StillSmart

Easydrinker wrote:[color=#FF0000]

m314 wrote:I do love that sort of sentiment
And I am loving your insane and jumpy focus.
Welcome to a site that is a home to folk like yourself!
I am not sure that there are many rules here,but can I suggest that if we all strive not piss each other off, then we don't need them?

Robert

Thanks. I found this place a few months ago when I got my T500. I just hadn't posted until yesterday. This is a great source of information for people getting into home distilling.

I'm in California, so you'll have to excuse me if I post about pounds and gallons instead of kilograms and liters.

m314 wrote:I'm in California, so you'll have to excuse me if I post about pounds and gallons instead of kilograms and liters.

First of all M314...welcome to the forum, I see you only joined yesterday.

There's no need to excuse you if you post in pounds/gallons...that's what I and a few more of us on here grew up with. just enjoy your new hobby...any questions just shout.

Welcome aboard. We will cope your posts will always be welcome.

@ICE. You know them gallons you are thinking of .. It's not them

"Drinking rum before 11am doesn't make you an alcoholic,it makes you a Pirate"

I never knew I was a pirate. I shouldn't be drinking rum and coke at 9 am, but the UFC is on. I'm trying to finish distilling this batch of rum today.

I love the quality of the vodka coming out of my Essencia filter, but it's taking forever. It has filtered about 3 liters at 80 proof over the last day and a half.

Blimey that is slow. I thought my ez filter was slow 5 litres is about 8 hours.

There is a thread about this on here somewhere and I am sure there is a benefit to running higher proof.

My vodka batches come off the stil at around 185 proof. I watered this lentil batch down to 80 proof according to the instructions that came with the filter.

I might try a higher proof with the next batch.

If your essencia is slow it's probably got air trapped in the ceramic filter, I find if you take it out and soak it upside down in some already filtered spirit tapping it down releases little air bubbles out of the hole in the bottom.

Eventually it will sink and you know all the airs gone, you could also clean the outside of the ceramic dome with a sponge to remove anything clogging the pores.

Anavrin has it right, air can be a pain getting trapped in there.
Be careful with running anything stronger than 45% ABV through the filter, the charcoal won't do what it is there for.

Robert.

Earth to m314,
Please acknowledge receipt of instruction not to run spirit above 45% through Essencia, unless having a laugh.
One life, Live it.

Robert.

The instructions mentioned using a dinner plate instead of the regular plastic lid if filtering something over 80 proof. I've only done the one big lentil batch so far at 80 proof. I'll probably just stick with 80 to 90 proof.

I was busy working on rum over the weekend, so I let this batch take its time and finish slowly. I'll try the suggestions here next weekend with my wheat germ batch. Soaking the ceramic filter upside down in spirit, tapping to get the air bubbles out, that sounds like it would work.

Even with the slow speed, I love the quality from the first batch. The lentil vodka turned out smoother and better tasting after 1 run through the filter. Before this I was used to doing multiple runs through a Britta pitcher with less dramatic results.

I've even put aged Rum through mine to take the colour away, it still kept a nice rum flavour and came out clear, having only otherwise tried white rum essences, this was the best white rum I've ever made :-)

You do need to change the carbon though, my next batch of neutral had a slight hint of rum to it!

It's quite possibly the most useful but of kit I've bought so far, like others say though, I believe 50% spirt is the absolute max you can use, and it will shorten the usefull life of the filters, Essencia recommend changing the carbon one after 40 litres at 40%, cant remember off the top of my head but it's much lower at 50%.

My new rum batch came out a little strong. I might have used too much molasses and dunder from the previous batch. It's brand new, so hopefully it will mellow out a little with aging. I'll think about filtering it at some point.

I finally got around to filtering my wheat germ vodka this weekend. This is the first premium vodka I've made. It has pretty much no taste and no burn at 80 proof. I've tried so many batches of vodka so far. This is the first time I got it right, with the help of the Essencia filter.

Pleased for you that the vodka hits the spot.
A little unsure what you are saying regards the rum, my advice, don't strip it.

Robert.

Buccaneer Bob's rum recipe calls for double distillation and using dunder (backset, leftovers from the still from the stripping runs) in starting the next generation. It also mentions adding clarified dunder directly to the results from the spirit run for a richer and fuller flavor. I highly recommend trying it.

I got carried away with the last batch and used too much molasses. It has a seriously strong molasses flavor after 2 distillations. It kinda grows on you after a while. I have 19 quarts of it, so I hope it mellows out a little with aging.

http://imgur.com/0wfZJfo

I'm distilling more vodka tonight. I've had 5 gallons of Birdwatchers low wines sitting around for months now. A basic sugar / tomato paste wash. I hope this turns out well after filtering.

I don't taste tomato, exactly, but it seems a little harsh so far at 190ish proof. My wheat germ / sugar vodka came off the still smooth and with a pleasantly grainy aftertaste. I'm already fermenting 32 gallons of wheat germ / sugar wash for flavored "whiskey". I should start a new batch specifically for vodka this weekend.