Bombay Sapphire Gin

[n1cod3mus]

I have had a lot of people asking me if i make Gin, now I dont drink it so it wasnt something I intended to make so I did some research and tried a few experiements which mostly failed, such as making essences.

I have made a steeped gin as well but I havnt done a write up for it like i did with this one, so this is a Bombay Sapphire style Gin, its made with all the same ingredients, and using the vapour infusing method.

http://www.instructables.com/id/Making- ... r-Infused/

the feed back I have had is that its not far off Bombay Sapphire.

there is one thing that does puzzle me and you guys might be able to answer it, even though the distillate is clear and also the water added is clean and clear, often bottled water or distilled water, for some reason when I add the 2 together it goes cloudy. I have no idea why, it doesnt affect the taste or anything.

[UtahViking]

Interesting I have a big ole juniper bush in my backyard and I love gin so I have been looking longingly at it so I appreciate the write up. Not familiar at all with infusing so I'm interested to see the feedback here.

[n1cod3mus]

well i dont drink gin but i have done both steeped and infused and the people i gave them to all prefer the infused, it seems to give more flavours.

I am very pleased with how it has turned out being the first vapour infused gin i have ever done. the people I gave it to have said it is very close to bombay sapphire.

[copperhead46]

When mine did that I was told that it was because I added water to the whiskey, and you are supposed to add whiskey to the water It does make a difference though, so you might try that.

[Black Eye]

I've heard about adding water to the whiskey will make it cloudy. I've been fortunate so far, and I've done it both ways with good results. I'm wondering if it had something to do with the ABV? Most of the whiskey I've proofed with water was oaked. Never really comes off the pot much over the 130's. I usually pick what I want to save for drinking and mix it, which brings it down in the 110's-120's. I oak it between 110-120 proof and then proof down to 94-98 give or take a few before I bottle. It's always been good and clear, even the stuff I leave white. Maybe once you get up to a higher ABV is reacts different when you're adding a larger volume of water ??? Maybe, I just have good luck?

[n1cod3mus]

it seems to happen with a low amount of water as well, I added 100ml water to 650ml of spirit and it still went cloudy.

I will try it the other way around but that doesn't make sense, in fact I will try it now

[n1cod3mus]

as i expected it made no difference

[rad14701]

With water and spirits the same temperature you should be able to slowly add spirits to the water, allowing it to gradually become miscible, the chance of clouding is greatly minimized... However, if there are excessive heads or tails in the mix all bets are off...

[n1cod3mus]

With water and spirits the same temperature you should be able to slowly add spirits to the water, allowing it to gradually become miscible, the chance of clouding is greatly minimized... However, if there are excessive heads or tails in the mix all bets are off...

maybe that's the cause too much heads/tails, also don't know if it makes a difference but I am using bottled water, even when I used distilled water it seemed to do the same

[frozenthunderbolt]

With water and spirits the same temperature you should be able to slowly add spirits to the water, allowing it to gradually become miscible, the chance of clouding is greatly minimized... However, if there are excessive heads or tails in the mix all bets are off...

maybe that's the cause too much heads/tails, also don't know if it makes a difference but I am using bottled water, even when I used distilled water it seemed to do the same

Gin that is cloudy when you add water to it is due to the oil content of the herbs and spices used. It is the 'Louche'

[n1cod3mus]

Gin that is cloudy when you add water to it is due to the oil content of the herbs and spices used. It is the 'Louche'

so effectively there's nothing i can do about it

[Druss]

what if you add the infusion slowly after mixing the water to alcohol ratio of your choice?

[frozenthunderbolt]

Gin that is cloudy when you add water to it is due to the oil content of the herbs and spices used. It is the 'Louche'

so effectively there's nothing i can do about it

you can add some more neutral so there is less oils per unit of alcohol, slight drop in flavour, but may well fix your problem

[Bogdan]

OK the reason the gin goes cloudy is that in the ABV you have not all the oils remain dissolved and those that are no longer dissolved become an emulsion with the water. The solution is to run your still in such a way that your output is at the ABV you want to bottle your product. When you do this you only have the quantity of oil which can be dissolved. This is the way the larger commercial distillers do it and probably the only reliable way to get clear product since it is extremely difficult to quantify the oil content of the botanicals which vary from batch to batch.

