s making all grain Whisky
User avatar
G8keeper
Novice
Posts: 15
Joined: Sat Feb 22, 2020 8:42 pm
Location: Queensland, Australia

Re: How to classify sugar wash spirits?

Post by G8keeper »

cayars wrote: Mon Sep 16, 2019 7:15 pm How about just calling it Moonshine? :)

That's what I call my sugar washes ;)
God made yeast, as well as dough, and loves fermentation just as he loves vegetation. - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Running a Copper Still Spirits Turbo 500
Post Reply