Newbie alert!

[trigger_andy]

Hey all,
thought Id introduce myself and hi.

Im brand new to distilling and stumbled upon this site and hope I can join you guys?

Ive been brewing Beer for about 5 years, the last 4 has been All Grain. Im currently set up for 50 ltr batches and it seems like a naturel progression to advance to Distilling.

Ive been living and working in Norway for the last 6 years and there is a very strong home brew and distilling community. I presume this is because of the prohibitive cost of booze over there?

I now live back in Scotland but still work in Norway. Ive bought a still from a buddy in Norway and could not wait to get started. So I think I made a major mistake in trying to Distill a batch of Amber Ale ive been fermenting. I knew Id have an issue with the hops but i never realised how bad it would be.

I have a Stainless Steel Column Still with a 20l capacity and a small Lieber. It was packed with Stainless Steel Scrunchies but I pulled them and added two pure Coper ones. Anyway, I did an initial Stripping run and it smelled bloody awful. Smelled bitter as hell, I guess condensed hops?So I Stripped down to 10% ABV and ended up with 2.5l then a few days later I packed the Column with 6 Copper Scrunchies and re-ran the (what I guess is ) Low Wines at as low a rate as I could and although the Spirit was initially 85% it still smelled awful and stunk. I pulled 0.5ltrs of Spirit at 75% and it had a faint smell of awfulness.

Today I ran 1.5l of Vinegar through the Still, initially with the Lieber off so the vapours worked through all the Still then turned it on for the run. Obviously smelled of Vinegar but still Bitter. I pulled the 6 Copper Scrunchies and they where greasy and dirty looking?

After this I rinsed everything with Cold Water and re-filled with cold water and ran the system with the Lieber off and Copper removed get the steam through everything. Then I turned on the Lieber on ran three liters through but the water produced still smelled a bit off.

Im at a loss as to what to do next to get rid of this nasty smell?

Anyway, Ive got 75L of 1.074og wash fermenting now. Its basically an Isley All Grain Mash made with Pilsner Malt, Crystal Malt and Peat Smoked Malt. I have two kegs fermenting with a whiskey Yeast strain I found on ebay and one with a dry english Ale Slurry I had left from a Beer batch. Id really like to make sure my first Whisky batch goes well so I'd appreciate any advice and suggestions you guys have going.

Cheers!

[Icefever]

Hi &

I think you've hit the nail on the head Andy with the smell...my first thought would be the hops are the culprit here...from what I've read over the last few years, it's the oil in the hops.

As for the still with it being Stainless Steel along with the copper/SS packing I can't see why it still has the smell after you've run vinegar through it...unless there's still residual hop oil left.

Back to the start....the boiler, has it a large enough opening to get your hand in? if it does give that a good wash with hot soapy water. Next the column, we have a thread somewhere from one of the guys about making a "pull through" and used that on a column and it's amazing what crap came out.

The liebig would also need either a pull through or maybe a soak in a bath of very mild bleach for a short time then rinse.

As for the last part of your post I don't run whiskey so I'll leave that to the guys on here that do.

[trigger_andy]

Thanks for the welcome and info.

I guess I posted in the wrong section or something? Thought Id get a few more comments, maybe I was a bit overwhelming with my opening post.

[Mash]

Welcome.

Now that is some commute!


Truck wash aka Traffic film remover (TFR). Squirty bottle, rubber gloves and a scrubbing brush & bottle brush. You can rinse off with cold water.

Worth having your sunnies on too... Can be nasty stuff.

Do not soak it will not take that long. Do not use on aluminum.

You will be amazed how good and how quick this stuff is.

Quick Steam or vinegar run before running properly.

[chill]

Welcome! Hopped whiskey is an acquired taste and not one that I have acquired. I have distilled a few beers that sat around for too long. It all quickly found its way down the drain.

While mine is a very simple still, I am surprised at how persistent the bad smell is. I'd suspect your water source, but you have been brewing beers an surely would have noticed it. So I guess soap or detergent and some good rinses are needed to clear out the hop oils. Hopped Whiskey - just say NO!

Chuck

[RumJohn]

@ Trigger Andy: A column can and will pick up off flavors and taste. A good scrub every few runs, and especially before a spirit run, is essential.

I use dish washing soap and 3M scrubbers laid over the end of dowel. Like cleaning a shotgun. A clean still will make a big difference to your end product.

Make sure you have rinsed well and removed all traces of soap.

[trigger_andy]

Thanks for the replies guys, really appreciate it. Did what was suggested and its all good now. Im doing a Spirit run this evening so Ill give it another scrub too. I would not have done this otherwise.