How to Distill (book like how to brew...)

[stevedasleeve]

I’ve been brewing since ‘06, thought I’d try my hand at distilling. I’m looking for a comprehensive guide like Palmers book - which is how I learned to brew. Too many choices out there! I need a recommendation.

One question: I assume I can brew a high gravity beer and distill it after fermentation. How big and are there any gotchas? Thought it would be nice to brew a double batch of ale and distill one, sort of a pairing if you will...

Cheers!

 

[bracconiere]

this is where i learned what i know...

https://homedistiller.org/wiki/index.php/Main_Page

 

[mongoose33]

this is where i learned what i know...

https://homedistiller.org/wiki/index.php/Main_Page

That site says it's illegal to distill for home consumption w/o a license in the US. But I was under the impression that law had changed so that in many states it is legal. (Not in Wisconsin where I live).

 

[bracconiere]

That site says it's illegal to distill for home consumption w/o a license in the US. But I was under the impression that law had changed so that in many states it is legal. (Not in Wisconsin where I live).

you're very right it is illegal...as far as i know in every state in the US, so was marijuana....


and homebrewing was illegal before 10-1978, a month after my birthday...lol

 

[jimmayhugh]

The Compleat Distiller
Making Pure Corn Whiskey
Designing and Building Automatic Stills

These three books, and my years of making beer, were instrumental in my pursuit of the hobby.

Highly recommended.

 

[jimmayhugh]

One question: I assume I can brew a high gravity beer and distill it after fermentation. How big and are there any gotchas? Thought it would be nice to brew a double batch of ale and distill one, sort of a pairing if you will...
Cheers!

Skip the hops in the batch meant for distillation, the various hop oils can carry over into the distillate, and do not improve the flavor.

 

[bracconiere]

Skip the hops in the batch meant for distillation, the various hop oils can carry over into the distillate, and do not improve the flavor.

might not make good booze, but you should try it for fortified beer! it really changes the hop profile....(i've done what he's talking about, distilled half and added it back to the beer...i brew 10 gallon batches though, so it worked out better then a 5'r would)

 

[RPh_Guy]

That site says it's illegal to distill for home consumption w/o a license in the US. But I was under the impression that law had changed so that in many states it is legal. (Not in Wisconsin where I live).

It's illegal at a federal level, so states can't override it.

 

[bracconiere]

It's illegal at a federal level, so states can't override it.

hmmm, i've heard of that before........lol

 

[bernardsmith]

You may be very aware of this but distilling does not create any alcohol, it simply concentrates the alcohol you have already made by removing the water (because alcohol boils at a lower temperature than water), so if your beer is at say 5% ABV then the very, very most alcohol you can get from say 5 gallons (let's call that 20 L or 20,000 ml ) is 1 L (a quart) of 100% ethanol. If your beer is 10% ABV then your distillate might be 2 L (2 quarts (or a half a gallon). The rest is for all intents and purposes junk. But as it is impossible to remove all the water from alcohol by distilling AND you are going to collect very volatile alcohols other than ethanol and other compounds that are not in fact ethanol you may obtain a little more or a little less of usable spirit.

 

[jimmayhugh]

I've done what he's talking about, distilled half and added it back to the beer...

So, basically a boilermaker...

 

[bernardsmith]

It's illegal at a federal level, so states can't override it.

So this is a good reason to write to your congressional reps and senators asking that they pass legislation to allow folk to distill small quantities of spirits for home use without falling afoul of the ATF.

 

[bracconiere]

One question: I assume I can brew a high gravity beer and distill it after fermentation. How big and are there any gotchas? Thought it would be nice to brew a double batch of ale and distill one, sort of a pairing if you will...

So, basically a boilermaker...

no, more like fortified wine: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fortified_wine

edit: damn you guys give me all kinds of good ideas...now i'm thinking about making a hoppy porter, distilling half, adding it back, then aging on oak for a few months/year.....hmmmm

 

[RPh_Guy]

So this is a good reason to write to your congressional reps and senators

I personally have no interest in distilling, and people that do seem to not care that it's illegal and don't seem to get caught (?), so I guess it works out.

Congress = House + Senate.

I would be interested in making tequila but it seems pretty much impossible to acquire quality agave.

 

[stevedasleeve]

My still is arriving next week. I can get started now with what I have on hand...anything wrong with this? 6 gallons:

13 lbs MO
2 lbs Rye
5 lbs sugar
2 packs SO5

Should be on my system 1.121 OG and finish 1.008, might no go that low, say 1.012 - I haven’t brewed anything this big before.

 

[Stealthcruiser]

It's illegal at a federal level, so states can't override it.

