StillSmart

guys just started my first vodka star wash woohoo
bubbling away nicely pitched yeast at about 28degree
but room temp was down to about 18degree so i covered
the fermenting bin with the wifeys thick woolen cardigan
and the temp is about 24degree
using 6kilos of sugar and topped up to 26litre of water
but forgot to take specific gravity
if it all goes to plan it should stop fermenting on Thursday
that's if i can hold the 24degrees mark and a couple days to
clear and hopefully i be distilling on Sunday

do you think i should distill in the kitchen or where I'm brewing
in the spare room with the fumes from the spirits while it's airing
i don't want to blow meself up if the cooker is switched on

Keeping temperature! I bought a cheap, cheap, sleeping bag in Tesco, cut it in half and got a friend to sew the cut edges on her sewing machine. I then had two fermenter cosys which work very well at keeping the temp stable in the 33lt fermenters.

I think the sleeping bag cost me about a tenner - cheap and practical

I always ran my Airstill in the kitchen. You won't get any volatile fumes from the Airstill unless the fan stops working to condense the vapour and this never happened to me. Once I moved up to a 50lt still I was banished to the garage and it was lucky we had one or I'd have had to stick with just my trusty Airstill.

AM

ok this has been fermenting now for five days,the bubbles in the airlock
has slowed down,i managed to keep it at a reasonable temp 21-24 degrees
but the room temp has been low,will ccheck the final gravity later (what is it ment to be .998 or lower)then once that sorted il will rack of into another bin
(hoping to get 24 ltrs),degasss it,then leave it to clear

so at the moment this wash is still on progress with time im still hoping to start strippin run on sunday

now im considering in using the lees for another wash either monday or tuesday
cos i got another packet of vs yeast,could i use half packet with the lees,and another 6kg of sugar,then topped upped to 26ltr,if this is possible i could be able to get 2 washes done with one packet of yeast

also whats the process for using lees

mix sugar into it with some warm water give it a good stir then top up with cold water to 26 ltr mark then start again

You want the SG down to 990 or below at which point there won't be any bubbles through the airlock.

BTW I really recommend degas throughly in the fermenter it's in and let it clear then rack off to a clean bin and don't forget the colder it is the better for clearing.

Re-using the lees of a Vodka Star. It can be done but it's really not worth it. You need to replace the yeast and the nutrients and while I have done this as an experiment, just to see if it could be done, it took 18 days to ferment out and five more to clear. The yeast and nutrient (Tronozymol) cost more than a new VS pack.

Re-using wine or beer yeasts can be done very successfully but packs like Vodka Star are a one-trick-pony and don't anyone get me started on re-using a Turbo with the black death in it

For what it is, Vodka Star represents good value for money given that you don't have to buy measure and mix the ingredients to make up a comparable but re-useable product, things like Yeast, DAP, Nitrogen, Vitamins, Citric Acid, Epsom Salts, and on, etc.

Vodka Star - Cheap, Cheerful, Effective - single use only but I tried re-using the lees to satisfy my own curiosity and there's nothing to stop you doing the same.

AM

If you can afford the time, a lower temp fermentation with VS is really nice. Coupled with a low power run through my airstill, even the heads are sippable without filtering.

just an update the airlock has stopped bubbling check with hydrometer just a bit high at the moment,the temp in the wash is at 17degrees and room temp is 18degrees
will leave and check it later and il check it termoz

ok just an update,over the last few days the airlock was bubbling every now and then,earlier took a hydrometer reading and it looks like its finished well according to the hydrometer,i will degass termoz (sun) and monday and leave it to clear,so it seems ive gone over the schedule that i was hoping for

it always comes to those who wait

I've given up putting definite timeframes on ferments - mine never go according to a plan so I don't bother.

I actually put on two identical washes side-by-side, exact same conditions, same controlled environment, both Vodka Star, one finished in 5 days and cleared in another 2 the other wash took 9 days to finish and 3 days to clear...go figure

Who cares? It doesn't matter once you get there in the end.

AM

just an update degassed it thoroughly using a mixing attachment on drill,its been clearing slowly since monday but only half has cleared
even though ive left on stone floor in shed,im tempted to get some wine finings http://www.wilkinsonplus.com/home-brewi ... a9qg%3D%3D on sat if its not cleared properly what you reckon guys ??

You need to degas it again and even more seriously than before. Don't worry about mixing it all up again it'll clear even faster once you beat all the remaining CO2 out of it.

I used to have this trouble and many of the older hands here can testify that I went through a period of regular posting looking for solutions to my washes not clearing and the answer I eventually found was that I was not degassing the wash properly or seriously enough.

Once I learned that secret my VS washes started looking like this...

I'd only use finings if I was in a desperate hurry to get a wash stripped - but that's just me. Because VS is a single use pack you could give it a serious degassing and then throw in your finings.

Whatever you decide don't get discouraged. You'll soon get into a routine that suits you in relation to finishing your wash ready for the still and when you do you'll look back and wonder what all the fuss was about.

AM