First I made grappa after my father in-law made home made wine.
2 five gallon buckets filled 1/2 way with grape must, 10 lbs. of sugar, and hot spring water. Add yeast as it cools and let it do its thing.
Strain it all into the still and get to work.
Take the grappa, mix it, cut it down to 100 proof. Don't be a wuss and go lower, this is old country Sambuca! Fill a 1/2 gallon mason jar 3/4 with grappa. Add 1.5 cup of sugar, 15 ground star anise, a cup of whole roasted espresso beans, and a piece of charred oak. Top off the jar with grappa. Put it in your cupboard and come back in a month. Strain it all out with a cheese cloth into another mason jar. Put it in your fridge and drink cold when you have dessert or add it to coffee. You're welcome!
Variations: After straining the Sambuca I let 3L of it age in a barrel for six months. My family drank the rest. But, the aged Sambuca was really something special. And, if you don't have grape must laying around you can get away with running five gallons of homemade style red wine through your still (brandy) and doing it that way. It just won't be a strong.