Home Distiller

MooseMan wrote: ↑Sun Apr 09, 2023 6:45 am Long overdue but I now have a pair of much needed SS/copper funnels.
Not pretty but functional, hard wearing and easy to knock up.

Big one with a 32mm stem for the keg and a small one with a 22mm stem for glass demijohns.
The big one I can upend a full gallon jug in and leave it there to drain.

IMG_20230409_153326_203~2.jpg

The 22mm I was able to roll over into a nice flange for soldering but the 32mm is thick wall so I cut and fanned it for some surface area.

IMG_20230409_153454_776~2.jpg

Well done. It is on my agenda as wel but I have a 12lt urn that I removed the tap. I just cannot get the element out, soon.

Trying a new recipe idea. Got the ferment going already. Peated malt, amber malt, and oats. Hopefully i will get a rich and smokey whisky with a nice mouth feel from the oats.

Dancing4dan wrote: ↑Fri Mar 31, 2023 12:52 pm Rum ferment going this morning.

About 12 gallons of water.
10 kg Crosby's fancy molasses.
908 grams Panela.

Mix of bakers and DADY. Bakers seemed a little slow in the starter.

Batch #2 using trub / yeast from last batch. Strong ferment. Will have enough for two stripping runs and a spirit run.

I have been messing around with Amburana chips. I loaded just .1 oz. (1/10th. oz.) into a pint of double pot stilled and oaked UJSSM. Boy after just a week it was real bold. I thought I over did it but after straining out the chips and letting it set a week it really is delicious. It smells and tastes like Grandma's house at Thanksgiving. Lots of baking spices. I loaded the same amount in a quart of Oak finished UJSSM and I will see what happens after a week. I think I'm onto something.

Corny Corn and more Corn over here. Grinding anda cookin.

JLP IV wrote: ↑Mon Apr 10, 2023 2:22 pm Corny Corn and more Corn over here. Grinding anda cookin.

20230410_181908.jpg

20230410_181908.jpg

Very nice. Just corn or something else added

JLP IV wrote: ↑Mon Apr 10, 2023 2:22 pm Corny Corn and more Corn over here. Grinding anda cookin.

20230410_181908.jpg

20230410_181908.jpg

That's a pretty cool setup!

Bradster68 - 100% corn + enzymes. Followed Pintoshine almost to the letter

Tombombadil - Thank you, I sure appreciate that. Alot of thinking went into it

Just pitched my yeast on 20 gallons of Shadys Sugar Shine. Sg 1.063 Followed the recipe to the letter, except for the yeast. I used Red Star Daddy. This is my biggest ferment to date.

Spirit run on a mixed whiskey. Blend of feints from bourbon sugar head and all grain, and all the low wines from a small breakfast cereal and semolina mash. It turned out superb, and is probably destined to be kept white for as long as it lasts.

I also made a sourdough using the leftovers from straining some bourbon trub, so it’s got a fair bit of spent grain, a nice sharp tang, and really reminds me of the smell of getting ready to do a stripping run. I’ll definitely be doing this again!

Corn & oatmeal spirit run.
Been sitting in boiler waiting for 6 weeks

Then will be racking 100 litres corn and oats wash which has been clearing for 2 months

Another batch of Panela rum. Finally able to start keeping up with the family’s drinking habits and build up a stock. This will bring me to 12.6G in barrels and finish out a 3 barrel solara made up of 5G entry barrel former bourbon, 1.6G badmo, 6G spent red wine barrel currently using for finishing but will move to number 2 barrel when / if it stops delivering red wine notes. Holding about 1G in reserve glass for top ups, and another batch of 15G wash in the fermenters.

My annual version of Mezcal de Pechuga while there is plenty of fruit in season.

I don't grow agave, but a similar method and recipe substituting brandy from my own grapes is an exotic sipper that I really like.

viewtopic.php?f=7&t=71406

NZChris wrote: ↑Sun Apr 16, 2023 1:14 am My annual version of Mezcal de Pechuga while there is plenty of fruit in season.

I don't grow agave, but a similar method and recipe substituting brandy from my own grapes is an exotic sipper that I really like.

viewtopic.php?f=7&t=71406

Thanks for the link Chris. Very "very" interesting read

Making cuts from yesterday’s Oat vodka spirit run with my better half. One of my favourite ways to spend a Sunday arvo when all the other chores are done. Lucky for me that she likes it too, especially seeing as she has a way more finely tuned palate and nose than me.

GrumbleStill wrote: ↑Sun Apr 16, 2023 3:49 am Making cuts from yesterday’s Oat vodka spirit run with my better half. One of my favourite ways to spend a Sunday arvo when all the other chores are done. Lucky for me that she likes it too, especially seeing as she has a way more finely tuned palate and nose than me.

Your sir, are indeed a lucky man.

Lucky that your Mrs likes to get actively involved in your hobby.
And doubly lucky that she's got a skilled palate for it!

Sounds like a fantastic way to spend a Sunday afternoon, I'm envious.

Ive been playing with my new X-TOOL 40W diode laser. This morning I made this stand for my BadMo from a reclaimed fence board.

that's awesome Deplorable!!

