StillSmart

Hello everyone! Iv been lurking on the forum for several years but now its time to join in and say thanks for all the excellent advice. Iv had my air still for over a year now but yet to run it been lazy I'm still brewing just need to get stilling!

Just can't make my mind up what to make first?

Welcome! Neutral is the place to start - no aging required and you can flavour it many different ways. Give the Lentil Wash a go.

Chuck

Yer neutral is probably the way to go....but just don't fancy messing about with carbon filtering to get something worth drinking......did toy with the potato vodka on hear as they didn't filter the final product .

Welcome to the forum after a number of years lurking you should now know how it all works.

yellow belly wrote:but just don't fancy messing about with carbon filtering to get something worth drinking

If you don't want to "mess about" with carbon have a go at the lentil wash..

Just my personal experience but I could never get an acceptable neutral from the Airstill without Carbon Filtering the final spirit after a double distill. No matter what I tried there was always an aftertaste unless I took a tiny heart cut.

That's why I wrote the Airstill Guide so others could take the shortcut and avoid all the disappointing results I 'endured'



AM

I agree with AM on the carbon filtering. You might get away with not filtering if you use a commercial essence, but only because most of them taste so bad you won't notice.

Potato vodka is hard work and subject to infection. If it gets infected, it smells worse than a corpse. Well, probably not worse, but really bad! And you probably still need to carbon filter if you are using an Air Still.

Chuck

Carbon filters are piss easy. I do that with all neutral, whether it comes out my air/smart still or my T500.....

OK......a neutral it is.....better start work on building a carbon filter. I've got some Turbo and carbon that goes in the wash but I might just keep it simple and put on a lentil wash iv got some in my brewing cupboard that iv been hoarding......time to get to work and stop being lazy lol

OK might do it in the morning!

Thanks

Get a big chemical (alcohol) resistant funnel, force the neck full of cotton wool / cotton balls, and then partially fill with prepared carbon. Pour in alcohol to be filtered. Collect what comes out. Done.

Stainless steel is perfect. Some have used large wine bottles with the bottom cut off. I have a resistant plastic one.

Or just buy an Essencia and be done with it.
Chuck

I'll plus 1 most of the the posts above.
You may find that a lentil wash through an airstill is neutral enough after double distilling.
I have not tried it,but would expect better results than a Turbo wash.
Carbon in the wash is not for me,but any carbon filtering with the 2nd distillation,if chasing neutral,with an airstill is worth the effort,IMHO.

Robert.

For beginners visiting our humble forum I have posted a series of booklets dealing with many of the basics of subject like distilling with an Airstill, building a bigger still, making cuts in the spirits you make, etc., and posted them as Distilling Booklets under the Resources thread. This should save you a lot of searching and we'll still happily answer any questions you have.

AM

Hello folks
my name is Frank and, whilst having been a member of this forum since pedal-wireless days, I've been AWOL for quite a while due to work commitments and a lack of memory regarding passwords.

Its nice to see some 'old faces' still posting here (hello Aidanmac) and plenty of newbies as well (I have often thought this is the most welcoming of forums, esp when it comes to novices)

Anyway, lets start again, shall we? I don't expect to be here often, though I'm glad to be back.

FTR: I love scotch and am still making 'all grain' pot-stilled whisky and nowdays also make 'proper' neutral using a ' basic 2.5" copper, slanted plate boka (LM).

Frank wrote:Hello folks
my name is Frank and, whilst having been a member of this forum since pedal-wireless days, I've been AWOL for quite a while due to work commitments and a lack of memory regarding passwords.

Its nice to see some 'old faces' still posting here (hello Aidanmac) and plenty of newbies as well (I have often thought this is the most welcoming of forums, esp when it comes to novices)

Anyway, lets start again, shall we? I don't expect to be here often, though I'm glad to be back.

FTR: I love scotch and am still making 'all grain' pot-stilled whisky and nowdays also make 'proper' neutral using a ' basic 2.5" copper, slanted plate boka (LM).

welcome back frank

Hey Frank, good to see you and you'll always get a warm welcome here. I had noted your absence and meant to contact you on MD but I've a head like a sieve these days and other things often get in the way, like the grandkids

Many of the old names who were frequent participants here have slipped into occasional visits while quietly stilling away with experienced confidence, but not all. Some are still regulars.

I often come here, read what's new, shrug and head off again without posting anything as there's often little that really interests me but I do like to help out newcomers because there's a goodly amount of bull and bad advice floating around the atmosphere about craft distilling.

Anyway, good to hear from you.

AM

Frank! Welcome back! I have been wondering what you got up to. How is your Scotch quest coming along? I have recipe from you from long ago that I have yet to try.

Chuck