Smell question

Enlikil · Post by **Enlikil** » Wed Aug 09, 2006 8:13 am

I was wondering if anyone may know what a funny smell in my distillate would be.
My entire run had it. the carbon filter(Z_filter) took off 90% of it.. but its still there to some extent. I am thinking that it was the turbo's I used. Since i didn't clear them, didn't rack them, and Well everything i read on here they have a funny smell /taste to them.
My question is.. is it still safe to drink with this smell? It made great rum. only the first 4 liters of distillate are completly clean of the smell after running through the Z_filter. I'm thinking that i filled up the carbon pores hehehe.
any thoughts from anyone or questions please.
Thanks

AllanD · Post by **AllanD** » Wed Aug 09, 2006 8:46 am

Ummm... it might help if you made some attempt to describe the smell....

simply saying "it smells funny" covers an awful lot of territory...

AllanD

Enlikil · Post by **Enlikil** » Thu Aug 10, 2006 6:49 am

My wife says its a sweet smell, she says it smells like one of her shnuaps like cross betweein paint and butterscotch. I can't put my finger on it. she says it doesn't smell bad but it is definatly a smell.

Post by **theholymackerel** » Thu Aug 10, 2006 7:06 am

It sounds to me that yer wife is describin' the smell of heads.

Make tighter cuts to clean up yer product.

I wish ya luck.

Enlikil · Post by **Enlikil** » Thu Aug 10, 2006 7:36 am

10 gallon wash.
I tossed the first 250 mls' (taken at 100 ml's an hour)
Then collected the next 1250 Ml's and set them aside as heads (taken at 300 mls to 500 mls an hour)
Then collected everything from there on out in 400 ml jars.(from 300 to 600 ml's an hour)
I had the same smell taking off at all the above rates.

Z-filter took 90% of the smell off, but its still there but faint.

AllanD · Post by **AllanD** » Thu Aug 10, 2006 9:50 am

if your wash was run quickly after the end of visible fermentation
or while it was still actively fermenting (but obviously slowing)...

a sweetish smell in the distillate particularly late in the run from a pot still as the ethanol starts tapering off is most likely Diacetyl...

BP of Diacetyl (aka 2,3-Butanedione) is 88'C and in the concentrations
usually found in distillates is not hazardous.

It gives a "buttery" or "butterscotch" flavor, and is infact used in
flavoring of margarine, the butter flavoring in popcorn, and the yellow "butter" topping for movie theater popcorn and other artificial flavors.

there are commercial rum distillers that split the "body" of the run, the early body is used to make light bodied rums, the late body to make heavier bodied rums. the difference? the diacetyl is concentrated in the late body of the run.

there are heath risks associated with large exposures to Diacetyl, but affects mostly workers in margarine manufacturing plants and in the plants that actually make the artificial flavorings.

It shouldn't be suprising that the primary source of Diacetyl is extracting it from the fusel oils collected in rum distilleries.... along with several other
chemicals that have other commercial uses. (you didn't think that distilleries discarded that stuff did you?)

AllanD

Enlikil · Post by **Enlikil** » Thu Aug 10, 2006 11:14 am

Well it was ran after 12 days total, i'm sure it was still fermenting a little maby a bubble every minute or 2.. It was for the entire run... as well, (the smell)

markx · Post by **markx** » Fri Aug 11, 2006 12:23 am

Try to redistill the batch, that might improve the situation. Did you do a stripping run before the fractionating? If you didn't then it's pretty normal to have a funny smell in your product. Usually you can't get rid of all the smelly byproducts of fermentation by trying to fractionate the wash directly. Does not matter how slow you collect or how good your apparatus separates stuff, the faint smell will always be there the first time.

Post by **theholymackerel** » Fri Aug 11, 2006 7:22 am

A strippin' run also helps the second run by concentratin' the alcohols allowin' better seperation.

Enlikil · Post by **Enlikil** » Fri Aug 11, 2006 8:09 am

Nope i didn't do a stripping run. however next time i will.
THe smelly stuff is still safe to drink right?
I took More then generous cuts. 250ml foreshots(@100ml an hour), 1200 heads(@3-500 hour).
before i took any hearts.

Post by **Uncle Jesse** » Fri Aug 11, 2006 8:12 am

1. is a butterscotch smell bad? i get that too sometimes, in good spirits. paint, not a great smell.

2. i dont know about cuts except if i can taste them or measure with a hydrometer. if you are doing good, conservative cuts, try slowing the run down a bit.

Enlikil · Post by **Enlikil** » Fri Aug 11, 2006 11:04 am

My cuts were deep..
used a reflux still.
The paint smell was just how she described it. they all taste great.
I was pulling 95% ABV the entire time.

AFter much comments from people i'm Fully convicned now that it was becuase my turbo wash wasn't finished fermenting, and i didn't let it Sit , or clear, and ran it to soon. or all of the above.
The spirits still taste great.