Frozen Beer

Ok ,

My 5 gallon batch of Powder Hound clone finished fermentation yesterday so I put the carboy in the garage so that the yeast would fully drop out and then I would transfer to my Keg.
Well there was a layer of slush on top of the beer and left about 1 third of a gallon at the bottom when I transfered to the keg.

Do you think I have done any damege to the beer or have I just increased the Alcohol %.

Thanks

Lochboy

HaHa.
What you did is technically illegal. You just distilled your beer.

Sorry.

All you did was leave some water behind and distilled off a stronger beer. Not sure what it did to the yeast though.

Ice Beer. Sweet!

To distill, you need to evaporate and then condense. All you have done is concentrated your beer a bit. I wouldn't worry about it.

-a.

ajf said:

To distill, you need to evaporate and then condense

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Do a little research, you'll find that's not correct in the eyes of the law.
Like you say though, nothing to worry about.

ajf said:

To distill, you need to evaporate and then condense. All you have done is concentrated your beer a bit. I wouldn't worry about it.

-a.

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Orfy was right. Yes technically, it wasn't distilling, but legally, this is a method of distillation. Just don't tell the feds!

Here's the result of the research from Websters dictionary:

Distillation
the process of purifying a liquid by successive evaporation and condensation.

If you are not evaporating and condensing, you are not distilling.

-a.

You can argue semantics all you want; from the Fed's perspective, freeze distillation IS distillation. No big deal in this case, but it is, TECHNICALLY, illegal.

The bird and Brewsmith are right.

There is a MASSIVE difference between the Law and Science. According to science, you need to heat up and condense something to distill it. According to the ABC, (the Law) allyou need to do, is to increase the ethanol by some method. Freezing and pouring off the higher alcohol beer is technically illegal. (But, for some reason, putting more fermentables in, and running turbo yeast, isn't!)

steve

Lochboy said:

Do you think I have done any damege to the beer or have I just increased the Alcohol %.

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You have done no harm, in fact this is how eisbier is made in Germany. I make a batch every winter through the same process.

And I couldn't a rat's a** if it's illegal or not.

ajf said:

Here's the result of the research from Websters dictionary:

Distillation
the process of purifying a liquid by successive evaporation and condensation.

If you are not evaporating and condensing, you are not distilling.

-a.

Click to expand...

The ATF doesnt read Websters and the others are right. In the laws eyes it's distilling and very much against the law . . . and this is from someone who only got into home brewing so he could learn how to mash and make his own whiskey and tell the feds to shove it in thier arse


BTW gratz to the OP and enjoy your eisbier . . . remined me to do that with my next wee heavy

Better call homeland security...just in case!!

I think he needs to dispose of the evidence by shipping a few bottles to each of us that understand we are a Nation of Law not Science.

We can then all post our evaluations.

david_42 said:

I think he needs to dispose of the evidence by shipping a few bottles to each of us that understand we are a Nation of Law not Science.

We can then all post our evaluations.

Click to expand...

Yup great idea, want my address?

Thanks Guys,

Wow!! Tastes great, a little extra alcohol. My wife loves it. Already have 2 kids may have to put a lock on the keg.

Later