t500 and plum brandy

[eattheliving]

Hi all,

Well I must say that the T500 is the dogs bo**ocks. so I figure that I might be ready for something a bit more adventurous that just neutral spirit.

My question is...
Can I use my T500 to do a plum brandy? ( I think the answer is no)
If I need to change my column will anyone be able to either supply detailed plans or make one for me at a cost?

cheers everyone. Off to sample my faux JD now

[vino-tinto]

I don't think a reflux will give you the flavour, what about infusion instead?
The way I made mine was to cut the plums in half and de-stone them place them in a big glass sweety jar layering them with brown sugar as you go. Cover with a 50% alcohol from the still and seal.
I left it for 3 months at room temperature, then strained off a little to taste,I found it needed sweetening because I didn't want to make it too sweet from the start, so I added some wine sweetener and got it just right.

[eattheliving]

thanks for the suggestion vino. I was after doing a more traditional brandy. But will give your idea a go if everything else fails.


cheers

[vespa]

Hello eattheliving, a few thoughts on what your after !
If you mean producing something like Slivovitz then traditionally the damson plums are crushed, fermented ( with extra sugar if required ) the resulting wash is then distilled in pot type stills.
I guess there are a few ways to go about it.
Try making a plum based wine but a dry wine instead of sweet , ferment then clear then distill this wine. ( the T500's reflux may prevent a lot of flavour coming over ).
Produce a normal run then steep crushed (by hand) plums then leave a few months and strain .
Or do the same steeping process but then re distill the resulting liquid.
I'm looking into a possible "pot" head for the T500 so will keep you informed of progress .
Oh if I Remember rightly sloe berries have a tiny amount of arsenic within their kernels, I think plums are same family so I wouldn't crush them myself if for no other reason than reducing their bitering quality.
Just my thoughts on Plum spirits

[eattheliving]

thanks vespa, sounds good. is there nothing at the moment that can be attached to the t500 boiler which will give me the flavour whilst distilling the plum wash?

[eattheliving]

anyone else got any ideas please????

[Mr Four Square]

If you want to make drinks that keep some the flavour of what you started with (apples, pears, quince, plums) you need a pot still. There are ways to reconfigure the T500 so it can run in pot still mode. Search the threads on Aussiedistiller and Moderndistiller and you will find instructions. Mostly it involves taking the packing out of the column. I solved it by buying a Still Spirits pot head and getting a couple of stainless shims made to pack the gap. Whatever you choose you'll need to get a power controller. The SS Reflux boiler runs at around 1800 watts while a pot still likes half that or less. Cheap eBay controllers are the go. Run mine for a year no worries.

[eattheliving]

Thanks Mr Four Square for the info.

Got some links for the controller but nothing for the pot head. Can you point me in the direction of anything please??

[Mr Four Square]

Custom made?
http://www.stillsmart.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?t=2071

or this?



or Still Spirits pot head and 2 x shims?



Here's how I assembled my controller
http://aussiedistiller.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=60&t=5024

[eattheliving]

still spirits pot head looks good mate. Are they available to buy in the U/K?

[Mr Four Square]

Dunno mate I'm in New Zealand. They grow on trees here. Someone on the forum might make you one. That's the way I'd go. The home built ones look the business and have a lot more copper and cooling.

http://www.stillsmart.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?t=2071