Like Marijuana possession, sales, growth, and use, in numerous States..........

 

[TGFV]

My still is arriving next week. I can get started now with what I have on hand...anything wrong with this? 6 gallons:

13 lbs MO
2 lbs Rye
5 lbs sugar
2 packs SO5

Should be on my system 1.121 OG and finish 1.008, might no go that low, say 1.012 - I haven’t brewed anything this big before.

Sounds like it will be a nice rye whiskey. Not a pure all grain, but not a sugarhead. The added sugar may give it a light sweetness, depending on how it dries out. But the marris otter and rye should taste really nice together.

What's the alcohol limit on SO5 though?

 

[TGFV]

Skip the hops in the batch meant for distillation, the various hop oils can carry over into the distillate, and do not improve the flavor.

Unless you are going for making some delicious Beer Schnapps.

The hop oils can give some interesting and great flavours for both clear and oaked likker.

Works surprisingly well for batches of beer that go south but you want to save something on.

 

[bernardsmith]

I suspect that when distilling beer you need to be careful. If you have failed to remove enough of the proteins boiling the mash (and if you don't add hops you may not have boiled the mash for long enough for the protein breaks) you are likely to have what distillers call a puke: that is where the wash itself rises up inside the condenser and pours out. I don't know that a wash made from wine or cider will puke - no proteins to trap air when you heat the liquid and so the liquid is unlikely to rise high enough to get into the condenser (you always need to be careful about not over-filling the kettle).

 

[jimmayhugh]

I suspect that when distilling beer you need to be careful. If you have failed to remove enough of the proteins boiling the mash (and if you don't add hops you may not have boiled the mash for long enough for the protein breaks) you are likely to have what distillers call a puke: that is where the wash itself rises up inside the condenser and pours out. I don't know that a wash made from wine or cider will puke - no proteins to trap air when you heat the liquid and so the liquid is unlikely to rise high enough to get into the condenser (you always need to be careful about not over-filling the kettle).

I've done a few distills, either with low-hops beer, or an unboiled all-grain wash, and all the above is true. I never fill my boiler more than two-thirds full, use an anti-foaming agent, and lower the power applied to the boiler. A full, roiling boil is not required.

 

[stevedasleeve]

It’s an 8 gallon still. I figure 2 gal headroom will suffice? I could go to 5 of course. 90 minute boil. SO5 is good to 11% I believe.

I might go with a smaller beer, say 1.080 to start. Still thinking about this!

 

[stevedasleeve]

Oh and I’ll be fermenting wort with no grain in it - all liquid if that is the issue.

 

[jimmayhugh]

It’s an 8 gallon still. I figure 2 gal headroom will suffice? I could go to 5 of course. 90 minute boil. SO5 is good to 11% I believe.

I might go with a smaller beer, say 1.080 to start. Still thinking about this!

If you stress the yeast with a higher ABV, it can cause more fusel by-products (also called congeners, heads and tails) that can cause off-tastes. Better to keep your SG at around 1.090 unless you're making fuel.

 

[doug293cz]

You can increase your ethanol content in the wash by throwing some amyloglucosidase, aka glucoamylase (eg. Amylo 300) enzyme into your fermenter. This will reduce all of the dextrins to fermentable sugar, and your FG should finish below 1.000.

Brew on

 

[firerat]

I suspect that when distilling beer you need to be careful. If you have failed to remove enough of the proteins boiling the mash (and if you don't add hops you may not have boiled the mash for long enough for the protein breaks) you are likely to have what distillers call a puke: that is where the wash itself rises up inside the condenser and pours out. I don't know that a wash made from wine or cider will puke - no proteins to trap air when you heat the liquid and so the liquid is unlikely to rise high enough to get into the condenser (you always need to be careful about not over-filling the kettle).

Throw a few marbles or even broken glass (no, use marbles) in the wash when running the still to knock down some of the puke.

 

[firerat]

And for the love of God do not use turbo yeast unless you are making fuel.

 

[jimmayhugh]

You can increase your ethanol content in the wash by throwing some amyloglucosidase, aka glucoamylase (eg. Amylo 300) enzyme into your fermenter. This will reduce all of the dextrins to fermentable sugar, and your FG should finish below 1.000.

Brew on

True this...
I use glucoamylase in all of my washes. Most of my recent washes have been either DME/Dextrose or Rye LME, and they all settle out below 1.000 with gluco.

 

[TGFV]

You can

It’s an 8 gallon still. I figure 2 gal headroom will suffice? I could go to 5 of course. 90 minute boil. SO5 is good to 11% I believe.

I might go with a smaller beer, say 1.080 to start. Still thinking about this!

