First wash...got stuck...now to fix it.

[Safegyde]

Hello all, and Merry Christmas! I made my first post on the "what did you make" but just to sum it up I wanted to say thanks to all you guys out here making this new hobby an exciting one. You all help take some of the guesswork out of it. It is always interesting to see what you experienced folks are doing to improve your skill and to learn from your mistakes as well as our own. I have been reading for a long time, just haven't said anything, I have learned a lot from you all. Thanks.

This next part should help some more newcomers.

So, my first wash was made with distilled water, sugar, and highly active fast rising bakers yeast. I inverted the sugar with 2 lemons, but only for about 10 minutes, and started the yeast in a diluted solution. It all started off fine and then stuck. I later learned not to use distilled water. I also didn't add any nutrients. So I took 1/4 cup of organic tomato paste, 3 drops of Geritol Tonic, a pinch of epsom salt and boiled it with 7 grams of yeast for the protein. When it cooled to 90 deg F I added it to my stuck wash and dry pitched another 21 grams of yeast. The total wash is only about 2 gallons. I know it is a lot of yeast but from what I read you can't have too much yeast...if that is wrong please advise. I areated it very well too. Now it seems to be working fine!!

I also made another wash with some inverted sugar, only 1 lemon for 30 minutes, and the same ingredients as above; but I used a mixture of rapid rise yeast and highly active dry yeast. I dry pitched the yeast in 2 gallons of 90 deg F FILTERED water intead of distilled. It seems to be working great too.

I know of a cheaper way to keep the air out of your fermentor and still let the carbon dioxide out. It is the same method used for people with a gunshot hole in their chest. You take some clean plastic wrap and cover a hole in the lid. Tape it on three sides. When the pressure builds up it will let out the gas on the untaped side but it won't allow any air to get sucked back in because it draws the plastic up against it. I doubled the plastic to make it thicker. Seems to work just fine.

Quick question. I like the smell of the fermenting mash but my wife doesn't. Big surprise huh? Is there any good method of getting rid of or disguising the smell at all? Will using a more expensive method of letting out the gasses work better? Thanks guys.

[Pikluk]

for the smell issue instead of the airlock bong usual you could get some cheap check valve used in aquarium air/co2 distribution and run a air tube aquarium like to the outside.
the check valve is for that outside wind doesn't get more pressure then your co2 output and contaminate your mash"specially in the end when co2 production is low"

only thing im not sure about this is the fact that a check valve will keep some pressure in your fermenting vessel will that affect the fermentation i don't know .

but a lots of peoples having live plants aquarium do use similar systems to provide their plants with co2 .

those guys put their sugar in jello then put the jello in their fermenting bottles so that yeast need to eat trough the jello to get to the sugar, so the fermentation will take at least 1 month, maybe pressure slow the yeast to i don't know.

[wineo]

Im glad to see you using the geritol tonic.It works! The next time,leave out the tomato paste,and add 2-3 tsps of calsium carbonate if you can find it.Its food grade chalk.Most brew shops have it.I used it on my last sugar wash,and it speeded it up a ton.It must have needed the calsium.
Leaving out the paste will make a cleaner wash,if you can get it to ferment.

[Safegyde]

Thanks guys.

So I checked the two washes this morning. They were no longer bubbling at all, completely dead. The temp was a steady 78 deg. F all week. I was worried until I did a simple smelling of the air through the hole. It smelled like the most alcoholic yummy light beer I have ever smelled. I guess the nutrients worked well. "Thanks Geritol.....and Wineo!" Without an alcholmeter I cannot get a reading for the abv/SG, but I am confident that it will produce some high abv product in the end. Now the taste is a different subject, only time will tell.

The wash still looks cloudy though. Of course I just added the "finishing" yeast on Saturday so it hasn't had time to properly settle. It doesn't contain any fruit pectin so a gelatin mix won't precipitate clearing. I am too scared to try the egg white at this moment. Tonight I am going to rack off as much as I can and funnel them through a few layers of coffee filters and papertowels. Then to the fridge to cool down and hopefully settle faster. I need to run this on Friday!

Hope everyone had a great Christmas!

[HookLine]

I am too scared to try the egg white at this moment.

Not trying to push you into using egg white, but I am curious why you are scared of it? It is a standard clearing agent in wine making. I have seen it sold by major wine making suppliers in bulk (as dried egg white powder, in 20 kg bags). I also use it fresh myself all the time. Never had a problem with it.

[Ricky]

you need to get a hydrometer. taste the wash and see if it is sweet. if it isnt then it is done. if it is then you might have more sugar than the bakers yeast can handle.

[wineo]

Theres not much advantage clearing a sugar wash.Just let it sit for a few days and run it,but taste it first.It should be dry tasting and a little sour.If its dry,its good to go.

[Safegyde]

Hookline, I'm not actually scared of trying the egg whites, just not on my first batch. It got stuck and then I fixed it, it seems to be fine now, just cloudy so I don't want to jepordize it since I am on a time limit. I will give it a shot next time.

Wineo, what about burning the uncleared yeast and giving it an off taste/smell? Is that usually only the case with grains and such?

I asked Santa for a hydrometer.......he didn't deliever.

[wineo]

As long as its dry,there will be no problems.Distilling on the grains can have a scortching problem,but not with a dry sugar wash.

