Hill Billy Stills Review

[DrCrook]

Hi All,

I am considering taking a plunge into the hobby and was wondering what people thought about Hill Billy Stills. I am considering the 8 gallon one.
I would heat the kettle via a burner powered by a propane tank.

What I'm looking for is the ability to fine tune the taste of my product and percentage between 80 proof and 120 proof without having to dilute heavily at the end (ie a reflux that yields 180 proof in one go is not what I want). I want something easy to maintain and lasts for long time. The products I am wishing to create are: Smooth Whiskeys of different varieties, Brandy, Vodka, Gin, and Tequila. The primary thing I want to ensure is that the product is smooth and not harsh. As I am new to the process I do not know if this is a result of recipe, distillation process or aging process. I would like to ensure that all parts contribute to a smooth tasting distillate.

Thank you very much for any information on your experiences with Hill Billy Stills, other stills you may recommend or any other information that may be valuable to help me reach my goal of creating high quality craft distillates.

~DrCrook

tH

[Ayay]

Hi DrCrook, that looks like a solid still. Do a search for the name of that still in this forum, I think it gets the thumbs-up.
Keep the turbos that come with the still for emergencies like a stuck ferment. Using turbos at half strength will give a fast ferment of 10-12% complete with the funky turbo taste. Read the instructions with the knowledge that they are for the quickan'dirty method based on the turbo.

Get a propane burner that can be finely tuned for low heat, as well as blasting hard for quick heating-up and stripping.

Your list of skills must include making the cuts and finding the hearts. The alohols come out the still in a sequence...foreshots, heads, hearts, tails. If the still is driven hard then these will overlap to the extent that tails can appear in the heads and the hearts are nowhere to be found.

Start by stilling slowly so as to get a distinct middle body of hearts. Then you can compare the smell/taste/feel of the heads/hearts/tails and cut the best hearts. The rest can be stilled again, except the foreshots and the early heads...put them in the fuel bottle. I think it's a waste of time to drip out the early heads all over again.

[Tater]

Hillbilly stills was removed from this site due to a issue with a customers refund.

[Usge]

From the main criteria you expressed would indicate a basic potstil for your flavored drinks . Vodka, would be another/different direction (none to little flavor). Most people build a separate column to attach to the same pot... to handle that job, and the recipes/procedures you'd use would be somewhat different. But, you "can" make potstilled vodka ie., run through 3 or 4 times diluted with water. The basic design of the stills he sells were taken from here (HD). So, there are plans, instructions, etc...to build them here. Or, you can as in this case...pay someone else to build it for you as a kit. If you can't find a keg to use as a boiler...there are several manf that sell nicely setup boilers which make a good platform to build from rather than having to carve and seal up a brew or stock pot. I highly recommend the DIY for the rest, as it will give you time to learn about the things that are going to be important to making good/smooth distillate rather than going the lets make a turbo wash, fire this baby up and see what happens route. And the skills you learn will aide you going forward...(ie., new builds or repairs, etc)

Since the ferment is where the alc you are going to distill is created...this is one area you also want to pay more attention to if you want to make "smooth and flavorful whisk(e)y)—hence why using turbos for quick/easy "ethanol" production is not a good idea ..unless you just are trying to make fuel. From there, your procedure will also be highly influential..ie., how many times you run it, what speed you run it, what gets recycled or not, etc.

[DrCrook]

Thank you for all of the information. I have decided to try the DIY method for everything, as that seems to be the most fun and cost effective. I will be consolidating this thread into a thread about materials as that seems more relevant moving forward. Thank you again

Link to consolidated thread: http://homedistiller.org/forum/viewtopi ... 16&t=37451

[The flint stones]

I ordered the 8 gallon January 19, they said it would ship end of week, called week later still no ship(no pun intended) but said another two weeks. Two weeks later called and they said another two weeks but no later than March 1st. Called again and they said units were starting to ship, the kettle supplier "dropped the ball". Have not received order as of yet or received call or email regarding order, hoping for shipment this week. Don't mind if there is an issue but be honest and say so, dont keep stringing customer along as they have. I'm not a satisfied customer and feedback will reflect this.

[LakeLover]

Hillbilly stills was removed from this site due to a issue with a customers refund.

I know KS was an active member here even a mentor at one time I believe. I have seen the quote above a couple times and would like to know if this issue was in the open forum. I would like to know the story maybe both sides so I could come to my own opinion if HBS was in the wrong or not. I have tried to search to find this but came up with nothing. Most of the time there are 3 stories, story 1, story 2, and the truth. I have made a couple small purchases from HBS with no problems. But if there are issues I don't want to take any more chances.

[WIski]

Tread lightly Lake or you may find the Free Speech Police knocking on your Mailbox..........

[Bonjimmi]

Read flute talk......there is some good reading in there

[rad14701]

Hillbilly stills was removed from this site due to a issue with a customers refund.

I know KS was an active member here even a mentor at one time I believe. I have seen the quote above a couple times and would like to know if this issue was in the open forum. I would like to know the story maybe both sides so I could come to my own opinion if HBS was in the wrong or not. I have tried to search to find this but came up with nothing. Most of the time there are 3 stories, story 1, story 2, and the truth. I have made a couple small purchases from HBS with no problems. But if there are issues I don't want to take any more chances.

It has all been covered, both in public view and in private... The crux of the matter is that the owner of the site has the final say and the discussions are over - period... This isn't a democracy, contrary to what some might like to think...