Home Distiller

Posted: **Thu Oct 18, 2007 3:37 pm**

Blow Fly Irish Whiskey
Summer must be real close as I haven't done one of these since last year.
You know how the Mexicans put agave worms in their tequila, well there I was doing a spirit run on some Irish Whiskey and was just about to cut to tails when I looked in the bottom of the collecting jar. There it was.

I'd noticed a blowfly flying around in my shed and then it went missing and I thought it had flown out the door. Wrong. I found it perfectly preserved in the heart of the run.

Well it didn't drink much so I just threw it out but from now on Irish Whisky will be called BlowFly.
It's a good tasting drop so it's a pity for the blowfly it didn't wait until it had been aged on oak for a while.

Posted: **Thu Oct 18, 2007 8:05 pm**

I don't have enough for a barrel. I will put about twenty five or thirty of my charred oak sticks in a five gallon carboy. Next year this is gonna be some real good Christmas presents.

Posted: **Fri Oct 19, 2007 2:27 pm**

I just put some heavy charred oak staves into UJSM it didnt take long to start taking on color. The UJSM was at 60% abv.

Posted: **Fri Oct 19, 2007 10:32 pm**

Thats an impressive graph Pint. I never realised that the ABV increased from the initial start.
I can only boil around 10 litres (2.6 gall) at a time and collect in 300ml lots so have not been able to notice this fact.
Perhaps I need to collect smaller samples still.

Edit: After re-reading, I suppose though I am comparing running a 10% wash as against your 50?% one.
I am beginning to think that I may have to enter the world of the pot distiller one day soon

Posted: **Sat Oct 20, 2007 4:12 pm**

pintoshine wrote:
I guess the point is that I am doing it for the art of it and not for the speed or the volume.

Couldn't agree more, pint.

Posted: **Sat Oct 20, 2007 6:32 pm**

The initial increase in the abv is because I put water in the doubler. It takes a bit for the water to become high alcohol for the pot. If you started with tails or wash in the doubler it starts out higher but doesn't come over as clean.
When I use tails in the doubler It comes over cloudy to start. When I use wash, it has a very heady start. Water is a good starter.

Posted: **Sun Oct 21, 2007 12:16 pm**

Ran the honey /fruit mix today .Outta a 3 gallon honey and 35 lbs mixed fruit peaches /plums/blueberries in a 13 gallon wash ended up with 2 1/2 gallons of 110 proof licker outta 1 run.Gonna fill up a small 1 gallon charred keg thats been used twice before and drink rest as is after tempering to 100 proof.Run started at 130 proof and I caught till proof dropped to 80.Likker has a heavy honey taste with a hint of the fruit.The honey and molasses wash should be done fermenting in a few more days.Looking forward to tasting it.Making some of it into some spiced rum is the plan so far.

Posted: **Sun Oct 21, 2007 12:25 pm**

Sounds tasty, tater.

~r~

Posted: **Sun Oct 21, 2007 1:09 pm**

I racked my cranberry,concord,and chianti wines today,and racked 10 gallons of mexican sugar wash into my boiler,and set it all up.I froze 2 five gallon buckets of ice for my cooling water,and cleaned out 5 carboys.
The still is setup,and ready.I will fire it up tomorrow evening.
wineo

Posted: **Sun Oct 21, 2007 8:13 pm**

I make the wife cook me my dinner and do the laundry.....

I done rans me a 5 gallon sugar wash so I can macarate some frozen red raspberries within it.

I dont needs it to be a liquid panty remover seein da wife dont wearin anys cause it takes her too muchin times to remove them

She says when we was a courtin she was outta dem more then shes was in dem so why wears dem now

Johnny Reb

Posted: **Tue Oct 23, 2007 7:27 pm**

Well I potstilled the 10 gallons of mexican sugar wash tonight,and collected 2 1/4 gallons of sweetwater vodka.It started at 70%,and i ran it down to 35% then quit.While it was running,I started 5 gallons of my easy cranberry wine so I will have enough for the holidays.
wineo

Posted: **Tue Oct 23, 2007 7:49 pm**

Cranberry wine? That sounds good. Is there a recipe close by?

Posted: **Tue Oct 23, 2007 7:54 pm**

I just posted it in wine and beer.Its easy cranberry wine.
wineo

Posted: **Tue Oct 23, 2007 7:59 pm**

Thank you

Posted: **Tue Oct 23, 2007 10:01 pm**

The wife and I cleaned out the venison from the freezer. I ground what was not already ground, and we made:

18.5 lb bacon (10.5 lb venison and 8 lb hog jowels)
25 lb pepper sticks
20 lb hot dogs (25 lb of seasoning, so they should be extra good)
15 lb summer sausage.

Lotta grinding and mixing. Everything is in the fridge(s), and will case them up (and patty the bacon) when I get off work on the morrow. Then fire up the smoke house, and prepare to enjoy.

H.

Posted: **Tue Oct 23, 2007 10:11 pm**

That sounds better than the cranberry wine.

Posted: **Tue Oct 23, 2007 10:13 pm**

cranberrys work great in italian sausage.

Posted: **Tue Oct 23, 2007 10:23 pm**

Husker wrote:The wife and I cleaned out the venison from the freezer. I ground what was not already ground, and we made:

18.5 lb bacon (10.5 lb venison and 8 lb hog jowels)
25 lb pepper sticks
20 lb hot dogs (25 lb of seasoning, so they should be extra good)
15 lb summer sausage.

