New to stillin' - saying g'day + looking for advice.

by **ddgg22** » Tue Mar 26, 2013 12:55 pm

Hey ppls. Hello and thank you for helping me - which I'm sure you can do.

I've recntly bought the turbo 500 boiler with the artisan column. I've done 2 25L washes thus far.
First off I greedily collected everything but the first 80ml and mixed away. Lesson learnt.

Second wash I threw out the first 150ml and then collected the next 3 litres. Perhaps a bit greedy again.

So my questions are :

1/ How much " heart" - in litres or mls- am I looking at realistically producing from a 25L wash -

I'm also trying the below Tom Paste wash.

2/Is there anything I need to know apart from mix and go?

5kg sugar
80grams bakers yeast
1/4 tea spoon citric acid
200 grams leggo's tomato paste.

Cheers in advance and sorry just to get on here and hit you with the knowledge quiz straight up.

Dg

by **googe** » Tue Mar 26, 2013 1:12 pm

Welcome mate, no need to be sorry, least you had the decency to say hello, some.just ask without introducing. :handgestures-thumbupleft: . Anyway, have a good read here viewforum.php?f=57 and here viewtopic.php?f=57&t=2859. Your wash sounds spot on, no big deal with it, just follow the tpw thread and you can't go wrong. Different stills.produce different amounts but you should get something like 4L 40% good stuff, maybe less if you tighten it up. Have a look on the calculator section in beginers questions to for yeild figurs. Good luck mate :-D

by **ddgg22** » Tue Mar 26, 2013 1:20 pm

Cheers for the prompt response! I'll be sure to follow those links and learn. I'll also give my review for what it's worth.

I've been using the turbo kits and the smells - well I think y'know - so that's why I'm here.

If there's any other beginners recipes that you think I should try feel free to throw them my way.

Thanx again.

by **BackyardBrewer** » Tue Mar 26, 2013 1:23 pm

+1 on Googe's post. You are fine with your TPW recipe, give it a crack.

I get possibly 2L of hearts @~95% from a 25L wash. Total yield is closer to 3.5-3.8L but I turf 200mls of fores, 300-500 heads and 1L or so of tails.

I keep the middle1.8-2.2L depending on the run. Lots of variables seem to affect my yields: ambient ferment temp, how long the wash sat clearing before the run, ambient still running temp,water flow, water temp.

Heads & tails go into a feints jar until I have about 10L for a feints run.

by **Camikaze** » Tue Mar 26, 2013 1:31 pm

ddgg22 wrote:If there's any other beginners recipes that you think I should try feel free to throw them my way.

Thanx again.

Plenty mate. Depends on your favourite tipple. Have a read here and try em' all. :handgestures-thumbupleft:

by **Camikaze** » Tue Mar 26, 2013 1:32 pm

Oh...welcome to the bar mate. :D

by **SBB** » Tue Mar 26, 2013 1:34 pm

ddgg22 wrote:Second wash I threw out the first 150ml and then collected the next 3 litres. Perhaps a bit greedy again.

Way to greedy.....wouldn't taste much better than the first lot would it ???

ddgg22 wrote:1/ How much " heart" - in litres or mls- am I looking at realistically producing from a 25L wash -

That is something no one can tell you, it will vary from still to still and from wash to wash, Also some people might keep more than others as they might not be as fussy with their cuts. The only way you can decide this is to taste and smell your cuts yourself, Its probably the single most important thing you need to learn in distilling to achieve a good product. Better to start learning sooner than later.
Google has already given you the link to Kiwis Cuts. Its the best explanation that you will find on the net.

BB beat me in with his reply

by **ddgg22** » Tue Mar 26, 2013 2:28 pm

Excellent - thank you very much!

I guess - and like my beer brewing - you have doubts at first and then you plunge in head first and don't look back.

I'm doing the TPW as mentioned earlier and plan on ditching the first 150ml and jarring+tasting every 500ml thereafter, based on what I've read.

I'll calm my greedy urges and look to create about 1.5L 93%abv of the good stuff.

I'm also thinking of buying a 5l barrel and aging some whiskey in it - plus it will look great on my bar!

Excitement!

Can't thank you guys enough. And of course - any advice is still welcome on this thread.

by **Camikaze** » Tue Mar 26, 2013 2:50 pm

If you collect in 200ml lots, it'll be easier to distinguish your cuts - making for a cleaner/better tasting product. Water it down before you taste it otherwise you'll screw up your tastebuds before you've started. Go easy on the sniffing too, headache city right there.

Try airing your cuts for a day or so too. Does a neutral wonders. :handgestures-thumbupleft:

Good luck mate. Its a cracker of a hobby.

by **ddgg22** » Tue Mar 26, 2013 4:51 pm

Thanks for that. Doing tons of reading. Getting my mind fried too!
Looks like TPW and trying the homemade khalua recipe are my knew objectives.

:handgestures-thumbupleft:

by **DaveZ** » Tue Mar 26, 2013 4:53 pm

That home made Kahlua recipe is the bomb ;-)

welcome from another newbie slowly climbing the learning curve.

Cheers,
Dave.

by **googe** » Tue Mar 26, 2013 5:15 pm

If you use real coffee in that recipe its heaps better :handgestures-thumbupleft:

by **ddgg22** » Tue Mar 26, 2013 5:20 pm

Ground coffee? so do I brew the coffee and put in 1/2 cup (or whatever it was) of that brew instead of instant or just whack in the ground coffee and go??

by **BackyardBrewer** » Tue Mar 26, 2013 5:50 pm

ddgg22 wrote:Ground coffee? so do I brew the coffee and put in 1/2 cup (or whatever it was) of that brew instead of instant or just whack in the ground coffee and go??

Yes brew the coffee first, let it cool.

by **googe** » Tue Mar 26, 2013 6:19 pm

I use 2 espresso shots.

by **Cane Toad** » Tue Mar 26, 2013 6:53 pm

And I make mine about 40% ABV :D :D :whistle:

by **SBB** » Tue Mar 26, 2013 10:17 pm

Im presuming these new copper T500 columns work the same way as the old stainless jobs, If it does you will probably find that it will produce a better product if run at a slightly lower temp than the Manufacturer suggests.
In other words, the more water you put through it, the lower the temp and the slower the product leaves the still, slower means more reflux and better separation of the different fractions of the run, which in turn should make distinguishing the different cuts easier.

by **ddgg22** » Thu Mar 28, 2013 2:59 pm

http://www.brewerschoice.com.au/product ... enser.html

the above is exactly what I've got. The benefits - so I'm told is : better reflux and the ability to do sour mash and the other one I can't for the life of me think of now. (I'm at work!)

It's a bit more expensive,but I thought it worth while. The temp they suggest is 48-52 degrees C with an optimum reading of 49. So far so good.

The first 2 turbo's I ran where OK for what I did (collect way to much) but having said that, putting the spirit in carafes has done it wonders and it's "aging" well.
I've got my TWP on and it's bubbling away nicely, temp in melbourne has been crazy but I've insulated the fermenter in a doona and it's been hovering above 30.
Can't wait to taste the results.

by **googe** » Thu Mar 28, 2013 3:16 pm

Yeah its dropped like 10c since last night lol. I put some tpw down yesterday and then were going crazy in the heat, probably will be slowish by the time I get home from work lol.

by **ddgg22** » Thu Mar 28, 2013 3:21 pm

I've got a heat pad which is great for winter brewing - but I'm not using yet, only cause it's so gawd damn "melbourne" right now and I don't want to over cook it. HOw long does a TWP go for??? I'm banking on 7-10days......