Home Distiller

I've read and picked up so much information. But I've got a question that is mostly opinion. Background: back in college, 1980-1984, got chance to have some local production from friend from the mountains. Then again, just two years ago, got a chance at some from a fellow in eastern part of NC. In both cases, they claimed it was an apple brandy, but in truth it was mostly neutral. What is your opinion on the smoothest homemade recipe you can make. I'm talking sippin from the jar, goes down without taking your throat out? I know this is a needle in a haystack question; I just want to see what opinions are. Personally, of all the recipes I've seen; I think (without having tried it yet), the winner may turn out to be Uncle Jesse's rice vodka. Other thoughts?

Thanks,

Greg

I'm really opinionated on this.
The neutrals are fine. But if you want that easy grain taste that leaves a craving for another sip without blowing the back of your head off, try the Honey Bear Bourbon.
It's in my signature⬇⬇⬇
I find myself wanting a glass probably way too often as it is smooth and has a tremendous grain smell and taste. Easy hitting the gullet, too.

Thanks SL,

That recipe looks great at first glance. My experience was with my grandfather and homemade muscadine wine then turned into a couple of other products. A gallon of juice, hull, seeds, and all; a gallon of water, 2 pounds of sugar, and the wild yeast around here. May not have been fancy but it made a whole lot of 55 gallon barrels of wine, and smaller amounts of brandy.

Greg

JMHO
For smoothness, the recipe isn't at the very top of list
And the list is long, wide, multiple and interwoven

The quick answer is oats, if your main aim is primarily smooth straight out the still pure out whisky or grain spirit is the go to. Second to that is malted oats, closely followed by high oat grain bills with more complexity smoothed out with oats.

I'm getting ready to do my next round of corn AG with 25% oats because of how much it smoothed my UJ .

Oats eh.. was going to try wheat with my rice'n'malt but oats may give another level of smoothness.

Smooth = All grain, corn, malted barley, malted wheat or oaks, double run, nice and slow spirit run, good tight heart cut, air it out, glass age a couple of weeks.

Truckinbutch wrote:...because of how much it smoothed my UJ .

+1
Been there, drank that.

Take the middle of the hearts of dang near anything in T&T, proof it down, yer gonna be happy.

I don't really do grain much, mostly fruit so a can't really say much about grains. I have done Uncle Remus's Rice Vodka (URRV) and it is good but I would say pear brandy is great straight from the still and only gets better with time.

i think rice is on par with oats for smoothness, have to do a side by side comparison one of these days, just so many bills to do and so little time

I've gotten that from a bunch of people and I do remember some pear made from some local trees. Do you have a recipe you favor?

Greg

I've searched forums and I find your name on some of the pear threads, but haven't been able to find a recipe specific to you. I know it's just my stupidity in searching.

Greg

gsugg wrote:I've searched forums and I find your name on some of the pear threads, but haven't been able to find a recipe specific to you. I know it's just my stupidity in searching.

Greg

For the most part brandies don't really have recipes, most of them only have 4 ingredients, fruit juice, yeast, time and patience. It can get a little more complicated depending on the fruit because some are a bit low in nutrients, others a little low in sugar but that's the basics. With pear they should be nice and ripe, you can wait until they are nice and juicy, then squish them in your hands in a bucket or juice them, add the yeast, a good wine yeast is best and wait. It may take some time to finish so patience is the final and often most difficult ingredient. When it's done run it however you like. I find pear will produce flavor throughout a run with the main pear flavor at the beginning of the tails. This makes it much easier to capture the flavor, unlike apple which tends to bring the flavor over in the heads making it more difficult to capture the flavor without the headache.

Swedish Pride wrote:i think rice is on par with oats for smoothness, have to do a side by side comparison one of these days, just so many bills to do and so little time

I can not really agree with that, unmalted rice by itself really does lack any strong flavour other than it tastes vaguely grainy. That said I wouldn't say I found rice spirit especially smooth, I'd say it was more on par with barley and somewhat sharper straight from the still than oats. This is of cause just my personal experiences

thecroweater wrote:

Swedish Pride wrote:i think rice is on par with oats for smoothness, have to do a side by side comparison one of these days, just so many bills to do and so little time

I can not really agree with that, unmalted rice by itself really does lack any strong flavour other than it tastes vaguely grainy. That said I wouldn't say I found rice spirit especially smooth, I'd say it was more on par with barley and somewhat sharper straight from the still than oats. This is of cause just my personal experiences

been a few years since i made rice, and it was the first AG so might have been that
will see if i can get a rice bath brewing before sommer is over

thecroweater wrote:The quick answer is oats, if your main aim is primarily smooth straight out the still pure out whisky or grain spirit is the go to. Second to that is malted oats, closely followed by high oat grain bills with more complexity smoothed out with oats.

