Bad Alcohols.

[Ó Flannagáin]

After downing a couple homebrews (man, my weizenbock has aged WELL!), when you distill alcohol you have to throw the first and last bit away... something about a bad alcohol. What is this? Is it not present in beer? Is it created from some chemical reaction when heating alcohol? If so, how come it doesn't show when cooking with wine/beer/etc?

Any scientists out there know the answer to this?

 

[Orfy]

It's because all alcohols are poisonus.

Some are more so than others.

With Distilling you separate and concentrate them.

If you take one glass 30cl of the wrong part of the distillate YOU DIE

Take a few glasses of mixed distilled alcohols that have not had the wrong parts thrown away you can go Blind

Take a few glasses of distillate that have been watered down but still have some of the bad bits then you'll have hell of a bad head!


Distilling is dangerous if you are stupid.
Darwin Award stuff.

 

[Pumbaa]

what Orfy said . . .

The same alchohols are in your beer but at a MUCH lower concentration. Next time you wake up with a hangover you can partialy blame those bad alchohols

 

[Ó Flannagáin]

With Distilling you separate and concentrate them.

That makes sense. Thanks!

 

[Ó Flannagáin]

FYI, this is not a distillation discussion Orfy, just chemistry of alcohols. I started that thread a long time ago.

...So, are there techniques to avoid having these alcohols in your beer? What are the names of these alcohols?

 

[Cap'n Jewbeard]

I'm not sure there are ways to get them out of your beer, unless you heat your finished (or fully-fermented) beer up to whatever temperature and evaporate the "bad" alcohols. Of course, you won't get all of them (some evap at higher temperatures than our friend Ethyl alcohol), and I don't know what heating your beer will do to the taste.

I know methyl's one of the bad'ns, maybe propyl also...

 

[zoebisch01]

I am fairly sure they are Fusel alcohols. Often they are brought on with high fermentation temperatures from what I understand. "Headache" beers are a result of these 'higher' alcohols.

 

[joebou4860]

...So, are there techniques to avoid having these alcohols in your beer? What are the names of these alcohols?

The earlier alcohol would be methanol (CH3-OH). The later ones are problbly a mixture but mostly propanol(CH3-CH2-CH2-OH), butanol (CH3-(CH2)2-CH2-OH), and isopropanol (like propanol but OH group is on middle carbon)

The one we like is called ethanol (CH3-CH2-OH)

please excuse the lack of lone pairs

 

[Orfy]

methanol (CH3-OH)

Is the dangerous (more) stuff that can kill you in small amounts.

 

[Pumbaa]

methanol (CH3-OH)

Is the dangerous (more) stuff that can kill you in small amounts.

IIRC that also known as rubbing alchohol

 

[Brewing Clamper]

IIRC that also known as rubbing alchohol

I thought Isopropyl was rubbing alochol? I guess you can rub yourself with whatever kind of alcohol you want....

 

[Sir Humpsalot]

I thought Isopropyl was rubbing alochol? I guess you can rub yourself with whatever kind of alcohol you want....

I think I will take you up on that!!!!

 

[Brewing Clamper]

I think I will take you up on that!!!!

Just so we're clear, I'm not doing any of the rubbing.... k?!

 

[Pumbaa]

I thought Isopropyl was rubbing alochol? I guess you can rub yourself with whatever kind of alcohol you want....

You may be right /shrug

 

[Buford]

Methanol is used in copier fluid, isopropyl is the rubbing alcohol kind. Both are toxic if consumed.

 

[fretman124]

Everything anybody needs to know about fusel alcohols and can be found here

www.homedistiller.org