Use of Brown Sugar and water

[IRQVET]

Three questions as I prepare to do my first Pecan Whiskey run in a couple of weeks.

Use of Brown Sugar- Never used it before, does it behave much differently that granulated white sugar when mashing in?

Water- From what I understand, (unless I’m mistaken, which is possible) Spring water is favorable to distilled water correct? I’d use my city tap water, but we are ALWAYS getting drinking water violation notices from our water district, so they have been chlorinating the living DS out of water supply to get the dissolved solids and other water quality issues in check.

What are the best practices to keep from getting a product that “burns” when consumed?

Any info would be appreciated. Sorry if hese are stupid questions, I’m brand spanking new at this.

[NZChris]

Where did you get your method for making Pecan Whiskey?

You don't mash with sugar, you mash grains.

I knock the chlorine out by putting the water in the sun with an aquarium airstone running in it for at least an hour.

[IRQVET]

Where did you get your method for making Pecan Whiskey?

The internet, because people can’t lie on there . . .

[NZChris]

I have no idea what you're making, so I can't be much help.

[IRQVET]

I was assuming the process for mash in distilling the simular to when I made beer. Add your ingredients and cook them off, allow it to cool, and pitch your sugar and yeast and allow to ferment for 6-7 days or until you’ve reached the desired ABV in your mash. (Am I way off here?) Its been a decade since I made beer, so maybe I’m incorrect?

I’m trying to do a Pecan Whiskey.

[NZChris]

https://www.google.com/search?q=site%3A ... nt=gws-wiz

[Saltbush Bill]

Different terminologies for different things, a wash is a wash, a mash is a mash, a sugar head is a sugar head.
One uses sugar , one uses grains , another uses a combination of both. it can get very confusing very quickly around here If people don't use the correct wording for things and we don't all speak the same lingo.

What are the best practices to keep from getting a product that “burns” when consumed?

Make decent cuts. Read the link below if you haven't before, without making good cuts you will never make good booze....that simple.
Dont expect to make perfect cuts first time around...or maybe even the 5th time....but you will learn eventually.
https://homedistiller.org/forum/viewtop ... 15&t=11640

Use of Brown Sugar- Never used it before, does it behave much differently that granulated white sugar when mashing in?

Do you mean normal Brown sugar, Dark Brown Sugar , or just Raw Sugar?
IMO they will pretty much all ferment the same, Dark Brown will give a more Rummy flavour due the the fact that it has more molasses in it. It is in fact white sugar with Molasses added back to it after it is refined.

[Setsumi]

In some places in the world brown sugar is unrefined sugar. It certainly is a cheaper way to manufacture it.

Myself do not do rum but i do not like the taste of brown sugar in beer or distilled products. It has a metalic taste to me.

[Ben]

Alright to be new and overwhelmed. Check out the tried and true section, look at doing either a UJSSM or a Sweetfeed whiskey (uses some molasses in the feed, which will get you closer to brown sugar) to get your still rolling and start learning. Both of those are easy to make, and either would be a good base for some sort of Pecan whiskey.

Not quite sure of your recipe, could you post it? Are you just planning to douse your nuts in white likker? I would run one of the above recipes and add an ounce of victory malt and half ounce of chocolate wheat malt per gallon and use wyeast 1272 to get some nutty flavor going.

Since you have to heat water to make your first of either of those washes just go ahead and boil tap water for 15 minutes, that will get rid of the chlorine. You definitely want chlorine out, chlorine + fermentation = Chlorophenol (choroseptic).

[TDick]

Three questions as I prepare to do my first Pecan Whiskey run in a couple of weeks.

Any info would be appreciated. Sorry if hese are stupid questions, I’m brand spanking new at this.

Welcome!
Some constructive criticism.
I've never brewed beer, but observations over the years is that it is helpful to FORGET those practices when distilling.

As others have pointed out you have a LOT of reading & studying to do.
Saltbush Bill is one of the more respected "experts" that's been around, start with his opinion up there.
Also that thread to "Distilling 101" is posted below and many other places for a reason.
All that said, starting out with "Pecan Whiskey" & brown sugar is probably over reaching first time out.
I BELIEVE what you are thinking about is a flavored product, perhaps similar to this Peach Pecan Whiskey

peach pecan.png (62.47 KiB) Viewed 1845 times

I've had it, it doesn't completely suck and you can definitely taste both the peach and pecan.
For that reason, I ASSuME it's a basic grain whiskey with flavors and sugar added. It's sweet! and that may be where your question about the brown sugar comes from. If you're not familiar with it, you may be able to go buy a 50 ml miniature and give it a taste.

Unless you want to visit their distillery & ask questions there, best advice is to search for recipes HERE.
A good place to start is "Pecan Pie Recipe"
It also includes at least one link to explore as well as a recipe for "Pecan Moonshine".
I believe that more what you're looking for instead of something that "tastes like pecans" as it comes out of the still.
If that is of interest, perhaps start out with a brown sugar wash or sugarhead, then you can give the thread a bump and get more meaningful advice.

[bluefish_dist]

I was assuming the process for mash in distilling the simular to when I made beer. Add your ingredients and cook them off, allow it to cool, and pitch your sugar and yeast and allow to ferment for 6-7 days or until you’ve reached the desired ABV in your mash. (Am I way off here?) Its been a decade since I made beer, so maybe I’m incorrect?

I’m trying to do a Pecan Whiskey.

That may be the way to make beer, but for a whiskey, I would change the process. First, if you add sugar it’s not technically a whiskey. Whiskey is only grains as a sugar source. Sugar only is rum. Different sugar, different flavors.

Also no need to boil after mashing your grains. We won’t drink the wort directly, so no need to pasteurize it and you don’t want to neutralize the enzymes still in the wort. Let them work during the fermentation. You want to ferment dry, not leave residual sugars like beer. Again, not drinking the fermentation, but the distillate.