StillSmart

Posted: **Fri Oct 28, 2016 5:32 am**

Dave,Wow, you didn't give it much yeast to start, I would have gone 10x bigger.
So what the Capt. said makes sense for a stuck wash, but a gravity of 1017 is almost not worth the effort.
Did you aerate the wash that you added extra yeast to?
I suspect that it may need some oxygen to get going again.

Robert.

Posted: **Fri Oct 28, 2016 7:27 am**

Chris,

I have posted another thread about Yeast rehydration & restarting.

Posted: **Fri Oct 28, 2016 10:07 am**

Easydrinker wrote:Dave,Wow, you didn't give it much yeast to start, I would have gone 10x bigger.
So what the Capt. said makes sense for a stuck wash, but a gravity of 1017 is almost not worth the effort.
Did you aerate the wash that you added extra yeast to?
I suspect that it may need some oxygen to get going again.

Robert.

Yes, I realise now, but at the time I was under the impression that yeast bred like crazy.
I'm out today so will check it again tonight, and if it hasnt changed may just run it and count it as a lesson learned!

Posted: **Fri Oct 28, 2016 6:29 pm**

More yeast. Whisk some air in. Raise the temp a couple of degrees c

Posted: **Sat Oct 29, 2016 1:01 pm**

Ok, just done an Iodine starch test on my wash and it's come out positive. I obviously didn't convert all the starch in the corn, or even any of it! I'm really tee'd off now!

Is there any way to get the starch converted at this stage of the game, or shall I run what I have and take the hit? $:-\$

Posted: **Sun Oct 30, 2016 12:04 am**

Soz, I can't help you, other than to say... if no-one comes back with better advice, then I would run it.
Possibly shitty advice.

But if it is all that you have.

What does your gut tell you to do?
Sometimes, instinct can be the way to go.

Robert.

Posted: **Sun Oct 30, 2016 6:36 am**

I am out of ideas.

Posted: **Sun Oct 30, 2016 10:21 am**

Ok guys, thanks anyway. Im going to run it today and see what I can get out of it. Its disappointing, especially as, as far as I could tell, converting the starch with amylase seemed to go so well.
At the very least, it will free up a heater to allow me to get another mash on!

Posted: **Sun Oct 30, 2016 6:28 pm**

Syphoned off the cleared bit in the pic, which was exactly 2gallons, and ran it today. Got 1 litre of 48% abv from it which is better than nothing! It actually doesnt taste too bad either!(got it on oak cubes already)
The rast of the sludge is dripping through a muslin square in a colander as we speak....very, very slowly! I know one thing, I wont be using corn meal again, ghastly stuff! (for sale, one 1.5kg bag of coarse ground corn meal)

At least Ive got something to drink now! I flat out refuse to buy any more commercial whisky!
So, tomorrow, well, as of now, I'm thinking of my next brew.....gets to you, doesnt it?

Posted: **Mon Oct 31, 2016 2:42 am**

Dave wrote:Syphoned off the cleared bit in the pic, which was exactly 2gallons, and ran it today. Got 1 litre of 48% abv from it which is better than nothing! It actually doesnt taste too bad either!(got it on oak cubes already)
The rast of the sludge is dripping through a muslin square in a colander as we speak....very, very slowly! I know one thing, I wont be using corn meal again, ghastly stuff! (for sale, one 1.5kg bag of coarse ground corn meal)
At least Ive got something to drink now! I flat out refuse to buy any more commercial whisky!
So, tomorrow, well, as of now, I'm thinking of my next brew.....gets to you, doesnt it?

Trying to figure just what you are saying here.
Salvaging some ethanol from a stuck wash is good.
A single distillation to a finished/drinking product I don't think so.
Just about everyone hereabouts Strips and then spirit runs from a wash.
I do hope that this is what you did.
All the information that you need is logged here,
take the time to read it.

Robert.

Posted: **Mon Oct 31, 2016 4:11 pm**

I have read it, ED, but to do a spirit run on 1 litre, I'd need a mini still, and I havn't got one! When I get to the stage of having gallons of low wines sitting around, I'll certainly consider it, but atm, I'm just managing to keep myself in something to drink. I'm not sure I want to risk losing any flavour either, which is something a spirit run manages to achieve, by all accounts.
But my single run tastes pretty good to me, I made generous cuts, threw the heads, and kept the tails....

Posted: **Tue Nov 01, 2016 1:41 am**

OK Mate,
I don't know what still you use, But with a litre of 48% and an Air still, I would add a litre of water and do a spirit run, with cuts.
I know little of your situation, other than a pressing need for home produced spirits.
If you can find the funds and space for more fermenters, then that would seem the way to go for you. To ramp up production.
What ever you do, try to stay safe.
Ethanol can be a pleasure, but treat it wrong and it WILL fuck you over, in more ways than one.
It can destroy your body, and your mind.

Just sayin'

Robert.

Posted: **Tue Nov 01, 2016 1:13 pm**

Thanks for that ED, I appreciate your concern. You should be familiar with my still from this thread
viewtopic.php?f=15&t=4204&start=75
You contributed several times, if you remember?
I think if anything, I'm over cautious, and tend to chuck more heads away than I really need to, but I'd rather that than 'tother way round.

Posted: **Tue Nov 01, 2016 6:50 pm**

A single distillation to a finished/drinking product........

There are stills that will permit you to get a decent, clean, drink from a single run.
There don't seem to be too many around tho. Perhaps you have one? I know I have.

Posted: **Tue Nov 01, 2016 10:22 pm**

Ethanol isn't a huge risk with non-fruit washes and hopefully everyone here is over cautious with not drinking fores.

I can empathise with drinking single distilled from centre of hearts and look forward to having thumpers, bubblers and the like so a single run is effectively double or triple distilled.

StillSmart

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