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Odin wrote: If you go for boiler infused, you will end up with two things:
1. Something that blows Bombay out of the water;
2. Cloudy spirit.

My advice: dilute to 45% only. And add some 45% neutral base to get rid of any louching problems you may encounter.

Regards, Odin.

Thanks Odin, but I'm confused. Are you saying that by redistilling my macerated 45% neutral hearts, I will end up with with cloudy spirit? I thought that was accepted practice with your method and was preferred to pure maceration? Sorry, I'm probably being dim?

Wait, or are you saying to go ahead but ensure I am at exactly 45% at the point of maceration and to dilute after the run to clean up any cloudyness?

No.

And sorry for the confusion, if I caused any.

If you can put everything in the boiler, that's the best approach. If you end up with a louched product ... that is a good thing. You got over so much tasty oils that some come our of solution when diluting the final drink to 45%. Many say (that consider themselves pro gin consultants): bad, go filter it out. I say: congrats! Dilute with some 45% neutral untill haze lifts and you have a maximum tasting gin.

Bold gin. BOLD with capitals.

Hope this info helps.

Which makes me wonder ... where has my gin gone? All is finished. Will be making some new stuff in January! And I will share the recipe and procedure. Will be my signature drink when I launch my distillery, so should be fun.

Regards, Odin.

I feel honoured that such a significant announcement was made in response to my stupidity. Thanks for the clarification Odin!

Patching246 wrote:I feel honoured that such a significant announcement was made in response to my stupidity. Thanks for the clarification Odin!

I love you too!

And there is nothing stupid to asking a sound question.

Odin.

And I might add too, that when you cut the first 10 ml, if you go farther into the run, you'll cut more of the juniper out. So, take your 10 ml cut and then collect the rest down to the 800 ml point. If you want less juniper, then cut a little deeper...say 25 or 30ml. But don't cut too much because that's where the big juniper character is...up front.

It's all in Odin's recipe...just follow it exactly and you'll love the gin. And it gets much better after a month or two, if you can wait that long. Or, you could make more.
ss

still_stirrin wrote:And I might add too, that when you cut the first 10 ml, if you go farther into the run, you'll cut more of the juniper out. So, take your 10 ml cut and then collect the rest down to the 800 ml point. If you want less juniper, then cut a little deeper...say 25 or 30ml. But don't cut too much because that's where the big juniper character is...up front.

It's all in Odin's recipe...just follow it exactly and you'll love the gin. And it gets much better after a month or two, if you can wait that long. Or, you could make more.
ss

Thanks SS. I think that summarizes it perfectly. And let it age out for like 5 weeks. And make it. Really, make this recipe. And then go and have some drinks that are made by craft distillers all around the USA. You may find ... most of them are running the same recipe. Or something pretty close to it.



Odin.

My Odin's Easy Gin has turned out spectacularly! Due to a month long trip, it now has a month of age, which really made a difference!

I did two six gallon batches at 12%, a spirit run after the stripping runs, and then added the botanicals to the quart jars with the spirits and included them in the pot for the gin run. I ended up with 8 quarts of gin when I diluted to 45%. The first quart was louched because the distilled water I added was too cold. After a quick Google search, I then warmed up the distilled water and the next 7 quarts were crystal clear. After a month (I was gone, so it did not get consumed!), the cloudy quart was clear as well.

The only change I might make is to add some star anise to the botanicals, but there is nothing wrong with juniper, corriander and orange peel!

Finally a chance to try this one out.

Setup is 9x (9 liters or ~2 gallons). Similar to others I had to substitute clementines due to availability. Looking forward to trying it out! It already smells great.

Can I ask a quick follow up question. If I were to macerate my neutral with the botanicals, but rather than add them into the boiler, put them in the vapour path - would I need to soak for longer than the suggested 24 hours? One would assume so because the infusion will be lighter, but has anyone done any testing?

