Home Distiller

In a simple pot still (no thumper, no double distillation, etc), what does it do to the quality of the final product if the the yeast died not because it ran out of sugars to convert but rather because the alcohol percentage got too high during the fermentation?

In other words, the Specific gravity was still high enough that there was plenty of sugars (from corn and/or sugar) still left to be consumed by the yeast, but the alcohol levels became higher than what the yeast could tolerate...so the yeast died and the air lock stopped bubbling.

I read in a book that as the yeast begins the dying process it begins to produce more of the undesirable congeners and therefore adversely affecting the flavor.

Is this a concern only for those with a palate developed enough to notice the difference or is it very noticeable to anyone?

Ptech

You may have some other problems with the end taste as well, since there's still unfermented sugar in the wash. Without knowing all of the details of your situation, you can try and split up the two washes and fill each half with fresh water up to the same amount. It may all start up again or you may have to pitch some new yeast.