redistilling smartstill

by **baldyman** » Sat Mar 14, 2009 6:39 pm

I am re distilling 4 ltrs of 40% spirit. It has run off about 2 ltrs of combined 70% after throwing 100ml of heads away. now my question is in the still is aprox 2 ltr of leftovers i have used the spiritomiter and found it to contain 25-30% alcohol can i add this to my still in the next wash.

Dave

by **Jimmy** » Sat Mar 14, 2009 9:13 pm

You certainly can! This is known as backset and is a key component in making certain drinks (like a sour mash whiskey). If you\'re just making neutral spirit, you can pull the ethanol out of it on the next run, save wasting any.
An alternative version is to do what you already have, and then switch containers and collect more - if you use the calculator here :
http://www.homedistiller.org/pot_calc.htm
With the following inputs :
4 / 40 / 20 / 320 / 320 / 25 / 25
You can see that what you got is about right, 2 litres at 70%. The \'purity\' column is showing you the strength of what is actually coming out of the spout, so looking at those figures I would probably collect a further 500ml, as after that you\'re basically getting very little strength coming out.
Why do it this way? Well, it just means you have less stuff to keep track of - if you have a spare demijohn, you can just throw these leftovers in as you go along and when you have 4 litres (or near enough to top up with water) you can run it through and get a \'free\' run.
Hope this helps!

by **Mikey** » Thu Mar 19, 2009 3:16 am

Hi there

I am planning on redistilling for the first time. A basic sugar wash with a turbo yeast (48). I am in the process of doing the first distilation (I have 2 X 25 liter on the go). Can someone help with a bit of info please? I have been doing single distilling until now and decided to try double. Firstly the thread here has been very helpful. I have been diluting my final \'vodka\' down to +/- 40% and then filtering through carbon.. 1.5m pipe etc. My main question is this.. I read that to add oak chips and other assorted flavourings (not essences) that its best to do so at a high alcohol content.. But if I do that then surely as soon as I dilute and filter it I will lose the colour and flavour? I read that its best to filter between 40 and 50% ?Help I\'m confused.. Secondly, after the first distillation do I filter then, or just run it through a second time.. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.. Cheers

by **Jimmy** » Thu Mar 19, 2009 3:34 am

No worries Mikey, that kind of stuff makes your head spin at first!
Filtering does indeed work best at lower ABV, and it will strip out your flavouring. For that reason, flavouring/aging always comes last and you don\'t filter anything you want to keep the flavour of (like a whiskey run).
So the question is, do you dilute before or after? Personally, I do all of my distilling without filtering and when I\'m done I dilute to 40%, filter if I\'m making a neutral spirit, and then put it to age or add flavouring. That way I get a nice clean base to add flavour to, and in theory the base should be tasteless neutral spirit so the quality of the flavouring is what counts.
You can argue that if you distill well enough, and make a decent wash (non-turbo if you listen to the old guard) then you don\'t need to filter anyway, so this isn\'t an issue. If you fancy giving that a try then I\'d suggest a tomato paste wash (look on the forums) - triple distill (first run as a stripping run, taking no heads off and second run can be the same if you like) - on the third run, throw away maybe 100ml of heads and take about 900ml of spirit, this will be strong and unlikely to need filtering - it\'s not exact, but that gives you a rough idea.
You could also (if you really wanted to) filter and dilute your spirit and then re-distill it, that way you\'re just taking ethanol out of clean water so you shouldn\'t need to discard anything and you can bump the strength back up by calculating when to stop collecting, in theory only water should be left behind in the still. Perhaps double distill, dilute and filter, and then triple distill for the final run?
In other words, there\'s no definite answer but you can try a few different methods! Hope this helps, let us all know how you get on, it helps everyone.

by **Mikey** » Thu Mar 19, 2009 3:46 am

Thanks for that Jimmy. Ive done half a dozen or so distillations and was quite impressed with the \'neutral\' spirit but not been to impressed with the various flavourings (essence) that are abundant on the net. I\'ve tried Irish, Scotch, Dark Rum and bourbon to name a few and tried different brands including Prestige. Although I did a Rula for the missus and thought it wasnt bad (was a bit concerend as I had tried a baileys without the \'pack\' and added sugar and cream.. Bloody horrible). So i figure I will double distill and maybe use some oak chips and a bit of Glycerine in a demijohn and just put it away somewhere for as long as I can keep my greedy little paws to myself. Will keep you posted on how it all works out. I have looked at the tomato paste wash and will probably give it a go at some stage. Also looking at using corn and other \'whisky\' mashes I might give a go at some stage. My missus thinks I am becomming and alcoholic. Have started brewing beer and wine as well..

by **Jimmy** » Thu Mar 19, 2009 4:01 am

If any of that wine comes out horrible, you can always distill it for a nice sort-of-brandy!

