StillSmart

First time - Advice please!

2010-05-21T23:33:53+00:00

got to say im completely in agreement with lyonacre, vodka star is my preferred choice of turbo and i use an air still, 60% clean spirit guaranteed. the bakers yeast wash also produces great results IMO and is much cheaper
cheers, hoppin

Statistics: Posted by hoppinmad — Fri May 21, 2010 11:33 pm

First time - Advice please!

2010-05-21T23:05:10+00:00

mrweizen,
I am newish to this lark too (easter) but I have used The ss turbo - yes it is smelly, the alcotec equivalent which is not so smelly, and just produced a Vodka Star batch which is the sweetest of them all AND as you don\'t need carbon in the wash cheaper

Statistics: Posted by lyonacre — Fri May 21, 2010 11:05 pm

First time - Advice please!

2010-05-21T21:07:25+00:00

Oh, and I\'ve never tried splitting Alcotec 48, I\'ve used the full packet and it works pretty well but does produce that \'homemade\' smell and taste unless you carbon it very well, hence why I switched to less stressed bakers yeast. People probably get bored of me saying this so my apologies, but I\'d rather spend the extra money on another fermenter and have two on the go at once, instead of shelling out for turbos. Just my tuppence worth, others love them.

Statistics: Posted by Jimmy — Fri May 21, 2010 9:07 pm

First time - Advice please!

2010-05-21T21:04:02+00:00

I have never used SS Triple Turbo with my SmartStill (nee Air Still) so that is clearly a load of old cobblers. You can run anything through it, from turbo washes to out of date cider kits (with good results according to Phantom!), there is nothing complicated going on in there - it\'s just a big kettle that doesn\'t go as hot as a kitchen kettle, with a fan on the top. If it has a reasonable amount of alcohol in it (wine, wash, whatever) then you should be OK to run it - with the caveat that you shouldn\'t run anything fizzy unless you like cleaning!

Statistics: Posted by Jimmy — Fri May 21, 2010 9:04 pm

First time - Advice please!

2010-05-21T16:29:52+00:00

Surely wash is wash,dont use an airstill myself but im sure you dont have to stick to one type...and the SS triple stinky????no way,thats the least smelly of the ones i have used,and i have used all of them.

Have you tried usinf the turbo 48 and splitting the packet into two lots??apparently it works quite well...5kg of sugar in each,split the turbo yeast into two lots and use as normal...From what i have read they ferment out to approx 10-12%abv,so it doesnt stress the yeast which can cause the off smells and flavours.The alcotec stuff must be jam packed with nutrients to be able to do this.I have wanted to try but have others on the go.

If anyone can confirm this please do...or correct me if im wrong.

Statistics: Posted by marc83 — Fri May 21, 2010 4:29 pm

First time - Advice please!

2010-05-21T15:43:28+00:00

I\'ve read in a few places now that only the stinky SS Triple Turbo can be used with my Smart Air Still, one place being.. Is this really the case? I would have thought that wash is wash? If it needs to be triple distilled yeast surely i can use another brand of triple distilled?
http://www.wineworks.co.uk/product/trip ... iple-pack/

Statistics: Posted by mrweizen — Fri May 21, 2010 3:43 pm

First time - Advice please!

2010-05-21T14:37:57+00:00

Cheers Hoppin/Jimmy
I\'m using the tea bag carbon filters that go in the neck of the bottle on my Smart Still for filtration. I probably wont bother with the 48 hour, defiantly not the 24 after hoppin\'s advice.
I have to ask the question though, what if you use the Alcotec turbo 48 on a 5 day ferment for 20%? Will this still stress the yeast?
* update on my wash, i checked the SG yesterday after work and it was in the yellow.. Nearly green! If its not fully in the green today can i still clear it to distill this weekend?

Statistics: Posted by mrweizen — Fri May 21, 2010 2:37 pm

First time - Advice please!

2010-05-21T01:12:50+00:00

Will these 24/48 hour & three day turbo\'s be just as good as the SS Turbos?

mrweizen,

as a rule of thumb the longer the wash takes to ferment dry the better the result, therefore the less time the poorer the quality. i know its tempting to go for the shorter ferments but this stresses the yeast and it produces more of the nasties that cause the off smells and taste to the finished spirit, by all means try them but i reckon you wont be using them regularly,
cheers, hoppin

Statistics: Posted by hoppinmad — Fri May 21, 2010 1:12 am

First time - Advice please!

2010-05-20T20:53:04+00:00

Yes, you don\'t really need carbon in the wash, although with a turbo it can help, I would always carbon filter after distilling a turbo though. You should be OK with your hydrometer - until you hit the still you\'re basically winemaking so the same kit should work.

Statistics: Posted by Jimmy — Thu May 20, 2010 8:53 pm

First time - Advice please!

2010-05-20T20:02:37+00:00

Also, stupid question, can i use the hydrometer i got with my lager kit to measure the SG on the wash?

Statistics: Posted by mrweizen — Thu May 20, 2010 8:02 pm

First time - Advice please!

2010-05-20T20:00:31+00:00

Thanks for the tips. Will these 24/48 hour & three day turbo\'s be just as good as the SS Turbos? Would be nice to have a shorter wait next time.
Also, are these going to be ok in the SmartStill without using carbon? I\'ll probably try the alcotec range next.

Statistics: Posted by mrweizen — Thu May 20, 2010 8:00 pm

First time - Advice please!

2010-05-20T05:44:52+00:00

Don\'t worry too much about chasing percentage, concentrate on getting a good clean fermentation and distillation, you can always double or triple distill to boost the ABV but it\'s more important to avoid trying to be greedy and taking too much when you distill, which can give off-flavours to the entire batch.

Statistics: Posted by Jimmy — Thu May 20, 2010 5:44 am

First time - Advice please!

2010-05-19T23:14:25+00:00

mrweizen,

personally i dont use carbon in the wash, tho saying that i dont use ss turbo either, but it will produce between 14-20% alcohol just leave it bubbling until its 0990sg or below. you may want to try alcotec vodka star as it produces much cleaner smelling and tasting spirit IMO. i normally get it fermenting dry to 0980 which produces consistently 60% through my still,
cheers, hoppin

Statistics: Posted by hoppinmad — Wed May 19, 2010 11:14 pm

First time - Advice please!

2010-05-19T15:30:28+00:00

If it ferments out to 14% thats plenty enough,I use a 25L essencia still,so unsure of what a smart still produces.

Using the turbo carbon,turbo clear and your distilling conditioner will all contribute to a nice clean product,happy stillin.

Statistics: Posted by marc83 — Wed May 19, 2010 3:30 pm

First time - Advice please!

2010-05-19T14:26:15+00:00

Hi again,
Thanks to everyone for prompt and detailed responses! If it ferments to 14% is this enough for my SmartStill to produce 50-55% alcohol?
As for the turbo clear, i will be using the two part turbo clear. I also have the SS carbon additive in the fermenter to help a bit more with purity. I also have the distillers conditioner ready at hand can\'t wait to do my first run!

Statistics: Posted by mrweizen — Wed May 19, 2010 2:26 pm