Un bouilleur de cru

[NormandieStill]

I was on my way to drop off the kids at their Saturday activity when we drove past what was clearly a still parked up in a layby. Once they were safely installed I wandered back to have a chat.

The gentleman had me try a drip of the calvados he was distilling, from the spout. I was pleasantly surprised. Around 60% and and very appley. There was a hint of heads but nothing offensive.

The still is a wood-fired, two column continuous still. The cider is pumped in and used to cool the condensers before itself being boiled and distilled. The whole thing requires no external coolant. Heads are condensed from the top of the second column and dripped to the ground. Tails (and backset) are pumped out into the bushes.

The boiler is vaguely self-regulated and the distiller fine tunes the output by adjusting the flow rate of the cider. Not wanting to reveal quite how much I understood of the process I wasn't able to get details on the number of plates in each column. I also don't know how adaptable the still would be to different washes. It felt very much like it might have been built to make good calvados but not a lot else.

I have his card if ever I make enough juice to justify a run.

He also explained that since January, individuals in France no longer pay tax on their distilled fruit, up to 50 litres of pure alcohol. Owning an unregistered still remains illegal.

[tommysb]

Amazing Normandie! I guess it's coming up to apple harvest season - any idea if this would be distilling this year's or last year's cider?

[Twisted Brick]

Wow! What a great write-up, Normandie.

Thanks for sharing.

[MooseMan]

What a thing to stumble on whilst on a Saturday drive!
That's awesome.
There's probably travelling, communal cider presses in your part of the world too I'm guessing Norm. Jealous as hell!

[contrahead]

I don't know about draining the heads out on the ground part. That should be bottled and sold as “men's aftershave” or something.
Otherwise, that's a smart setup. All one needs is fermented fruit juice and an ax to keep the boiler fed with fuel.

[NormandieStill]

Amazing Normandie! I guess it's coming up to apple harvest season - any idea if this would be distilling this year's or last year's cider?

This would be last years. We're coming up on harvest season here, and the cider generally gets to sit for at least 6 months before distilling. People drive up (presumably with an appointment) with a 1000L IBC full of cider and leave with a bunch of stainless milk jugs full of 60% abv Calvados for ageing.

I also found out from a different distillery (whose products I did not rate highly at all) that I live in a tiny enclave which has the "appelation" for Calvados.

(That little blob to the upper-right.)

I don't know about draining the heads out on the ground part. That should be bottled and sold as “men's aftershave” or something.
Otherwise, that's a smart setup. All one needs is fermented fruit juice and an ax to keep the boiler fed with fuel.

I know. I was thinking of my firelighter jug. That's some nice smelling rocket fuel draining away into the ground.

It's a cool rig, but I can't help but wonder if it can make whisky. I guess he keeps himself busy with brandies.

What a thing to stumble on whilst on a Saturday drive!
That's awesome.
There's probably travelling, communal cider presses in your part of the world too I'm guessing Norm. Jealous as hell!

There's a chap about 5km from the house who will bring his hydraulic press to your house and make juice from your apples. It's a slightly different scale from my (not too little) wooden press. When I've seen it in action, the entire team were dressed in waterproofs as if they were about to go fishing in the sea!

[Bolverk]

Heads are condensed from the top of the second column and dripped to the ground.

Very cool!

You don't by chance have a pic of the heads condenser setup?

It's been my understanding that these armagnac stills made no cuts, but I recently read in a book that they do have a way to vent heads off the top... any info you can provide would be super appreciated!

[NormandieStill]

Sadly I only got the one photo. But even from next to the still it's hard to follow what's happening. I think for the sake of transporting it safely, a lot of parts are enclosed in sheet metal.

[Bolverk]

Yeah, that makes sense.
I appreciate it!

[Bolverk]

Learned something interesting today...

The stills used for armagnac and calvados while they look very similar externally they are actually very different.

The armagnac still is basically a stripping still with 1 plate above the feed to raise the proof. A calvados still as way more plates and does vent off heads.

Armagnac

Calvados