I'm essentially looking for a quicker turnaround time - but without adding the botanicals to the boiler (due to heating elements and the fact that I already have a chamber for botanicals)

I'm looking for a badd ass, kick you in the mouth gin.

Patching246 wrote:Can I ask a quick follow up question. If I were to macerate my neutral with the botanicals, but rather than add them into the boiler, put them in the vapour path - would I need to soak for longer than the suggested 24 hours?

The longer you macerate, the greater the extraction of the essence you'll get...yes. But consider that the flavors of the juniper to other botanicals will, or could be out of balance...due to the varying rate they are extracted in the spirit.

Obviously, the greatest rate of extraction will occur through the heating process in the boiler. Odin's recipe is formulated on that premise. Deviating will produce variance from the results expected when following the recipe.

Patching246 wrote:I'm essentially looking for a quicker turnaround time - but without adding the botanicals to the boiler (due to heating elements and the fact that I already have a chamber for botanicals)...I'm looking for a badd ass, kick you in the mouth gin.

Gins have been made for years by putting the botanicals in the vapor path. So, yes...you can do that. But that is not Odin's Easy Gin recipe. The recipe formulation would likely deviate as well as the process if only run in the vapor path. In fact, you're asking about a different recipe all together.

If you can..try the recipe according to Odin's prescription. If you fear the botanicals will scorch (without actual experience), then perhaps put the botanicals in a bag and secure it above the heat element (but keep it in the liquid spirit).

One key to the predictability is the quantity and proof of the liquid in the boiler so that the output product is as expected (and proven by many distillers).
ss

Patching246 wrote:I'm looking for a badd ass, kick you in the mouth gin.

Put the botanicals in the boiler.

Put a sieve around the element, or heat from below.

Run to 500ml instead of the recommended 400ml

Expect a good louche.

As long as the herb bill is well bruised, maceration time doesn't seem to be all that important. Experiment with two extremes to see if you have a preference. I've chewed on the leftovers after short and long macerations and there wasn't much flavor left in any of them, so I prefer to start maceration when it is convenient, rather than for a specific time.

NZChris wrote:Put a sieve around the element, or heat from below.

I like this idea, but can't imagine in my head how I would securely wrap a sieve around my quite long element to completely shield the botanicals

still_stirrin wrote:then perhaps put the botanicals in a bag and secure it above the heat element (but keep it in the liquid spirit

I'm thinking this is the way to go. This thing measures about 11cm by 10cm http://www.amazon.co.uk/niceeshop-Extra ... h+tea+ball" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow will that be enough to loosely fit all my botanicals (30 litre boiler)? I was then thinking about hooking it to the through tubes, which - as those of you [not really] following my still adventures will know - will be at the very bottom of my repurposed column. See my masterful illustration

A hops boiling bag with a hook on it may well be perfect.

Regards, Odin.

The nylon won't suffer andy ill effects?

Aren't brew bags made of muslin, or some such?

S-Cackalacky wrote:Aren't brew bags made of muslin, or some such?

Is muslin any better or worse than nylon? This one is made from terylene. Haven't a f*cking clue what that is:

https://www.brew2bottle.co.uk/hop-boiling-bag.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

S-Cackalacky wrote:I was planning on putting the macerated hearts in the thumper and charging the electric boiler with plain water - steamer style. Has anyone tried this?

Yes. It works great for me.

Or even a "tea ball", like the ones meant for putting tea leaves into a pot of boiling water. The local grocery store likely has them. They're about the size of an egg. If you use more botanicals than a single tea ball....get more than one.

http://strandtea.corecommerce.com/Stain ... -inch.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

They're made of stainless steel so you don't have to worry about hot alcohol compatibility.

Think innovatively considering your design requirements. It becomes obvious to the knowledgeable.
ss

Cover for Electric Element http://homedistiller.org/forum/viewtopi ... =2&t=56722

still_stirrin wrote:Think innovatively considering your design requirements. It becomes obvious to the knowledgeable.
ss

Hey, I suggested this a few posts ago and drew a pretty picture and everything!!

