HEADS, HEARTS & TAILS

[Toper]

Just checking to see if I have posting picture method correct.

[Easydrinker]

There I was about to correct Brians confusion,and he beat me to it!

You do not state if you have performed the usual "Junkahol" run with your new still,partly done to ensure that it is clean,and partly to give yourself an idea of how the still performs before trusting it with something that you care about.

So yes,do follow Brians suggestions to learn a little about your still.

When doing your spirit run,collect into many small bottles/jars.
Here is an excellent guide to making spirit cuts:

download/file.php?id=69

With experience,you will gain an insight into when your still produces the various fractions.
HTH
Robert.

[Toper]

Thanks for that file, I will study it with much interest.
Cheers

[Toper]

Yes Easydrinker, I did do a cleaning run almost as soon as I took delvery of it. This also served to indicate wether of not any rivets or welds were leaking. All was well!

I have started to do a strip run with what I had in hand. I was more like 18 litres, and I diluted it to about 30%.
It took about 25 minutes on full burn to bring it to the point where the parrot first filled. It was coming through at 85%.

I have kept the temperature at about 85C. This seems to give what for me seems to be a reasonable rate of flow, whilst the condenser doesn't appear to be overstretched.

[Toper]

Finished the stripping run. It took 5 hours.

I could have run the burner at a higher output but, doing so appeared to push the condenser up to its limits. The water coolant heated up and I already had as much water flowing in as could flow out at the same time. This meant that temperature in the parrot rose to some 40° C. which also meant that the alcometer reading from the parrot was also inaccurate.

Because of this I kept to a rather low burn. This kept the parrot temperature at about 20/22° C. As the alcohol was distilled off, the temperature of the thermometer on the swan neck gradually increased. An alcometer reading at the parrot of 18% coincided with the swan neck thermometer reaching 100°C. As this is water's boiling point, presumably all alcohol has been stripped.

The finished distillation is 59% abv.

Tomorrow I will dilute this down to 30% abv and then start my first spirit run.

[Easydrinker]

It sounds like you are having fun,I hope the spirit run goes well for you.
Robert.

[Toper]

The above shows details of my first spirit run. Does this approximate a 'normal' result?

The final 5 litres of hearts were 65% abv. This amount, after dilution to 40% abv would render just over eight (8) 75cl bottles.

My method, especially with the hearts, was limited by the number of small containers I had to hand.
There was a marked difference, by smell, between the first 300 ml of Heads and the fifth 300 ml. Also, a significant difference between the first Tails and the last.

Given that apparently the large Distillers save both Heads and Tails as 'Feints' for the next spirit run, I thought I might safely do the same.


What is the benefit/s of doing a strip run and then a spirit run as against doing a spirit run straight from the original wash?

[Capt-Cudellez]

What is the benefit/s of doing a strip run and then a spirit run as against doing a spirit run straight from the original wash?

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You'll create a better product and collect hearts at a better strength for aging as your still charge is closer to 30% rather than 10% ish.

Also if you do 2 strips, you can charge the boiler with both lots of strip, and do a much more productive spirit run.

[Toper]

When you say two strips, do you mean split the wash and do it in two parts?

Cheers

[RumJohn]

@Toper: A stripping run gets rid of solids, dead yeast, excess junk, etc. and gives you a more manageable product (low wine). If you combine several strip runs you will end up with a much more consistent product as your still will have been operating in its "sweet zone" for a longer period of time.

Doing a strip run is well worth the effort on most products. Depending on your kit and if your shooting for a neutral of high ABV % (azeotrope) you might consider a 3rd run.

[YHB]

Rule of thumb is that if you fill your boiler with wash and strip it, keep the strip. Repeat so that you have two loads of strip. When you combine the two loads of strip and dilute it to 30% you will have a boiler full of higher strength wash ready for your spirit run.

This is why some people recommend that your fermenter is twice as big as your boiler, mine is the same size and I have to wait for the next wash to ferment out.

Each time you dilute the spirits and rerun them the taste will become cleaner with some of the desirables being washed out into the newly added water. Some of the flavour may also be washed out which is why some prefer a single run spirit.

Another alternative and perhaps a compromise is a so called 1.1/2 run spirit. With this method you strip the first wash, then add the resulting strip from the first wash to the second wash when it is in the boiler and do a spirit run on the combined product. This means that half the wash will have been distilled twice and half only once i.e. average 1.1/2 distillations.

Lots of alternatives to try and no fixed rules.

OOPs by the time I finished this post Rum John had added his note, you now have 1x 1.1/2x 2x and 3x distillations to choose from! that should keep you busy for a while!

[Toper]

I much appreciate these answers, comments and suggestions.

Like any tenderfoot, I have to come to terms with the terms.

I have already made what myself, and many others, considered to be a very drinkable product using my Smart Still. However, my latest acquisition offers, hopefully, much more scope in refining/improving on what I have done to date.

I like the idea of doing a spirit run, using the results of two strip runs. In my case, using two 23 litre malt washes, the two strips would re-dilute for one spirit run, resulting in a consistent product from two washes and one lot of feints.

However, I am now in the position of having to decided on a recipe more suited to my new still I will pursue this quest under a more appropriate thread.

I much appreciate all the suggestions from all who responded to my postings. I have no doubt I will soon have more question I need answering.