Lotta grinding and mixing. Everything is in the fridge(s), and will case them up (and patty the bacon) when I get off work on the morrow. Then fire up the smoke house, and prepare to enjoy.

H.

Had the cold smoker going on sat/sun this w'end gone. Actually tried my first batch of venison jerky. Stripped the venison into pieces about 2 mm thick and smoked/dried em with hickory and some white oak that'd been used to colour my rum.
Came up tops.

Posted: **Tue Oct 23, 2007 10:41 pm**

Used aging chips/strips/cubes work great for smoking.

I have Oak, and Apple. They impart a better flavor after aging spirits than they do as "fresh dried" wood.

H.

Posted: **Wed Oct 24, 2007 12:34 am**

Posted: **Wed Oct 24, 2007 2:15 am**

Hows that thing fired Punkin mmmm yumo

Posted: **Wed Oct 24, 2007 2:58 am**

Solid electric stove element in the main 18 gallon keg, and a smaller electric element under a remote stainless smokebox connected with 2" pipe.

Posted: **Wed Oct 24, 2007 3:25 am**

How good are kegs......they can be used for anything!

Posted: **Wed Oct 24, 2007 3:49 am**

I've seen lots of BBQ's made from kegs round my neck of the woods, not to mention the stills. Mr Toohey (Aussie Brewery) must be getting awfully suspicious.

Posted: **Wed Oct 24, 2007 4:01 am**

Real nice job there, punkin.

Posted: **Wed Oct 24, 2007 11:18 am**

Thanks guys, also got a little 9 gallon built into my bbq bench as a spit roast

doesn't show it there, but it's in between the white gas cooktop and the sink.

Posted: **Wed Oct 24, 2007 12:20 pm**

Husker wrote:The wife and I cleaned out the venison from the freezer. I ground what was not already ground, and we made:

18.5 lb bacon (10.5 lb venison and 8 lb hog jowels)
25 lb pepper sticks
20 lb hot dogs (25 lb of seasoning, so they should be extra good)
15 lb summer sausage.

Lotta grinding and mixing. Everything is in the fridge(s), and will case them up (and patty the bacon) when I get off work on the morrow. Then fire up the smoke house, and prepare to enjoy.

H.

Reckin husker was a sippin when he posted this,.

Posted: **Wed Oct 24, 2007 1:58 pm**

tater wrote:
Husker wrote:The wife and I cleaned out the venison from the freezer. I ground what was not already ground, and we made:

18.5 lb bacon (10.5 lb venison and 8 lb hog jowels)
25 lb pepper sticks
20 lb hot dogs (25 lb of seasoning, so they should be extra good)
15 lb summer sausage.

Lotta grinding and mixing. Everything is in the fridge(s), and will case them up (and patty the bacon) when I get off work on the morrow. Then fire up the smoke house, and prepare to enjoy.

H.
Reckin husker was a sippin when he posted this,.

hehe, On about my 3rd glass. 2 large shots to mellow out, then one on ice to sit at the computer and read/type.

I was pretty worn out.

Now, I am bout ready to head home from work, and case up the HDogs, sticks and Summer. The bacon gets "bricked". Then the dogs, sticks and bacon go into the smoker (might not happen till this weekend). While the Summer is done in a roaster over with water (sounds strange, but is a GREAT way to do summer sausage).

H.

Posted: **Wed Oct 24, 2007 2:48 pm**

Husker wrote:[

Now, I am bout ready to head home from work, and case up the HDogs, sticks and Summer. The bacon gets "bricked". Then the dogs, sticks and bacon go into the smoker (might not happen till this weekend). While the Summer is done in a roaster over with water (sounds strange, but is a GREAT way to do summer sausage).

H.

Husker,

Wish i lived next door to you, just to learn and i would work my ass off, just to see how you do it. Have read a lot but doesn't take the place of hands on experiance. And to see how you build and manage your smokers and stuffers. Used to have a commercial meat grinder when we raised our own hogs. Want to do that again also.

Also, share our sipping brew, and tall tales.

Thanks for shareing, and inspiring.

Posted: **Wed Oct 24, 2007 2:56 pm**

Husker wrote:
tater wrote:
Husker wrote:The wife and I cleaned out the venison from the freezer. I ground what was not already ground, and we made:

18.5 lb bacon (10.5 lb venison and 8 lb hog jowels)
25 lb pepper sticks
20 lb hot dogs (25 lb of seasoning, so they should be extra good)
15 lb summer sausage.

Lotta grinding and mixing. Everything is in the fridge(s), and will case them up (and patty the bacon) when I get off work on the morrow. Then fire up the smoke house, and prepare to enjoy.

H.
Reckin husker was a sippin when he posted this,.

hehe, On about my 3rd glass. 2 large shots to mellow out, then one on ice to sit at the computer and read/type.

I was pretty worn out.

Now, I am bout ready to head home from work, and case up the HDogs, sticks and Summer. The bacon gets "bricked". Then the dogs, sticks and bacon go into the smoker (might not happen till this weekend). While the Summer is done in a roaster over with water (sounds strange, but is a GREAT way to do summer sausage).

H.

Home Distiller

What'd ya'll make today?