[Safegyde]

What is the difference between a dry and not dry tasting wash as far as the components go? In otherwords, what would be "burning" in a wash that wasn't dry? The sugar?

[As-Ol-Joe]

A dry wash will not have a sweet taste to it, it will kind of dry your mouth out.

If you distill it with too much sugar in the wash and run it real hard and fast, then the sugar will probably burn.

[Old_Blue]

Safegyde,

What do you mean when you added the finishing yeast? Did you pitch some more later in the run? I've never tried that technique before.

[tracker0945]

HookLine,
Could you put a few words down on how you use your egg whites.
e.g. quantity, method, time to clear, when & where, things to watch for etc. it could be helpful.
Cheers.

[HookLine]

Once the ferment has completely finished, leave it sit undisturbed for about another 3 days to let the bulk of the solids settle, then rack it off into another container.

Use the white from one small-medium egg per 25 litres of wash. Beat the egg white for a few minutes till it is all frothy, and pour onto the surface of the racked wash, (it won't mix straight into the wash, so don't bother stirring it in, just make sure it covers the whole top of the wash). Leave for two days. Scoop off any left on the surface and rack the wash into the boiler. Always surprises me how much extra sediment the egg white removes. Gets me a nice clear wash every time.

I have tried leaving the egg white out, and just doing two racks, but I don't get anywhere as clear a wash. Just racking off repeatedly would eventually do the same job, but it takes a lot longer.

I have also tried filtering the sediment out, but that is a MESSY PAIN IN THE ARSE.

As you can see, I am a bit fussy about clear washes, but it is a good idea to remove as much yeast as possible from the wash before running it through the still. I also don't have access to the inside of my boiler for cleaning by hand, so I have to be careful about avoiding scorching of any vegetable matter in the still, and the easiest way to do that is to remove it from the wash before it goes into the still.

[Safegyde]

Old Blue, It isn't a technique. Rather more like a repair job. The wash got stuck since I didn't add any nutrients or energizer. A little Geritol Tonic, tomato paste, and some "finishing yeast" among other things helped finish off the job.

Hookline, I appreciate the info. For my next wash I am going to try that method. I have to run this tomorrow so I don't have the extra time on this one. What should I watch out for since the yeast won't have settled all the way? Burning the yeast? The sugar is gone, all converted.
Other than carbon filtering is there any other tricks up your sleeve that might help me to get a smoother run with this yeasty mash?

Thanks.

[HookLine]

Besides getting the yeast and other solids to settle out, there is another reason for leaving the wash to sit for a few days (up to a week or so) after the fermenting has finished. That is what is called the diacetyl rest (an old beer brewer's trick).

After the fermenting process has finished, the yeast start re-absorbing some of the off products they made during fermenting, in particular diacetyl. This is a good thing, but after the diacetyl rest you need to get most of the yeast out of the wash before distilling. If you leave too much yeast in the wash then when it gets heated in the boiler it splits open and releases some unpleasant tastes into the wash.

How much of a problem this is depends on a bunch of factors, there are different views on this and some distillers don't worry about it. If you are running low % ferments (below about 10%), then a diacetyl rest may not be of much benefit, but you should still get rid of the yeast and solids before distilling.

[Safegyde]

Yeah, I wish I had the time to let it settle down. I guess I will just filter as much out as I can and run what is left.

This is my last post for a few days at least. I am opening my own business and will be away from the internet for a while. I will post my results from the run asap.

I can still read some replies, so if anyone has anything to add to this please do.

thanks to you all for your help.

Have a HAPPY NEW YEAR, be safe.

[Safegyde]

Ok then. I'm back. For those of you who care or might get some helpful knowledge out of this the batch turned out PERFECT!

I ran both the first wash and the second. Neither was setteled at all, but both were completely converted. I collected 50 ml heads from each run, about 250 ml hearts, and about 250 tails. (I made my cuts at about 50 ml each then combined it for the total.)

Both runs took about 2 hours since they were primarily a stripping run. I sampled 4 ounces of the product at about 100 proof (50% abv) and got a headache from what I figured is the remaining yeast.

The next day I combined both batches with equal parts distilled water in the boiler and water with a little of the hearts only in the thumper. I redistilled it the second time, only a lot slower. I collected 25 ml heads, about 500 ml hearts and a bunch of tails (I just pushed it as far as it would go.)

I diluted the hearts and a little of the tails to about 50% abv and took it with me to our get together without even letting it touch the carbon. Some other people were there who bought some store brand mid range vodka. They drank the vodka and we drank the shine......we called it our Christmas Spirits! The next day they all had hangovers and we were completely fine! Felt great! We then did a taste test of the two and the difference was amazing. I will never pay money for store bought crap ever again if I can help it.

Now to try a good whiskey recipe. I want something that is clean and flavorful without having to age it too much.
Barrels.......yeah..........gotta get some barrels.

[wineo]

Ah! Another convert!!!

[Uncle Jesse]

Good work!

[HookLine]

Shine on you happy distiller.

[19Kilo]

Barrels.......yeah..........gotta get some barrels.

You and me both,brother! I've been Freezing/Thawing with cubes from the LHBS... I need to save up and get a barrel... maybe a small one first... only 50 bucks.

[dr_gribb]

I use u corbon filled pipe as my airlock. The carbon filters the entire odor. CO2 is heavier than air and works as airlock for about two weeks after the fermentation is over.