I'll second (or third) the oats. I've done all grain wheats, Barleys, corn, rice, bourbon combinations, and I think my all grain oats on some oak is my best product to date. I need to get a batch of beer out of the fermenter and do another batch of oats while it is still reasonably cool.

You all either have interests in the oat consortium, or they truly make a big difference.
Gonna try the optional oat addition to the next batch of Honey Bear. Always looking to improve perfection.
Looks like you & I both got some good input, gsugg.

Wheat

So I'm tole

Very interesting thread

thecroweater wrote:The quick answer is oats, if your main aim is primarily smooth straight out the still pure out whisky or grain spirit is the go to. Second to that is malted oats, closely followed by high oat grain bills with more complexity smoothed out with oats.

Does that change the actual taste much crow ?

HAs anyone tried using flaked oats - as in "Porridge oats" ?

I've used it as an adjunct in other mashes, but not on its own

goose eye wrote:Wheat

So I'm tole

+1.

The smoothest bourbon/whiskey I ever made was my 3 Wheated Heifer (C.O.W.). 60% corn, 10% flaked oats, and 30% wheat (equal parts of red, white, and pale wheat). You could replace the red with more white for even more smoothness. But honestly, that would drop what little nuts it has.

I have since built on that recipe, to add toasted oats and rye to give it some character. But I agree, the smoothest whiskey will always contain wheat, especially to replace rye or barley.

Rolled oats that you might make porridige from is doable but by gum its a darn drama to work with, you kinda need to do a nice long glucanase rest or have suitable enzymes if ya don't want to work with sludge but to answer your question yes ppl have do use them. Almost all unmalted grain by themselves have a much milder flavour and unmalted oats will add flavour but its not a really robust flavour.

Step ferment rum using straight molasses is the smoothest straight off the still I've ever tasted. When I tasted it my eyes went wide, I looked at my glass like wtf!, it was silky smooth and almost liqueur type feeling as it slid down.

goose eye wrote:Wheat
So I'm tole

Can't say much on wheat myself as I've only used it in my piggybacks which have five grains so hard to tell what's doing what. Latest whiskey also has wheat but that's malted and just one of 6 malts in it . That's a re-mash and sugar bump and a local brewery's mid strength German larger mash, why? Coz its free, its reasonably smooth far as that sorta moonshine whiskey goes and the flavour is darn fine

thecroweater wrote:

goose eye wrote:Wheat
So I'm tole

Can't say much on wheat myself as I've only used it in my piggybacks which have five grains so hard to tell what's doing what. Latest whiskey also has wheat but that's malted and just one of 6 malts in it . That's a re-mash and sugar bump and a local brewery's mid strength German larger mash, why? Coz its free, its reasonably smooth far as that sorta moonshine whiskey goes and the flavour is darn fine

Sounds quite interesting! Have a recipe in the development thread?

No not yet waiting til I get back down there and make sure I have all my facts straight.

everything i make has oats in it, so it seems. Goddamn hayburners must have got into my head.

The exceptions are a 100% wheat vodka that tastes like water but it's a little smoother... and Jimbo's all malt recipe with 100% 2row...which if you have not done, ya should. It's simply the nectar of the gods, i only drink it if i'm alone or in a group of one.

I'm going to add 5 lbs of rolled oats to my next HBB, it's very smooth as is but from what I've read and heard it will smooth it out that much more.

I'm just getting into my AG journey and have tried all corn, HBB, and C.O.B. mashed separately then stilled together and all are great white and have a gal of each on oak for a year.
My goto is the HBB, it has something special and is my smoothest of all. I just love that note of honey, makes my tongue slap my brains out.

My "Tater" peach brandy is a smooth mama Jama too!

Thanks for all the good input. Going to try the oats on their own. We've got 4 horses, a mule, and a donkey. So we've always got sweet feed, several types of oats, and can get all the corn I want without attracting attention. I'll post back the results. Oats first, then going to try the SF, with exception of going to mash the SF with some liquid enzymes.