Home Distiller

First off, you guys are really awesome for your patience with the newbies like myself and I can't thank you enough for your generosity and willingness to share information.... since I'm the first in my family to ever distill anything, I plan to pass this knowledge onto my son and grandchildren one day

Now, Foreshot... I've been doing LOTS OF READING... and read that for a typical 5 gallon wash, you throw away approximately the first 150ml (sometimes 200ml) of what comes out waste.

My pot still only holds 2 1/2 gallons at a time, so does that mean that proportionally I would just throw out the first 75ml? I''m sure the obvious answer is a profound yes as this makes sense to me logically and mathematically, but since the Foreshot is very poisonous, just want to cover all my bases.

And secondly, just for clarification... apart from hangovers/headaches the next day and harshness of taste, consuming the heads and tails is not dangerous, right? From what I've READ, most folks simply make cuts into the traditional HEAD/HEART/TAIL so that they can blend them together for their particular taste and or run them in the next distill cycle, right?

Thanks again for your patience, unfortunately as a 44 year old dentist with an anal AA personality, when I ask someone the time I need to know how the clock works.

You got it right on every point.

Hears the thing about foreshot, yes it is very poisonous but in reality a 5 gallon sugar wash at 10% might only have 30 mill. Taking off 100 to 200 mill is playing it really safe and we like safe. I have drank plenty of eastern European stuff that had no cut made, not even foreshot. The stuff would take the enamel off your teeth, and leave it on the roof of your mouth. In the morning you wished for death but It never killed me.

So just remember 200 mill and your golden. As for head harts and tails it's more of a taste smell thing rather then proof. Pot still cuts are a art not a science, you have to learn by doing.

Depending on the wash recipe I generally take 80ml - 120ml as foreshots from a 2 gallon boiler charge... By making a generous foreshots cut I have more room to play with my heads collections considering such small batch runs...

rad14701 wrote:Depending on the wash recipe I generally take 80ml - 120ml as foreshots from a 2 gallon boiler charge... By making a generous foreshots cut I have more room to play with my heads collections considering such small batch runs...

+1

I run a keg boiler now, but thats how I also modeled my approach with my little stove top unit.

Here is a question,

Is it just the stripping run that contains methanol or should you do this on a stripping run too?

you will get 2 schools on this one some people say once you take it in the strip thats good, most of us including myself feel that its better to err on the side of safety and go ahead and take fores on every run , the jist being that even if not dangerous what are you really losing but some heads that you dont want anyway.

So with a one gallon pot I should be safe by taking off two shot glasses (3.2floz) or 100ml of foreshots/heads? Should I take off any more heads? Reason I ask bc I only collect about a quart a run at best that is including what I think is a low amount of heads and all the hearts and some.tales.

gobucks85 wrote:So with a one gallon pot I should be safe by taking off two shot glasses (3.2floz) or 100ml of foreshots/heads? Should I take off any more heads? Reason I ask bc I only collect about a quart a run at best that is including what I think is a low amount of heads and all the hearts and some.tales.

Yes you should make proper cuts. Low amount. Wouldn't say that. I would say the normal amount. And now you realize why we try to discourage such small stills.

This is a must read about cuts. It can be found in the must read new distiller reading lounge.
http://homedistiller.org/forum/viewtopi ... 46&t=13261

Prairiepiss wrote:

gobucks85 wrote:So with a one gallon pot I should be safe by taking off two shot glasses (3.2floz) or 100ml of foreshots/heads? Should I take off any more heads? Reason I ask bc I only collect about a quart a run at best that is including what I think is a low amount of heads and all the hearts and some.tales.

Yes you should make proper cuts. Low amount. Wouldn't say that. I would say the normal amount. And now you realize why we try to discourage such small stills.

This is a must read about cuts. It can be found in the must read new distiller reading lounge.
http://homedistiller.org/forum/viewtopi ... 46&t=13261

My small still has worked fine. I make my cut of fore shot and heads and still get a good 600 ml to 800ml.
Iend up putting my heads abd tales in my pot with my mas before the run starts. Its beend great for proof and taste from the tales