With the essences, I\'ve found that they generally disappoint at first but get better with age, also adding 10% of the real thing makes a big difference, and the better essences seem to be the ones that come with chips or sachets rather than in bottles, as a very rough rule of thumb. Of course, if you actually want parma violet flavour vodka (as my sister did) then those kind of essences are fine. Oh, and the chocolate and nut ones are surprisingly nice too, not that I would normally drink such a thing!
Toast/char your oak chips (I held mine over the gas ring with some pliers) to get different tastes too, there\'s a whole world of different ways to do that part too which is partly why this hobby is great but also why it can be confusing at first.

by **Mikey** » Thu Mar 19, 2009 6:16 am

I have a bottle of irish (Prestige) in my cupboard that has been hiding there for a month.. Tried it today and not impressed at all. I also have some Tequila (3 bottles) to which I have added peppercorns to get a nice \'glow\' to it.. Turns it a slightly yellow coulor but adds something to it.. Going to try adding a little Glycerine to see if it removes the \'sharp\' taste.. To be continued..

by **Jimmy** » Thu Mar 19, 2009 7:02 pm

If you can manage to get a decent tequila, for god\'s sake let me know! That is one of the key drinks for me, at the moment I\'m experimenting with a special wash to try and make one. In theory it shouldn\'t be too hard compared to say a decent whiskey, because tequila isn\'t aged in the same way so barrels, etc aren\'t a factor. Getting hold of the raw ingredients over here is a problem though, so hopefully I can fudge it - more info later!

by **Mikey** » Thu Mar 19, 2009 8:18 pm

I\'ll let you know how my Tequila turns out.. Probably about a month or so before I taste it.. Just had a bottle of Glycerine arrive today so going to try a smidge in one of the bottles along with around 7 or 8 peppercorns. I am fussy with Tequila having visited Mexico and trying some wonderful stuff.. El jimador and Cassedores to name but two which you can buy over here.. i have a web address if interested.. Around 20 squidish last time I looked

by **Mikey** » Thu Mar 19, 2009 8:20 pm

i\'ve had a look for agave but seems incredibly expensive on the few sites that sell it over here.. Maybe importing in bulk if you can get enough people involved to make it worthwhile. I import stuff from South Africa.. its not too hard to do

by **HangOver** » Thu Mar 19, 2009 8:27 pm

i\'ve seen Glycerine in HB shops, what if anything does it do to neutral spirit?

by **Mikey** » Thu Mar 19, 2009 9:18 pm

As far as I can make out from what I have read on various websites Glycerine is supposed to smooth the spirit.. Using a non-sweet aging syrup can mellow out your spirit, without having to store it away for years. Just don\'t use too much to kill the character of whiskeys.

Try 20g/L of glucose, or 5 mL per litre of glycerine as a starter.

Quote from this website http://www.homedistiller.org/

This is my first try with it so will let you know what if anything it does.. Oh and if you get some dont get from HB shop.. Much cheaper elsewhere

by **trelliS** » Sat Oct 31, 2009 6:53 am

Hi Folks

Am confused i grasp the basic idea of back set but can you double distill your first backset cos ive checked with alchometer and it is at 20% or do you need the first backset at 25-30% for it viable

by **Pharma** » Sat Oct 31, 2009 7:52 pm

You can re-distill at 20%, it\'s going to give you more output than your first run which was likely at 10%-15%.
I haven\'t tried re-running the backset yet, but I imagine it would give you of a tails taste than an original run.

What was your original wash?

by **HangOver** » Sat Oct 31, 2009 11:27 pm

Hi Folks

Am confused i grasp the basic idea of back set but can you double distill your first backset cos ive checked with alchometer and it is at 20% or do you need the first backset at 25-30% for it viable
it depends what you mean if you mean foreshots,(heads) no dump them dont even think about it.

If you mean aftershots, (tails) yes re-distil them. my rule of thumb is if the after shots are greater % alcohol wise than your wash re-distil them otherwise dont bother.