Strongberries

[Squattingcoyote]

Howdy everyone,

I Have a couple of questions for the seasoned brandy distillers, if they'll allow. I've searched and read but need to fill in some gaps before I start getting after some brandy making this year. First off, I have next to no experience making brandy. I did at one point make a Peaches and Corn split brandy, Punkins recipie I believe and It is still to this day the damned finest tasting stuff ive made. I have to hide my last bottle otherwise my wife will finish it off....

Well since the growing season has started, I've been buying up what overripe fruits I can manage from the farmer's markets around here and freezing them. So far I have a growing collection of apples, pears, peaches, blueberries, blackberries and the most plentiful, strawberries, or as my momma always called them, strongberries. A couple weeks ago I struck a deal with the produce manager of the local grocery store for ALL of their "overripe" fruit that was to be thrown out. Its been a great score so far. On to the details...

I'd like to start with strawberries since I have the most of them @ 60 lbs or so. My question is, Is it recommened to de-stem/pull the leaves off them? There is enough recipies and information around here that I think I've gathered how to ferment them but my main question is about distilling them.

I have a pot still with a 15.5 keg as a boiler, a 6 cal copper pot still with a thumper that is still under construction and a 4-plate flute from HS with 26 gal boiler. I'd love to use the flute if it will carry over enough flavor. I understand however, that strawberry flavor is hard to get in your final product (unless doing an infusion ect).
So what do y'all think, Flute or pot?

[NZChris]

Strawberries are quite low in sugar, so the temptation is to add sugar to increase the alcohol.

If you can resist that temptation, you should be able to make a small amount of very nice schnapps.

Chew some stalk and leaf. If you don't like it, don't put it in your ferment. Personally, I don't leave stalks and leaves in any fruit ferments.

[Red Rim]

In my experience I get a lot of flavor in my apple brandy, but, if you have a pot still with a thumper pot, I would some fruit in the thumper and let the vapor work its magic in carrying it to the finish product.

One of my favorite runs of apple, I put cinnamon in the thumper and the flavor that came over was amazing. It makes a mess of your thumper, but who cares.

[Squattingcoyote]

Yeah I here ya NZ, I dont plan on adding sugar. Even if I justr get a little bit of good tasting brandy that'll be worth it for me. I can always save up alot more strawberries.

Red, Ddefinitely a good option. I could put some wash and freshly pulped berrries in my thumber.

Has anyone made Brandy with a flute? I'm curious if it will carry over fruit flavor like it does with grain.

[MDH]

There are several kinds of strawberry. The best kind is fragaria moschata. It grows here in the northwest but not in texas, so the kind you have is probably a more common one with a lot less taste. If you want any strawberry taste to come over you have to resist the urge to add sugar to the brandy in order to concentrate the flavor that is there.

The way strawberry brandy is made in Europe is just from directly fermenting mashed strawberries in water, distilling it twice in a pot and leaving it to age in glass.

If you decide to add sugar anyway, Don't put the potential alcohol at above 4.5%. Use a nice neutral yeast, or use wild yeast if you have experience in it.

[Squattingcoyote]

Thanks MDH, I hope everyone had a great 4th. I definitely will not be adding sugar. Optimism is my nature but I'm trying to not have very high expectations just in case this one turns out to be a flop. I should wind up with a 20 gallon wash or so. Not sure what the SG will be but either way, even if I end up with a little bit of tasty brandy it'll be worth it. I'm going to give it a run throught the flute just to see how it comes out. Maybe run either no or very little reflux.