Been a busy Sunday here. I've got a bourbon mash cooking in the garage now. 75% Corn, 13% Rye Malt, 12% Barley Malt. I'll dough in the malts in the morning.
I think this run will be destined for a 5 gallon corny keg for a while, until I can make at least one more mash and fill a new Gibbs Barrel. I just need to run to the LHBS to get another bag of rye. I've got one batch resting in glass on sticks already, so I might as well just fill a barrel. That will use up the rest of my corn stash and free up my 2nd fermenter so I can ferment 60 gallons of single malt to fill one of my now empty Barrel Mill Barrels.

Deplorable wrote: ↑Sun Apr 16, 2023 12:37 pm Ive been playing with my new X-TOOL 40W diode laser. This morning I made this stand for my BadMo from a reclaimed fence board.20230416_123739.jpg

Tell us more!
No burning at all?
I've used an early days 80w laser cabinet but it burned wood really badly.

MooseMan wrote: ↑Sun Apr 16, 2023 11:06 pm

Deplorable wrote: ↑Sun Apr 16, 2023 12:37 pm Ive been playing with my new X-TOOL 40W diode laser. This morning I made this stand for my BadMo from a reclaimed fence board.20230416_123739.jpg

Tell us more!
No burning at all?
I've used an early days 80w laser cabinet but it burned wood really badly.

It will burn it. This was 15mm thick pine.
85% power, 30mm/s speed, air assist, and 10 passes worked well with no scorching or char.
Air assist, and focus of the beam in the middle of the material is key. The kerf ended up about half a mm.
Here's a logo I cut in a bamboo cutting board for a giveaway at a rally we attend every year. This was 116mm/s at 35% and it's about 1.5 mm deep. It does a good job on glass if you use a carrier agent for the blue light to focus on. It will etch SS, and if you set it right it will give some coloration to the metal.

Deplorable wrote: ↑Mon Apr 17, 2023 5:44 am

MooseMan wrote: ↑Sun Apr 16, 2023 11:06 pm

Deplorable wrote: ↑Sun Apr 16, 2023 12:37 pm Ive been playing with my new X-TOOL 40W diode laser. This morning I made this stand for my BadMo from a reclaimed fence board.20230416_123739.jpg

Tell us more!
No burning at all?
I've used an early days 80w laser cabinet but it burned wood really badly.

It will burn it. This was 15mm thick pine.
85% power, 30mm/s speed, air assist, and 10 passes worked well with no scorching or char.
Air assist, and focus of the beam in the middle of the material is key. The kerf ended up about half a mm.
Here's a logo I cut in a bamboo cutting board for a giveaway at a rally we attend every year. This was 116mm/s at 35% and it's about 1.5 mm deep.
20230414_162015.jpg

It does a good job on glass if you use a carrier agent for the blue light to focus on.20230415_113957.jpg
It will etch SS, and if you set it right it will give some coloration to the metal.

That's pretty cool. Is it computer software that's cuts logo? Or do you scan a picture?

Wow that's a really nice sharp etch!

I'd absolutely love one of those to play with, but if I pick up any more hobbies the wife will lose the plot.

I use Lightburn to run the laser. You can scan an image, and use a number of programs to rasterize it. I haven't tried burning a photo yet. The two images above were vector files.
I don't know what program my wife used to create the apple, but I suspect she used one of the programs we use to create vinyl decals like illustrator or design studio. Just import it into Lightburn, adjust the settings, hit run, and Robert is your father's brother.

MooseMan wrote: ↑Mon Apr 17, 2023 5:58 am Wow that's a really nice sharp etch!

I'd absolutely love one of those to play with, but if I pick up any more hobbies the wife will lose the plot.

I bought this to add additional options for our little side hustle. If this pays for itself as fast as out 2 vinyl cutters did, I'll probably end up with a bigger one down the road.

Deplorable wrote: ↑Sun Apr 16, 2023 12:37 pm Ive been playing with my new X-TOOL 40W diode laser. This morning I made this stand for my BadMo from a reclaimed fence board.20230416_123739.jpg

Nice

Finally ran my peated malt whisky. Peated malt, amber malt, and oats. Delicious. Recipe is not quite there yet. Last adjustment I will make is half the amber and do light pilsner malt. Have a little barrel waiting for when I get it right.

Single malt spirit run.
34% Bairds Heavily Peated and I blended unpeated 'Feints and Foreshots' to my low wines to keep the peatiness in check.

.
I bottled my barrel-aged bourbon at 106 weeks. Many thanks to Deplorable for shipping down the once-used Barrel Mill barrel he snagged from a local distillery. It has been a game-changer.

The grain bill was 70/17/13 and included 4 kinds of rye (pale, amber, caramel and raw) malts along with Maris Otter pale 2-row. The early batches used DistilaMax GW yeast that was gifted from member Pope and the later batches were made with SafAle US-05.

After two years in hot, dry weather the ABV grew from 62.5% to 66.4%. I reckon I lost 1-1.5gal to the angels (mostly water?) and 1 gal to diligent 2nd year quality control. Nevertheless, the spirit is rich and complex from the ryes, has a fantastic nose and pleasing color. I really only took a decent heads cut and included all the tails I had. I bottled the lot at barrel proof into differently-shaped bottles to see how the light might refract and change the color.

Twisted Brick wrote: ↑Tue Apr 18, 2023 8:50 am

That looks and sounds very good! Is that the same yeast you sent me to try out? I'm sitting on that for the next bourbon ag .

Cheers!
-j