Also you can use butter or an anti foaming agent to keep puke down. It's a great trick for thicker washes like rum (you can fill 80-90% full with no puke)

As for the. 1.080 I would say that would be a great starting point, and definitely thinking that Beano or Gluco can increase the abv, though it will correspondingly reduce the flavour.

 

[doug293cz]

You can


Also you can use butter or an anti foaming agent to keep puke down. It's a great trick for thicker washes like rum (you can fill 80-90% full with no puke)

As for the. 1.080 I would say that would be a great starting point, and definitely thinking that Beano or Gluco can increase the abv, though it will correspondingly reduce the flavour.

The highlighted statement implies that some of the dextrins would make it into the distilled product, and that dextrins are significant contributors to flavor. This doesn't sound right to me. I think the flavor comes from volatile, non-carbohydrate components of the wash. AFAIK gluco only affects carbohydrates.

Brew on

 

[bernardsmith]

I think TGVF's post is meant to suggest that if you add amylase you can increase the ABV because the enzymes will convert the starches in beer to fermentable sugar but if you are using malted barley and creating a mash then all the grains in the mash will be subject to amylase enzymes from the malting and so you are not going to increase the ABV by adding more enzymes. The only way to increase the ABV is to add more grains at the beginning or add more fermentable sugars to the wort. But TGFV needs to remember that the choice of yeast will determine the tolerance the yeast has for alcohol and achieving a fermentable solution with a potential ABV of greater than about 15% (an SG of about 1.120) is a challenge for most yeast, not impossible, but a challenge- and a challenge where flavor is the first to go.

 

[doug293cz]

I think TGVF's post is meant to suggest that if you add amylase you can increase the ABV because the enzymes will convert the starches in beer to fermentable sugar but if you are using malted barley and creating a mash then all the grains in the mash will be subject to amylase enzymes from the malting and so you are not going to increase the ABV by adding more enzymes. The only way to increase the ABV is to add more grains at the beginning or add more fermentable sugars to the wort. But TGFV needs to remember that the choice of yeast will determine the tolerance the yeast has for alcohol and achieving a fermentable solution with a potential ABV of greater than about 15% (an SG of about 1.120) is a challenge for most yeast, not impossible, but a challenge- and a challenge where flavor is the first to go.

Not sure what you are trying to say in the red highlighted statement. "Amylase" is too generic of a term to mean much in this context. Adding alpha amylase or beta amylase to the mash or fermenter won't do much unless the grain bill had low diastatic power (not enough enzymes), or the mash time was too short to reduce all of the carbohydrates to fermentable sugar and limit dextrins. Assuming you had good diastatic power, and you mashed long enough to get limit dextrins and fermentable sugar, adding amyloglucosidase (glucoamylase, gluco) to the mash or fermenter will turn the limit dextrins into fermentable sugar. This will create more fermentable sugar from the same amount of grain. If done correctly, doesn't matter much whether it's added to the mash or fermenter, but fermenter is more tolerant from a processing perspective (you don't have to worry about denaturing the gluco.) Adding gluco to the fermenter has the added benefit of completing saccharification that could have been done in the mash, but didn't happen due to too short a mash or enzyme denaturing.

The yeast choice will have a large effect on the esters and other flavor compounds created during fermentation. ABV above the yeast's tolerance is likely to create more flavor compounds rather than less, and some may be unpleasant. How much of these flavor compounds end up in the distillate will depend on the volatility and thermal stability of the individual compounds, and the distilling process. I don't see how any of the preceding leads to use of gluco reducing flavor in the distillate.

Brew on

 

[TGFV]

My comment about the reduction of flavours comes from the higher abv of the wash in and of itself results in a less flavourful distilled product.

I'm not sure the exact science of it, but it's regular mentioned and the science is broken down on the homedistiller site for higher vs lower abv washes.

That being said, if the difference is between 8 and 10 percent, I doubt the flavour will be effected, usually they are talking between 8 and 16% washes.

 

[doug293cz]

My comment about the reduction of flavours comes from the higher abv of the wash in and of itself results in a less flavourful distilled product.

I'm not sure the exact science of it, but it's regular mentioned and the science is broken down on the homedistiller site for higher vs lower abv washes.

That being said, if the difference is between 8 and 10 percent, I doubt the flavour will be effected, usually they are talking between 8 and 16% washes.

That sounds plausible if the high ABV wash has a lot of added sugar vs. the low ABV wash which is all grain. Would the same hold if both washes were free of added sugar? But, this is altogether a different case than using enzyme to convert remaining dextrins from an all grain mash to fermentable sugar.

Brew on