Start simple. Don't be me

[TXAKN]

Yours turned out better than my 1st run. 2 weeks ago I ran my 1st ever.
Orange brandy, 13lbs oranges after peeled NO white stuff, 10 # white cane + 2 # brown sugar inverted together, pectic enzyme, Goferm protect, Fermade O, Lavlin EC 1118, 5 gallon spring h2o. Osg 1.090, pH 4.6 ended sg 0.992 pH 3.9. 6.5 gallons in 8+3 gallon thumper stainless setup. Ran 8 hours to get 1gallon 1pint of clear product that is so bad on smell and taste it is impossible to find cuts after 48 hour air-out. Rerunning once this new receipe must is ready for volume. Need a smaller test still obviously, now to talk the wife into that. Lol.

[greggn]

6.5 gallons in 8+3 gallon thumper stainless setup. Ran 8 hours to get 1gallon 1pint of clear product that is so bad on smell and taste it is impossible to find cuts after 48 hour air-out.

Do you have any copper in the vapor path ?

[OtisT]

+1 to needing copper in the vapor path and/or boiler.

Being your first run ever, it may hard to know what is “Normal” vs “bad”. Most spirits, especially single pass, do not taste wonder off of the spout.

A second pass should improve the spirit. Trying to get a single pass rum that tastes good is a challenge for an experienced distiller, let along someone new and with a recipe that is new. A single pass spirit on a thumper make a great spirit for aging on oak.

Your run time was good, so I don’t think you smeared it.

[shadylane]

I've had poor luck distilling citrus fruit and sugar, it has a sharp headsie wang that I don't like, even with good cuts and ageing. Instead of trying to make orange brandy, experiment making orange liquor.

[NZChris]

I've never fermented oranges myself because I've smelled fermenting orange many times and didn't like it. Where I was they called it Bush Beer, it certainly did the job, drinkers used to weave their way home past our place, pissed as chooks.

You might get better results by making a sugar wash neutral, then flavoring it with zest. Zest can be put in a thumper or gin basket or in the boiler, or you can steep it like making limoncello.

If your still didn't have any copper in it, any sulfides present would come over with the distillate. Putting copper in the boilers and risers should fix that.

[Stags]

I think your still is on the small side tbh

[TXAKN]

It is but sort of intentionally. Just doing this for fun may never actually drink anything I make depending on aging.

[TXAKN]

I do have 2 copper scrubs in the very short (gooseneck style) head. I have 3 more to try to pack in for the re-run.

[NZChris]

Some reading for you.

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1 ... 0450.x/pdf

[TXAKN]

Some reading for you.

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1 ... 0450.x/pdf

Thanks, that was a good read

[IMALOSERSCUMBAG]

Citrus is hard man. Go with something simple then move to something simple. I think a few runs of Birdwatchers is a good start: viewtopic.php?t=5018 and then Uncle Jesse's: viewtopic.php?t=725

[Yummyrum]

I used to make a lot of Orange Wine and even a blend of Orange and Grapefruit. Used a similar recipe to what you used and made nice wine .

Can’t say I ever distilled any though .

One thing that stands out is you are using Pectinase . While that is used in wine making to reduce Pectin haze and make the wine clearer I have read a fair bit that suggests it also produces more Methanol .
However I don’t think that is your problem as you can’t smell or taste Methanol .( it is odourless and tasteless)

Also don’t start freaking out because I have mentioned it . The tiny amount of Methanol naturally produced in a fermentation is passed through the body as you drink the Ethanol .