StillSmart

Re: Cachaca Rum

2016-01-07T23:00:31+00:00

Hi RunJohn

Yeah I let this lot air in the jars got about 5-6 day I think, I went away for 4 nights over new year.

I've got 19 litres at 66% of strip from four 25lt sugar wash's, it's all from turbo yeasts mind, I've been experimenting with keeping the ferment temp low for turbo's to see if it produces a better result, this should give me a still charge of over 40 litres at 30% for the spirit run.

I'll be using a packed section above my plates this time so I won't see as much of a temp / ABV change but I'll will be creating another table to make a graph with, see how it compares to these graphs.

Like Robert said, it an eye opener, it would be good if others could create the same kind of graphs to compare results.

Statistics: Posted by Anavrin — Thu Jan 07, 2016 11:00 pm

Re: Cachaca Rum

2016-01-07T01:42:16+00:00

@ Anavrin: My thanks for putting the graphs together. I should think they will provide some good help and help others better understand their stills. It demonstrates the end of the run very well. With the same wash, equipment and procedure, they will duplicate every time within a small margin.

I still feel you could start collecting earlier. Do you let your high wine breath after you have run it? On a sugar based wash I get rid of only about 100ml before I start collecting. This on a 45-48L strip. I do the same again on the spirit run. The end result is perfect.

Statistics: Posted by RumJohn — Thu Jan 07, 2016 1:42 am

Re: Cachaca Rum

2016-01-07T00:17:04+00:00

Anavrin wrote:
Interesting!

Interesting indeed.

Not that I have been using graphs,yours are an eye opener,but my standard lentil wash is now run on a numbers basis learned from multiple runs and washes,hardly bother to taste many collection vessels.
I might give a graph a try,to see what it shows.

Robert.

Statistics: Posted by Easydrinker — Thu Jan 07, 2016 12:17 am

Re: Cachaca Rum

2016-01-06T17:10:40+00:00

Good stuff. I always find it interesting looking at the data of any subject really interesting. It often tells a very different story.

Statistics: Posted by Mash — Wed Jan 06, 2016 5:10 pm

Re: Cachaca Rum

2016-01-06T13:43:49+00:00

Ok so heres a graph with the ABV superimposed over the temperature, ive lowered the ABV by 6% to enable it to overlap the temp but the shape is still accurate.

Now showing where i made my cuts using taste / smell (only the 2nd and 3rd red line is my hearts cut)

If I was to make cuts using only the graph, this is where i might have made them

Interesting!

Statistics: Posted by Anavrin — Wed Jan 06, 2016 1:43 pm

Re: Cachaca Rum

2016-01-06T00:28:34+00:00

@Anavrin. Great job. Things start jumping out at you now. Is it possible to overlay, or at least side by side with the ABV%? You will see how they relate.

With a sugar based was you will not get the same volume or type of heads you would get with a grain mash. Minimal with the sugar.

I am glad this little exercise has got you thinking.

Statistics: Posted by RumJohn — Wed Jan 06, 2016 12:28 am

Re: Cachaca Rum

2016-01-05T20:10:33+00:00

This has got me thinking, there are a couple of noticeable changes in the temp, I'm going to start routinely making graphs to aid with determining cuts, RumJohn suggested I could have got another 2 litres and there is indeed a temp change 2 litres before my heads cut, maybe I could have gone there, but there was a definate smell of heads in the first jar and a taste in the next few that I didn't use.

Statistics: Posted by Anavrin — Tue Jan 05, 2016 8:10 pm

Re: Cachaca Rum

2016-01-05T14:24:12+00:00

OK so heres my graph

And this one with some red lines!!!
From left to right the first red line shows where I started collecting in 400ml jars and the next two indicate my hearts collection with a little tails that I have now put on oak.

Statistics: Posted by Anavrin — Tue Jan 05, 2016 2:24 pm

Re: Cachaca Rum

2016-01-05T09:45:54+00:00

Hi RumJohn

I bought the cane syrup with a plan to make some of your Cachaca Cane Spirit but I decided in the end to try something a little different by adding molasses, which does technically make it a rum, but because I used more cane syrup than molasses, I decided to call it Cachaca Rum.

