Pure distilling reflux + TPW questions

[bcg1976]

Hi Guys,

Have done two runs with my Pure Distilling reflux with TPW.

Procedure has been as follows, heat around 23 litres of wash up to 50degC, turn water on. Open tap at 78degC. Collect 200ml and discard. Then collect 200ml each in around 10 jars until temperate hits 82degC.

My nose is terrible and I can't really tell the difference between heads, tails and hearts right now. I certainly have not seen any strong smells in the last jars. I was expecting wet dog, burnt cardboard etc but it doesn't seem too bad. The first jar smells sweeter and slightly "tomatoey" to me. But 2 though 10 really don't smell like much of anything. Have also cut with water to smell again - same thing for me.

The TPW had been brewed and left to clear for quite a while. Alcometer on the tpw after brew and clear was slightly on the high side of 10% ABV. After stilling the %age around 94.

Can anyone with experience with this breed of reflux still give me some pointers here? Which jars would you guess are going to be hearts?

Thanks,
Brad

[Sam.]

Have you had a taste of each jar watered down to 40%?

If you can't smell it properly your taste may be better

[bcg1976]

I have. Again, not a lot of difference for me apart from jar 1.

Anyone with a Pure distilling still and a TPW want to share their temps / jar numbers. That will do me until my palate improves.

[BackyardBrewer]

I haven't run mine in a while but if you're feeling your pallet or nose is off then let me suggest this. You should be turfing jar #1 into your feints jar after taking 200mls of fores no mater what it smells like. Just as likely jar #2 should go into the feints jar. Now you're almost certainly covered for heads.

Next if you start at 78º and switch off at 79º then I would not even bother collecting after about 78.75-78.8 just don't even bother trying to figure out where the tails start, just keep it all with the first two jars and when you have a decent amount do a feints run, watered down to 40%.

So now you're almost certainly looking at a much cleaner run. The secret here is to never be greedy. Turf more into your feints jar than you think and you get it back anyway when you run again.

If you collect past 79 right into the 80's you'll still be getting booze out at around 80% abv but it will stink. You will suddenly know what tails smell like if you choose to run a little deeper into your tails.

[Bushy]

Hey BCG,
I used to think it all tastes the same. But if you stick with it it gets easier. These days the heads are like a smack in the face.
Drink a bit of someones store bought. Smack in the face
Stay with it mate.

[bcg1976]

Next if you start at 78º and switch off at 79º then I would not even bother collecting after about 78.75-78.8 just don't even bother trying to figure out where the tails start, just keep it all with the first two jars and when you have a decent amount do a feints run, watered down to 40%.

At a guess, how much would you have collected between 78.0 - 78.8?

[SBB]

I used to think it all tastes the same. But if you stick with it it gets easier. These days the heads are like a smack in the face

My nose aint flash after 40 plus years of smoking, but I have learned and it does become much easier.
The other thing is you may have run to fast and smeared your cuts, cant say that for sure as im unfamiliar with those stills.
Nother option is to find a helper whose nose works properly for a second opinion.

[BackyardBrewer]

At a guess, how much would you have collected between 78.0 - 78.8?

Varies every time. Depends on the wash, the ambient air temp, coolant flow...all these things make a difference.

From a 10% wash the most alcohol present is 2.5L total in a 25L wash...and you never get every drop out of the wash.

So if you pulled 2.2L - 1.8L total you'd be doing well.

If you kept 1.6L after cuts on a 2L haul that would give you 3.8L of 40% booze. I'd be happy with that.

[BackyardBrewer]

The other thing is you may have run to fast and smeared your cuts, cant say that for sure as im unfamiliar with those stills.
Nother option is to find a helper whose nose works properly for a second opinion.

These stills are fixed take off rate, no way to speed it up or slow it down.

And yeah a second opinion is a good idea.

Just be brutal and turf plenty off the top and tail of the run Nd don't be greedy and you'll get a good neutral haul off these stills ...until you graduate to a bubbler :-)

[bcg1976]

Thanks for the info. At this stage, whilst I'm generally across the theory, it's good to know the rules of thumb in practice. Especially when it comes to the actual bit of kit that I am using.

[Sam.]

You said it didn't smell or taste bad :think:

Just chuck out what you think should be the heads and keep the rest and drink if you like the taste :handgestures-thumbupleft:

Or keep a jar of what you think might be heads and water back and drink that to find out :laughing-rolling:

[edman80]

hi mate I have the same kit as u do im brutal I just stop wen the % change even a little, had said that, last nite I squeezed it to 78
I wouldn't bother much after that...long live the still ^:)^

[bcg1976]

hi mate I have the same kit as u do im brutal I just stop wen the % change even a little, had said that, last nite I squeezed it to 78
I wouldn't bother much after that...long live the still ^:)^

You stopped at 78 degC???

[edman80]

yes,, my still usally hovers around 73- 74 deg c

[Sam.]

I bet if you both stuck your thermometers in the same boiling water they would read a few degrees out from each other ;-)

[edman80]

I wouldn't be supprised :-B

[BackyardBrewer]

It's also the ambient air temp and the cooling temp of the water that affects those numbers on your thermo. I think it's about figuring out what your "normal" is for the temp as a gauge rather than the defining thing about these stills.

[Sam.]

Exactly, figure out where your sweet spot is then all your worried about is when it starts fluctuating