Newby mistake, learning curve

[Bugdave63]

I built my Tennessee pot still, did a water run, then vinegar run, then another water run. Brew was finished so did product run tasted like absolute shxxt. Then found on here about a sacrificial run, meanwhile put together my next brew as a sourmash & used some wash from the sacrificial run. Am I going to have to start all over again.

[Hillbilly Popstar]

No, your run that you thought was a product run, was your sacrificial run.

But that's likely not why it tasted like shit.

How much research have you dont on making proper cuts?

Also what was your mash/wash recipe?

[bluefish_dist]

It also sounds like you did a single pot still run. Unless it was run slowly, it probably wasn’t very good. More reading is needed. Try two runs, strip and spirit run next time and make sure you make good cuts.

[Bugdave63]

I did do a single run took many hours, got 11 500 ml jars. Did the ol coffee filter let it breath 2 days thing then started sniff , dilute & taste tests, yuck not one jar gave anything that didn't have weird off tastes in it. Made my new batch thinking it may be that I just did not like the taste of the 1st batch & used some of the wash from that first run. Then 2 days later reading about the sacrificial run so figured that my product was rubbish. Now my problem is not the sacrificial run it's the fact I have used the backwash in my new batch I have in the fermenter is this batch going to be tainted will I have to toss it & begin from scratch. Don't worry about the 1st run so much jut the fact I used the wash from that batch to make the next batch. By the way it's UJSM recipe

[seabass]

What you did was a slow stripping run. You're not going to get a good product after a single run on a pot still. Just the nature of the beast. Keep everything you took except the foreshots and redistill it or repeat a few times until you have enough low wines for a spirit run.

[Yonder]

What you did was a slow stripping run. You're not going to get a good product after a single run on a pot still.

And that’s why you should run a thumper. Double distill on the first run and get a damned good product.