I'll have a go at a Graph of I can get my head around the new version of Exel on my PC, I'm more of a neutral spirit man than flavoured spirits and if I can detect heads in a jar it doesn't make the cut, I did look at the numbers and hoped for more hearts based on them being almost flat for the majority of the Middle run, maybe in the future I can be braver and let more into my hearts and rely on the ageing process to mellow them out.

Statistics: Posted by Anavrin — Tue Jan 05, 2016 9:45 am

Re: Cachaca Rum

2016-01-05T06:39:10+00:00

@ Anavrin: Two things: 1) Why do you call this cachaca rum? It is a rum, but its not cachaca.
2) If I may borrow your chart, it demonstrates a point I have repeated over and over again, but for some reason, many fail to realize the significance of temp, and the advantage of distilling a sizeable amount at any one time.

All ABV's are un-corrected
Fores 400ml @ 81.1°c 89%
Heads 1000ml @ 81.2°c 89%
Heads 1000ml @ 81.3°c 88%
Jar 01 400ml @ 81.3°c 88%
Jar 02 400ml @ 81.4°c 88%
Jar 03 400ml @ 81.4°c 88%
Jar 04 400ml @ 81.4°c 88%
Jar 05 400ml @ 81.5°c 88%
Jar 06 400ml @ 81.5°c 87%
Jar 07 400ml @ 81.6°c 87%
Jar 08 400ml @ 81.7°c 87%
Jar 09 400ml @ 81.8°c 87%
Jar 10 400ml @ 81.9°c 87%
Jar 11 400ml @ 81.9°c 87%
Jar 12 400ml @ 82.1°c 86%
Jar 13 400ml @ 82.5°c 86%
Jar 14 400ml @ 84.9°c 84%
Tails collected 800ml until 99°c
Run Time 6 hours

Note how the temp and ABV are all within a narrow range except for the first couple and the last couple of readings. That is what you should strive for. The bulk of the run maintains a straight line (hearts). Perfect. Very clean.

This can not be achieved with small volumes.

AS for your yield being a bit light, looking at the numbers, I would venture to say you could be a lot less aggressive on your fores, giving you another 1.5 - 2 L.

Thanks for the use of your chart. Is there any way you could put that into a line graph showing the relationship between temp, ABV, etc. It could clear things up for some.

Statistics: Posted by RumJohn — Tue Jan 05, 2016 6:39 am

Re: Cachaca Rum

2016-01-04T21:20:09+00:00

Anavrin wrote:
.... said the manufacturers are very secretive about them and I never got a precise answer.

Hmmm. Does make one sceptical.

Statistics: Posted by Mash — Mon Jan 04, 2016 9:20 pm

Re: Cachaca Rum

2016-01-04T19:18:19+00:00

I suspect it's 60% French Oak no1 and 40% French Oak No2 going by the shape of the blocks and the pictures of them on the SD Europe website, I did ask on the SD forum what the No4 blend consisted of but Sunshine said the manufacturers are very secretive about them and I never got a precise answer.

Statistics: Posted by Anavrin — Mon Jan 04, 2016 7:18 pm

Re: Cachaca Rum

2016-01-04T06:20:11+00:00

Looks good. Would be interested to know what the oak is a blend of. French and American presumably?

I have got to run mine through again. Over did the glycerine. Lovely spirit but I managed to make it grease. Doh.

Statistics: Posted by Mash — Mon Jan 04, 2016 6:20 am

Re: Cachaca Rum

2016-01-03T22:13:46+00:00

After an hour or two on the oak

Statistics: Posted by Anavrin — Sun Jan 03, 2016 10:13 pm

Re: Cachaca Rum

2016-01-03T21:07:38+00:00

Just done my cuts on this, I found Jars 06-13 acceptable for aging on oak, not as good a yield as I had hoped but it is what it is I guess, jar 14 stinks and anything before jar 6 has too much of a heads taste for my liking.

Anyway, I now have 4.3 litres @ 65% sitting in my 8 litre Kilner Jar with 100 grams of SD Fench Oak No 4 Blend, I'm going to keep it on the oak for 4-6 weeks, then remove the oak, before leaving it a few more months in the Jar.

Just a note on the SD French Oak No4, it's a blend of two types, the mix is 40/60 between the big square cornered chunks and the thin rounded chunks, so if you get some be sure to get the mix correct.
40% Big Suare Blocks
60% Thin Rounded Blocks

I'll get some photos as it progresses

Statistics: Posted by Anavrin — Sun Jan 03, 2016 9:07 pm