Crushing Botanicals

All things to do with making of gin

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Rrmuf
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Crushing Botanicals

Post by Rrmuf »

Hi,
I was wondering what techniques people use to crush their botanicals. I was thinking of buying a coffee blade grinder and was wonderining if people recommend them or not.

Currently, I crush my botanicals with a mortar and pestle: some mildly and some quite hard.
-- Rrmuf
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Bushman
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Re: Crushing Botanicals

Post by Bushman »

I use a small krubs coffee grinder as pictured below. With all the new coffee grinder/makers on the market you could probably pick one up used pretty cheap. Works great.
42ED13CE-2C8F-4717-AD83-55DC3C5C8CB2.jpeg
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Rrmuf
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Re: Crushing Botanicals

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Thanks Bushman. My only hesitation is based on a perhaps false suggestion that juniper berries should be mildly crushed.
(oh, and BTW we use the same identical scale :-) )
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Bushman
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Re: Crushing Botanicals

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Rrmuf wrote: Fri Feb 03, 2023 9:11 am Thanks Bushman. My only hesitation is based on a perhaps false suggestion that juniper berries should be mildly crushed.
(oh, and BTW we use the same identical scale :-) )
With that grinder you have to hold it down to run. It is not on a timer so you can give it a quick spin lift the lid and access how crushed it is. That is why I don’t do all the botanicals at the same time.
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Re: Crushing Botanicals

Post by SouthwestAl »

I tend to be a bit selective about which botanicals to crush, and which just to leave as they are. Juniper, for example - the majority of the berries I will just leave in maceration for my Gin, although if I am adding a small amount to the vapour basket, I will very gently bruise them, to crack the skin. Anything more than that, and you risk crushing the seeds inside, which are quite bitter (chew a few, and you will see what I mean). The same thing for Cardamom - cracking the outer shell lightly is good, but grinding them and the inside seeds is less good in my experience.
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StillerBoy
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Re: Crushing Botanicals

Post by StillerBoy »

I also use a coffee grinder.. the trick I think in using one, is in the amount time grinding and how hard the botanical are.. I just give it a few spins of a couple of seconds, just enough to break them up and not to power them..

Mars
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Bushman
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Re: Crushing Botanicals

Post by Bushman »

StillerBoy wrote: Fri Feb 03, 2023 10:13 am I also use a coffee grinder.. the trick I think in using one, is in the amount time grinding and how hard the botanical are.. I just give it a few spins of a couple of seconds, just enough to break them up and not to power them..

Mars
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On a side note on scales for my larger AG runs I measure out on this scale and use my Monster Mill 2 mill.
59C4CE02-69BC-4BE3-96E1-E78F3945683D.jpeg
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TwoSheds
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Re: Crushing Botanicals

Post by TwoSheds »

+1 on using a mill style grinder and doing things separately that need different treatment. Allspice seems to need a particularly high amount of abuse to get it to open up.

I have a Cuisinart Mini Mate little grinder that you can reverse the blade to use the dull side which makes for more of a mashing than a cutting function and seems to do a good job cracking things open without powdering them. Unfortunately they don't seem to make them anymore! Someone probably makes something similar.

Also +1 on the OXO scale. I've had one for about 10 years and use it daily. It still looks and works like new, though last year I did have to replace the batteries that came with it. LOL

(PS, for those with the OXO scale, did you realize the stainless pan lifts off for cleaning? That took me about 4 years to discover 'accidentally')
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Rrmuf
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Re: Crushing Botanicals

Post by Rrmuf »

Bushman wrote: Fri Feb 03, 2023 9:32 am
Rrmuf wrote: Fri Feb 03, 2023 9:11 am Thanks Bushman. My only hesitation is based on a perhaps false suggestion that juniper berries should be mildly crushed.
(oh, and BTW we use the same identical scale :-) )
With that grinder you have to hold it down to run. It is not on a timer so you can give it a quick spin lift the lid and access how crushed it is. That is why I don’t do all the botanicals at the same time.
:thumbup:
-- Rrmuf
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