Thanks NZC, some great info in there!

I'm still having some problems understanding what size or how many gin baskets I'll need. Assuming I have a basket that is 4x4" and I am making about 8 litres - so about 120 grams of botanicals - is that enough space to allow adequate flow? Without trying it, I'm finding it hard to visualise. Can anyone with experience using a similar basket technique share how much they can fit into what size basket?

Thanks,

Patching246 wrote:I'm still having some problems understanding what size or how many gin baskets I'll need....

Do you have your botanicals yet? The juniper? Have you weighed them out yet? How big is the volume....you should know this already.

At 12 grams (juniper) per liter, you'll need approximately 100 grams (for 8 liters of spirit). The coriander is a very small volume even at 3 grams per liter. You're probably in the "cup and a half" realm...well within your 4x4" basket size.
ss

I have my ingredients but until a mash em up I can't really gauge the volume.

Patching246 wrote:I have my ingredients but until a mash em up I can't really gauge the volume.

Jesus Patching, you're really starting to be "high maintenance".

Get off your backside and do something...like measure what your volume is.

You're gonna' macerate anyway, so measure the botanicals that you put into your spirit. DO SOMETHING!!!

HaHa. Fair point. To be fair, when Odin laid this recipe out, it was a two week maceration, followed my a run through the pot still. Then someone ASKED if it would be possible to achieve the same results but boil the botanicals also, to which Odin replied yes, but it only needs a 12-24 hour maceration. Then someone ASKED about heating elements and Odin said that it wouldn't be a problem diluting it down to 30% in order to cover the elements. People have asked about a lot of stuff. If I need to order two tea balls from hong kong in order to fit the botanicals, it makes sense to ask from people running similar set ups before I wait two weeks for them to arrive. I figured if I grinded the botanicals two weeks before the mesh ball arrived, they would lose some... zing.

And, with all due respect (and I mean that, because you have given me an awful lot of help), I have been doing a lot. I've thrown my brewhaus still in the bin, salvaging what I can. I've got 30 litres of pretty damn pure hearts ready to go, I've got all the ingredients I need for my gin, and I've got my new Liebig, boka head and plumbing - nearly ready to go Edit: I've bought a new thermometer, filled my thermo well with thermal paste, cut a dowel to size and drilled. I've done a hundred variations on my TPW and finally got a neutral I'm happy with.Acuse me of stupidity, of not being able to weld, of not understanding, of asking too many questions, even of being high maintenance - but don't accuse me of doing nothing.

And if I am genuinely too high maintenance, because I'm asking questions on a forum, the solution is simple - stop answering the questions and I'll go elsewhere for help; or lurk in the background, afraid to speak.

Edit:Edit: Seriously, thank you for all your help. I wouldn't be where I am if it weren't for you. But this is literally the only post I've made outside of the novice stiller section, due to the nature of the question. I'm a novice distiller. Surely all novice distillers are allowed to be high maintenance. It is up to the master distillers whether or not they deign to impart their knowledge on us mere mortals.

Patching246 wrote:I have my ingredients but until a mash em up I can't really gauge the volume.

Put them as you have them now and buy something to fit them as is. They won't shrink much. And if they do, then you've got room to spare if you want to do a bigger run later.

Monkeyman88 wrote:

Patching246 wrote:I have my ingredients but until a mash em up I can't really gauge the volume.

Put them as you have them now and buy something to fit them as is. They won't shrink much. And if they do, then you've got room to spare if you want to do a bigger run later.

Thanks man. There aren't any here in the UK that I can find (which is odd considering how much tea we drink). I've ordered a couple from overseas. Fingers crossed, they will do the trick.

Do yourself a favor and leave the thermometer out for your gin run. Just run it like Odin said on page 1.

NZChris wrote:Do yourself a favor and leave the thermometer out for your gin run. Just run it like Odin said on page 1.

IF I ever get to my gin run, I won't go anywhere near it Thanks.