Home Distiller

I always assumed hard seltzers were made from distilling a clean high-proof alcohol from a sugar or other type of ferment and adding it to flavoring and carbonated water, but it kind of sounds like they do a sugar wash that sounds an awful lot like Shady's Sugar Shine and then filter all of the flavor out of it. The filtering process seems like a bit more than it would be simple to do at home.

Five minutes of googling yielded this: https://firstkey.com/hard-seltzer-production-methods/

In any case, this thread and Shady's Sugar Shine is not a recipe for making wash you can drink and you haven't taken a crack at making it per the recipe yet. You might want to look elsewhere for something like that.

Thanks for all the suggestions folks!

To be clear, I have not yet used this recipe to try to make seltzer. I was just asking if it was a viable alternative to the failures attempted so far with the recipes from the kits provided.

I definitely aerate with a drill & mixing attachment (damn near spin it to almost overflow the bucket... gots to be careful!!!) for all my washes to keep the yeasties happy.

Great link w/ good info MtR. I don't have all the equip for post fermentation filtration, but can use some wine/cider hobbyist tricks to extrapolate the desired end result.

Duck

Give this a try.

Tap water, sugar to 1.030 - 1.035ish and boiled bakers yeast.
Ferment with ec1118 and use a little crushed oyster shell.
When it's done, cold crash and decant.

It's called Skitter Pee when flavored with lemon juice.

This place is where I buy my enzymes.

Just saw this yeast: https://ferm-solutions.net/product/fermpro-s-1/

Might be worth giving it a try for not too much money for your hard seltzer needs. Kind of sounds like a turbo, but might be good as they're a reputable company.

I may have missed it in the 10 pages of comments
But I saw ferment at 85deg. Being really new at this
Will there be and adverse effects if it sits at room temp 68-71 ish ?
I suspect it will just be a slower finish time or will it stress the yeast the #1 rule !?!?
Should I set on a heat pad ?
Thanks

The lower temp would ferment much slower.
For room temp I'd recommend using ec1118 instead of bakers
If I had a heat pad, I'd use it.

As shady said.

85deg F gets your bakers yeast working properly, otherwise too slow.

I think that at 68F your bakers yeast might go to rest and not work well at all.

Different yeasts not only for different ferments but also different temperatures. I like the ec1118 because it ferments at lower temps.

I either choose a yeast for the temperatures I expect to have, or do whatever I have to do to control the temperature to keep my chosen yeast happy.

Food for thought, off the web.

"Cold-rise dough is famous for having a stronger flavor. This is because when the rising process is slowed down, the yeast and everything inside the bread will help the flour produce a stronger flavor.

After all, when your bread rises in three days instead of one, that is a lot more time for the flour to develop a strong and robust flavor. Cold-rise dough is one of the easiest ways to bring the flavor out of the flour."

And cider can take months to ferment...
Over the winter?

Geoff

I quite often let my bread yeast suffer in the cold for several hours, but that's when I'm making bread.

Thanks for all the input !
I’ll go with the 1118 y’all recommended and stick to this recipe.
Reason I was asking about temps :
My wife has limited my hobby to the garage after I had an overly active cider fermentation Overflowed In our big jetted bathtub I was using as a carboy holding facility when we were away for the weekend. Your input will help me keep chugging away in the cooler temps !!!

looking at trying this. New to this and have trouble converting imperial to metric
Can someone check the math?
The recipe was for 20 gallons = 75l
so for a 25l wash i divide everything by 3?
so:
4.5 kg sugar
boiled yeast: 1.2l water and 1/6 cup of bakers yeast
pinch of epsom salt
1 tbs DAP
say 1/2 cup of shell
1/6 cup bakers yeast on top
look right?

Royalwulf wrote: ↑Mon Nov 01, 2021 12:56 am looking at trying this. New to this and have trouble converting imperial to metric
Can someone check the math?
The recipe was for 20 gallons = 75l
so for a 25l wash i divide everything by 3?
so:
4.5 kg sugar
boiled yeast: 1.2l water and 1/6 cup of bakers yeast
pinch of epsom salt
1 tbs DAP
say 1/2 cup of shell
1/6 cup bakers yeast on top
look right?

That looks about right.
Shady always says don't stress the yeast.
The oyster shell is to manage the pH, you might not need it but it is insurance against a pH crash. I throw in 2 half shells (you will want to boil them before)
Also think about hydrating the yeast before pitching.
Other than that you are good to go, ferment at 28-30C

This is what I get.



Also easier to measure in Tablespoons vs. cups.

This is what I come up with , pretty close I think.
Metric Translation for 25L Ferment
4.5 KG Sugar
1.2L boiling water +1/4 cup yeast
3 Vit B crushed
Pinch Epsom Salt
1 x Tablespoon DAP
1/2 cup shell grit.
Bakers yeast to pitch.

Seems pretty heavy handed on the shells .
Thats about how many I chuck in a 200Litre batch …. and theres still some left in the bottom .

