Water

[BobWelshJr]

I’ve been reading quite a bit through here, and in a lot of the recipes they just say so many gallons of water. But in documentation that has come with the one kit of ingredients, I ordered to get my feet wet, they said I needed to use distilled water. Is that important? I used distilled water, and if that is what is required I absolutely will continue to do so. I’m just curious if that is just an assumed piece of knowledge, so when individuals are saying 4 gallons of water, they mean distilled water and there is an understanding. Just trying to learn. Thanks in advance.

[jonnys_spirit]

Distilled water is not required or probably even desired for mashing or making a wash.

Have you ever checked out the lengths home brewers go to for their water?

How is your water? Is it from a well, a stream, a spring, the city?? Is it soft or hard? Has it been treated with chlorine or chloramine? Are you able to get or find an analysis of your water source?

I use tap water from the pipe the city has provided and I might sometimes treat it to remove chloramine but not always and it's fine..

Cheers,
jonny

[Dancing4dan]

I treat tap water for chloramine and use it to ferment and barrel.

You don’t want chlorine or chloramine going into a barrel.

[Deplorable]

All I've ever used, making beer or spirits, is tap water.
That said, I know my city water source is an artesian well fed from glaciers on Mt Rainier, the pH is consistently 7.0 and minimally treated with chlorine but by the time it reaches boiling temps for mashing, what little chlorine they treat it with is long gone.

If your city water smells like the public pool, invest in a a quality water filter and you'll be fine.

[MooseMan]

I’ve been reading quite a bit through here, and in a lot of the recipes they just say so many gallons of water. But in documentation that has come with the one kit of ingredients, I ordered to get my feet wet, they said I needed to use distilled water. Is that important? I used distilled water, and if that is what is required I absolutely will continue to do so. I’m just curious if that is just an assumed piece of knowledge, so when individuals are saying 4 gallons of water, they mean distilled water and there is an understanding. Just trying to learn. Thanks in advance.

Tap water is fine for setting up ferments Bob. If you're concerned about it then by all means look into treatments to remove additives.
I start all my ferments with the hot water that comes out of the condenser.

For proofing though, I will use spring water or RO filtered.

And don't order any more "Kits" have a go at some of the easier recipes on the T&T.
For examples, Odin's cornflake whisky, SBB Rum, UJSSM are all super easy, need no special ingredients and make a fine drop.

[BobWelshJr]

A number of the recipes here look great. In fact the sweet feed corn one a co-worker of mine recommended I try. Thanks for the feedback. I have a well. I’ll try well water. Thanks!

[Saltbush Bill]

No you dont need distilled water,
You will soon find that the information supplied by many sources including that which comes with some commercially built stills is BS.
The is more bad advice around in many place than good.
The good thing about forums is that the BS gets weeded out pretty quickly.

[BobWelshJr]

Thanks for the advice on water. Thanks for the advice on a lot of things. I’ve made a couple of batches, and since I recognized that my own opinion is biased by the fact that I made it, I have shared with several of my friends who appreciate whiskey and everyone of them has told me how good it is. Must have asked if they could have more. So obviously the information here in this forum is much more valuable than the typed up instructions that come with us still or a premade mix to cook from. Haven’t been here in a while because I’ve been busy fermenting distilling and aging. I took a tour of a commercial distillery And was happy to see that most of how I do. Things is how they do things on a smaller scale.

[Bushman]

I’ve been on a well for over 42 years and that has worked great for me.

[Demy]

Here in Italy I have always used tap water. It depends a lot on the water that arose in your home .. but in any case I do not think that the distilled water is the necessary option ... if I had a very bad water I would probably use water in purchased bottle, the cheapest possible.

[MooseMan]

Thanks for the advice on water. Thanks for the advice on a lot of things. I’ve made a couple of batches, and since I recognized that my own opinion is biased by the fact that I made it, I have shared with several of my friends who appreciate whiskey and everyone of them has told me how good it is. Must have asked if they could have more. So obviously the information here in this forum is much more valuable than the typed up instructions that come with us still or a premade mix to cook from. Haven’t been here in a while because I’ve been busy fermenting distilling and aging. I took a tour of a commercial distillery And was happy to see that most of how I do. Things is how they do things on a smaller scale.

Good to know you're still at it Bob, and getting your advice from here is always the way to go.
If people who like a good drink ask for more of what you made, that's the only quality control you need!
Feels great doesn't it.

[Malted-Mike]

Unfortunately our tap water is very hard and tastes like crap. I started out using tap water but I switched to reverse osmosis water. I can defiantly taste the difference. So, if your tap water tastes good -- use it. If not don't.

[PalCabral]

With taxes come great healthy communal water. It's good and safe.