Old old old wash

[CRACKERCREEK]

I have a corn wash of about 15 gallons that has been sitting for about 3 months on the corn with enzymes. Smells like nail polish remover "acetone" should I can I run it or should I scrap it. Either way I'm ok with it. What you do?

[still_stirrin]

Run it. Sure.

But be careful with your cuts. Give them a day to air and collect in many jars. You'll get some hearts, but you may have to "dig them out". There's still good alcohol in an old ferment. Bacteria and other things will consume sugars and produce crap. But the ethyl alcohol is still there.
ss

[CRACKERCREEK]

Sounds like allot of work and fuel for little profit

[LWTCS]

Then pour it on the ground.

For my own edification, I would run it just to help build upon a first hand point of view.

Several examples here of aged beer and aged wines making pretty spectacular finished product.

Slow and Steady's observations are inspirational imo.

[CRACKERCREEK]

I cannot search the forum well from tapatalk for IPhone. I like to read up on some on the aged beers and wine running.
I may set the ol' steamer up and run it rather than waste it. I could if anything run it to keep the still clean (make a sacrificial run if it's bunk) . I'm already doing a rye this weekend

[Steep-n-Rocky]

My own experience is that once it smells like nail polish remover, it is hard to drink. If you do run it let us know how it goes.

[CRACKERCREEK]

10-4

[goose eye]

Ole boys charged some wine that was 7 years old some 5.
old man died a widow woman never knowed it was there
til someone showed her. Turned out like it turns out.
country wine, sweet so had to cook it slow.
What she done with it wont none of the ole boys business
they was just helpin out.

So I'm tole

[myles]

You can always run it and retain the product for future cleaning runs. Even if it isn't drinkable it is solvent for cleaning purposes.

[CR33G3R]

Ole boys charged some wine that was 7 years old some 5.
old man died a widow woman never knowed it was there
til someone showed her. Turned out like it turns out.
country wine, sweet so had to cook it slow.
What she done with it wont none of the ole boys business
they was just helpin out.

So I'm tole

WTF did he say??

[jedneck]

Ole boys charged some wine that was 7 years old some 5.
old man died a widow woman never knowed it was there
til someone showed her. Turned out like it turns out.
country wine, sweet so had to cook it slow.
What she done with it wont none of the ole boys business
they was just helpin out.

So I'm tole

WTF did he say??

Old boys ran some 5 and 7 year old wine for a widow. They got what they got. It was a sweet country wine so had to run slow. They didn't care what she did with it they were just helpin her out.

There is a lot of wisdom in goose's posts when you learn to decipher them.
I ran some wheat mash that sat for over a year with no air lock. Had a nasty acetone smell. Not sure if it affected the outcome or not cause it was a kitchen sink run(clean up odds and ends). Final product is coming around nicely though.

[Danespirit]

+1 Jedneck
There is a lot of wisdom coming from those older guys like goose eye...

[ga flatwoods]

Three months is not so long. Run it slow. Make good cuts and age it. You may be surprised what you get. Do not reuse feints.
GA Flatwoods

CR33,
WTF did you have to quote Goose and then a WTF did he say with a crazy smilie? That is not cute and tends to disrespect. Think about it sometime-all great philosophers speak in generalities. Maybe in good fun but looks bad on you. "Just sayin'" "Whatever"

[CRACKERCREEK]

We are from all over the world and from all walks of life. We share a common passion that even if we have a language barrier we can understand each other. Common courtesy goes a long way where I'm from and the world can learn allot from a southerner, and how we treat each other in the south. I have been all over with the Corps and have always been accepted wherever I roam. Let's not poke unless you want to be poked back

[CRACKERCREEK]

BTW I ran it and am keeping it for cleaning runs. If it had hearts it was a small smearing between the heads and tails which came on real quick.

[Steep-n-Rocky]

FYI, I have noticed that infections like this, if they are not too advanced seem to be on the surface. If you can siphon from below the infection, you can rescue some of the wash or mash.

[NZChris]

You don't say how you distilled it, but if it was a single run with a pot still, knock it down to 40% or below and run it again, taking care with cuts.

[CRACKERCREEK]

I ran it with my potstill, yes single run. I'm not going to waste the fuel to run this again. I did up 20 gal of rye that I'll be using instead, I'll be running that this weekend.

[CRACKERCREEK]

I did keep everything separate
So just in case I wanted to do something at a later date I have it.

[NZChris]

I've never considered the second run a waste of fuel. That is the run that I use to transform my crappy pot stilled low wines into prime drinkin likker for aging.

[CRACKERCREEK]

I've never considered the second run a waste of fuel. That is the run that I use to transform my crappy pot stilled low wines into prime drinkin likker for aging.

I kept it for a later run

[LWTCS]

I've never considered the second run a waste of fuel. That is the run that I use to transform my crappy pot stilled low wines into prime drinkin likker for aging.

+1

When I was more inclined, I used to play around quite a bit with aged rum dunder and aged rum beer.

Twangy first runs made for some sublime second runs.

Be comfortable with your choices and trust your taste buds.

[thecroweater]

found old beers not well sealed are as much oxidized as infected. I also found they sometimes have little heads and hearts and a lot of tails, either the alcohol evaporated or was turned to vinegar

[engunear]

The nail polish smell is ethyl acetate, formed when bacteria combine alcohol and oxygen. It can be removed with a fractionating column e.g.6 ft on high reflux. If, once the runoff is clean, you were then to change the still settings so there is no reflux (i.e. potstill mode) you will keep the other whiskey flavors. But most good whiskeys (Scotch and US) have some ethyl acetate, it is just unpleasant when it dominates, so adding a controlled amount back in can be a good idea.

[texastwist]

I had a "simalar" type thing happen with a 40 gallon wash finding the lid had been off the fermenting vesssel so, charged 4ft reflux gave it try and even with cooling management and slow vapor found it had transformed into "sour vinargary mess" ran out a yellow green; knowing that somethin wasn't right I disposed of the wash and sanitized equipment and full clean still. Sometime it's nothin ventured nothin gained ...shoot wouldn't be the first time. Failed to mention that old wash had sat a good 4 months undisturbed prolly uncovered.

Texastwist

[FlintHill]

My last sugar head, with corn for flavor, ended up with a bubbling white film on top of it. Not sure if it was lacto or not. Smelled a hint like nail polish remover. I siphoned from below the white funk, left it on top. Ran through my boka with half the packing and made one of the best, full flavor, corn likkers I have ever tasted, even at a high proof off the still it was great. I have always trusted nail polish remover smell, never trusted a vinegar smell.

[texastwist]

That "white cap" is actually okay I've had it before you can simply either 'scope it off ' put in a 2 quart mason that is actually a build up of yeast some dorminent some dead. Often I found when I get to the bottom of the wash the grain that has the yeast bed I add the cap back into it along with the last batch of backset (generally cooled) and start up the next batch ( perfer to remove around 25% the weight of used grain) replacing only 25% with new.

TT

[texastwist]

Actually these little tidbit can be found in tried and true.

TT