Not say’n its bad … if they don’t get used , they don’t get used .Everyones water is different .

Thanks for the posts above.
There seems a difference in yeast, one is 2.2 tbs (less than 1/6 cup) and 1/4 cup. More the better or can be too much?
Also during the 10 pages of this it was decided that you don't need Vit B, thoughts on that?
cheers

20 US gal = 75.7082 L ....close enough to 76L ........Just to save people working it out.

Yummyrum wrote: ↑Mon Nov 01, 2021 2:54 am Seems pretty heavy handed on the shells .

Shady says "A cup or two of crushed oyster shell/coral that's normally used as chicken feed helps for pH control."
One 3rd of that could be more than 1/2 cup.....not that it really matters , it will do the job one way or the other.

Boiled up yeast has been known for years to be a source of B Vitamins . Yeast extract as a waste byproduct from Beer Brewery's has been turned into Marmite and Vegemite for a long time.

According to to Vegemite label , its got B1, B2 and B3 covered . Chucking in a Multi B tablet probably gives it B6 and B12 as well .

Whether it needs it , I don’t know , but if you got some lying around ( I always get given the out of date ones ) might as well use it .

thanks, how about the amount of yeast?

Andrew_90 wrote: ↑Mon Nov 01, 2021 1:19 am This is what I get.

Don't omit the Epsom salt.

Because of the calcium in the shell grit.
The yeast needs some extra magnesium.

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs ... .tb00958.x

Andrew_90 wrote: ↑Mon Nov 01, 2021 1:19 am This is what I get.



Also easier to measure in Tablespoons vs. cups.

The recipe is in the tried and true section for a reason, I think as a group if we are going to convert it, it should have all the original ingredients. This is how stuff gets lost in translation over time

Royalwulf wrote: ↑Mon Nov 01, 2021 12:45 pm thanks, how about the amount of yeast?

1/2 cup in 75l divide by 3
1/2 cup is 125ml in volume
125 by 3 in ml volume should be your yeast

Royalwulf wrote: ↑Mon Nov 01, 2021 12:45 pm thanks, how about the amount of yeast?

RW,
keep in mind that the yeast starts multiplying once you give it food. I put my yeast into a some of the sugar solution to get it started and hydrate it.

The only difference between using more yeast vs less yeast is how quick your ferment takes off. If you have the yeast, use a bit more, if it is scarce, like it was here last year, use less and get yourself a starter.

For a wash, I sprinkle more yeast than needed, directly on top of the wash and put on the lid.

For whiskey, I first rehydrate and proof the yeast in warm water only.
It's cell walls need to be hydrated and functional before the yeast is given nutrients or sugar.
After rehydrating the yeast, it's alive and needs fed within 20 or 30 minutes.

Just put together a 20 gallon batch of this today, destined to be my first product for my new VM column with SPP.

I tried to match the original recipe as closely as possible. I went to the local grocery store today to buy some bakers yeast, but they were only selling small packets and were running low. I had a bunch of redstar DADY distillers yeast on hand, so went with that instead. In my experience, it definitely throws out esters, but ferments quickly and makes a good product. I use it a lot for whiskey and get a distinct fruity cherry flavor from it, but this time it should all get compressed out with my neutral rig.

The main differences from the original recipe are the yeast selection and instead of oyster shells, I used 4tsp of calcium carbonate “chalk.” I use it all the time for other recipes. Also, I only used 28 lbs of sugar since I miscalculated what I had on hand. No biggie IMO.I also used the rest of my DAP, so I only had 2.75 tbsp instead of 3… hopefully this is fine.

It’s currently bubbling away inside my big 50 gallon kettle. I hooked up 2 heating pads with a temp controller set to 85F with a large blanket draped over it. Crossing my fingers I get a nice, clean product.

My one question, are you guys giving the wash a lot of time to fully clear before a stripping run? In the past, when I used buckets, I’d throw them in the chest freezer to cold crash, but this time around I don’t have that option since it’s all in the kettle.

Thanks for the recipe Shady, pretty excited for my first large batch sugar wash. So much easier than my all grain stuff.

BrewinBrian44 wrote: ↑Sat Feb 05, 2022 8:43 pm My one question, are you guys giving the wash a lot of time to fully clear before a stripping run?

I never have, I get mine stripped before infections have a chance to make a difference. My last stripping run often has a tiny bit of trub included.

Mines in a big old 50gal Olive barrel with a piece of polystyrene on top to let the gas out and a block of wood to hold it down .

I never have time to strip it when its done so it always sits for a few weeks or more on average . Never had an infection start . Mind you , I have a tap at the bottom to draw off FG test samples so I don’t lift the lid .

So yes , I inadvertantly let mine clear .

I always let mine settle for a week or more, by then it only has a light tinge of colour to it.

I think cold crashing and/or letting a sugar wash settle makes for a cleaner neutral.
Spent yeast in the boiler might be good for esters when making Rum or Bourbon.
But when trying to make neutral spirits, the less flavor going into the boiler.
The fewer # of distillations needed to to remove flavors.