StillSmart

Today...or this morning in fact, I've got stuck into a clear out of my brew-house. It had become a place to throw everything over the last few months.

Bags of spuds from the allotment, tools like spades,forks & rakes....my new bike, plus bags of "stuff" left over from chrimbo, empty carboard boxs...now all gone...hey I've found my 500, not seen that since Nov, yipee...

Got a new toy, a budget induction hob (maplin) to cook some apple pie juice on.
it is so efficient its reduced 1.75 lt. by half in about 20 mins maybe quicker.

I've just filled 24 bottles plus a gallon DJ of Rhubarb wine...while I was doing that I had the airstill running a strip.....

Icefever wrote:I've just filled 24 bottles plus a gallon DJ of Rhubarb wine...while I was doing that I had the airstill running a strip.....
{picture snip}

Nice....... I could just do with a schlurp of the rhube (stuck in cab, at the arse end of Farnham for the night - fuck it, off to Sainsburys for a bottle of something)..........

Easydrinker wrote:I made lots and lots of Apple Pie,as gifts for Xmas.
Of course,it all needed tasting,to check it was up to the usual standard.
I am now wasted,but merely have to bottle and label the stuff tomorrow,make that later today....
Along with several hundred other petty tasks.
Am I prepared for the festive season?
Ask me in 24 hours.
Ho Ho Ho
Robert.

EDrinker I somehow managed to get that cold and being confined to the house for a few days decided to make some washes and run some other stuff in the still. i made this recipe above and its addictive, well done . its very nice. I just made my second batch and its sticky sweet and tasty, i added a star anise for the second lot and did 2x recipe so 2ltr of lidl but scaled up the clove and 2/3rd cinnamon to 1 star anise. And its really nice. cheers to that recipe.
ps how do you filter, i let it go through coffee filter 3 times, it won't clear but removes any sludge and froth etc.

its a nice recipe, Would be great to see rum john recipe for 40% apple pie rum, sound s interesting.

Aye,the best I hope for is reducing sludge and bits with filtering.
Clear is going to call for a different Apple juice methinks.

Robert.

Phantom wrote:Nice....... I could just do with a schlurp of the rhube (stuck in cab, at the arse end of Farnham for the night - fuck it, off to Sainsburys for a bottle of something)..........

If you'd been closer driver I'd have run a bottle out... this 23 lts not got the same "zing" of the last lot, don't know why....as for the nights out P I'm done with all that mate....

Icefever wrote:If you'd been closer driver I'd have run a bottle out... this 23 lts not got the same "zing" of the last lot, don't know why....as for the nights out P I'm done with all that mate....

See, you've failed again. I only (usually) get one maybe two, nights out a week (often none).

But I'll be at Blyth or the other one on the M1 on Sunday night (tipping at 06 buffalo Monday).

So you've got the weekend to move house, booze and all, by then

Today I've just finished chopping a few chunks off my still!

I had a big 2 inch threaded coupling between my main column and my VM takeoff, it was a bit of a pain having to screw it all together, also my Boka top section was held into a 2" coupling with some self sealing silicone tape so it was in need of a few mods, I've fitted some 2" tri-clamp ferrels, one to the top of my main column, one on the bottom of my Boka top section, also one above and below on my VM takeoff.

This should make things a lot easier to assemble and make it more customisable and compatible as all connections are now 2" tri-clamp so I can easily swap section around and add other bits.

I'll post some pics once I've cleaned it all up and assembled it :-)

Good for you mate.
I've been laid low with man flu for almost two weeks and need to do some similar stuff.
Thank Ferk that today I feel I'm through it,and tomorrow is another day.
Onward and upward.
Sitting and tapping is so much easier than even getting the next wash started.
About to resume where I left off,before the supplies dwindle.

Robert.

Since purchasing my present equipment, I have been using my garden shed.

However, with the darker night, and the need to illuminate the shed, when in use, thereby drawing attention to it (I have a public right of way running alongside my back fence), I decided to bring everything indoors to the kitchen area.

Today I cleaned and moved everything. The gas bottle is still to be moved in.

That must suck,I along with a few here,have almost complete privacy.
And never give running a still a second thought.
Can happily report that I am back on-track tonight and have just finished the latest gin run through the Smart-still.
And my next lentil wash will happen in the morning.
Happy days are here again.

Robert.

The public right of way presents me with something of a dichotomy. I treasure the historical significance of a path that certainly pre-dates the Roman conquest, and probably dates back to Stone Age times.

As anybody with a military background would recognise, it avoids the low lying areas, whilst running below the skyline

It represents not merely the liberty to traverse, but, more importantly, the curtailment of liberty for the mass of the population, where no travel at all was possible, for any reason, with these few exceptions.

Remember, probably from long before, but certainly from the Roman conquest, we were a slave population and, even by the time of the Norman conquest, historians suggest that up to 20% of the population of these islands were still slaves.

Speaking from someone from a relatively new country, it would be pretty cool living next to living history like that.

Chuck

Run a gallon of Rhubarb through the airstill today...got a snifter of it now...very pleased with it, I think another gall coming on....