Bogdan

[n1cod3mus]

what if you add the infusion slowly after mixing the water to alcohol ratio of your choice?

its vapour infused so thats not possible

[n1cod3mus]

you can add some more neutral so there is less oils per unit of alcohol, slight drop in flavour, but may well fix your problem

not a bad idea as long as it doesnt affect the flavour too much, might give that a go

[n1cod3mus]

OK the reason the gin goes cloudy is that in the ABV you have not all the oils remain dissolved and those that are no longer dissolved become an emulsion with the water. The solution is to run your still in such a way that your output is at the ABV you want to bottle your product. When you do this you only have the quantity of oil which can be dissolved. This is the way the larger commercial distillers do it and probably the only reliable way to get clear product since it is extremely difficult to quantify the oil content of the botanicals which vary from batch to batch.

Bogdan

kinda hard to do that though isnt it? as the alcohol vapour would come out first, the only way I could get something close maybe would to run the heater at full pelt

[Bogdan]

OK the reason the gin goes cloudy is that in the ABV you have not all the oils remain dissolved and those that are no longer dissolved become an emulsion with the water. The solution is to run your still in such a way that your output is at the ABV you want to bottle your product. When you do this you only have the quantity of oil which can be dissolved. This is the way the larger commercial distillers do it and probably the only reliable way to get clear product since it is extremely difficult to quantify the oil content of the botanicals which vary from batch to batch.

Bogdan

kinda hard to do that though isnt it? as the alcohol vapour would come out first, the only way I could get something close maybe would to run the heater at full pelt

Yes its difficult to get the output at the finished ABV but not impossible if you are using a large pot still which is very inefficient. The deal is you have to be driving it had enough to get lots of water evaporating off at the same time the spirit is boiling off. It helps if your wash is relatively low ABV as well. This is the reason dedicated gin stills are specifically designed to do this job.

[Alcophile]

I made this as my first distillation (largely because my other-half likes Bombay Sapphire), though I added a some oats as a local distillery uses them and I liked their product's mouthfeel.
The result is pretty good (stripping run with T500 column with my grainfather, then spirit run with the Still Spirits alembic and the botanicals basket).
However.. there is a sweetness to the gin (at least as a G&T), which I wasn't expecting.
Can anyone suggest where the sweetness is coming from so I can reduce it next time?
Many thanks for any suggestions!

Neil

[Saltbush Bill]

If your stripping.....then loading the low wines into the t500, then doing the spirit run while at the same time using the botanicals basket , how are you making cuts if any?

[Alcophile]

Cuts on the stripping run, essentially taking out foreshore/heads, not really any tails. Then my take is that no cuts are needed on the spirit run, though checking that for smell/taste and seems OK.
If that's not right I'd like to hear.

[StillerBoy]

Will take a shot in the dark on this one.. stop using oats in your wash, and it's probably the oats that giving the sweetness you don't like.. in some whiskey, yes the flavor of the oat often helps..

If you are adding oat to your neutral, and using that neutral for the gin, then are using a flavored neutral which is not recommend, as that not the type of neutral for gin making I use..

Mars

[Saltbush Bill]

You can't make proper cuts on a stripping run, it's just not possible.
Try stripping....then a proper spirit run with proper cuts......then distill again with your botanicals to make the gin.

[Alcophile]

Interesting, I would expect that a reflux columns the best way to cut out the unwanted portions of a distillation, why would that not be?
Then a spirit run should have minimal "nasties" in it - is that not correct?

[Saltbush Bill]

A strip run is not a spirit run , regardless of what still you use.

[Saltbush Bill]

not really any tails.

If you are basing that on what the t500 manurfacturer says....or the sales man told You, then you have a lot to learn.
Ain't a still on earth that wont make tails.

[StillerBoy]

Ain't a still on earth that wont make tails.

I thing you wanted to say a fermentation that won't make tails.. still don't make tails, they help in the separation of the tails.. and no matter what style of still head you are using, there's always cuts required to be made..

Mars

[Saltbush Bill]

OK then, There is not a still in the world that wont let tails through if its run long enough and far enough into the run.

[Alcophile]

not really any tails.

If you are basing that on what the t500 manurfacturer says....or the sales man told You, then you have a lot to learn.
Ain't a still on earth that wont make tails.

Basing it on smell and taste, couldn't discern any difference towards the end of the run from the reflux column, maybe I didn't run it far enough to find the tails, but output was pretty slow by the time I stopped. It was a sugar wash so maybe less tails than some washes.
However I'm new to this and lots to learn, all information, opinions & advice very welcome.

[still_stirrin]

... It was a sugar wash....

Ah ha! That’s where your residual sweetness came from, especially if you started with a high OG (alcohol potential greater than 10%).
ss