Islay Malt Shortcut

by **blond.chap** » Mon Apr 29, 2013 11:01 am

This idea started in another thread, but now I'm getting excited and think I'll give it a try.

I'm really keen to make an awesome heavy peat single malt whisky, and I'd like to use the bubbler to do it. I've got 3 issues:
- Peated malt is really expensive in Adelaide,
- I'm not happy with the phenol content available in peated malt here (10-15ppm at the most), I'd like about 50ppm
- I'm concerned that the bubbler is too efficient and won't carry over the phenolic compounds that give the nice smoky/peat flavour.

As phenol has a boiling point of 180degC, I'm guessing most of the classic Islay flavour comes from the addition of tails. This would potentially also explain why all of the Islay distilleries all use traditional inefficient pot stills. It would also explain why it needs to be aged for so long to taste any good.
Last time I tried using peated malt I didn't get any smoky flavour at all (possibly because I didn't use any tails).

So my proposed recipe for a 45L wash is as follows:
1. Mash 12 kg of standard malted barley with 30min rest at 40degC, and 60min rest at 62degC
2. Cool and ferment with S-04 Ale yeast
3. Place a gin bag full of peated malt above the RC
4. Run through the 4 plate bubbler
5. Age on charred oak

My hope here is to entrain some of those delicious phenols, while still getting a good pure product that will be drinkable after 3-6 months of aging.

I'd appreciate any thoughts or suggestions. The mash will likely be the weekend after next so I have some time to play with ideas. I'd particularly like feedback on:
- Is there any better way of getting some peated flavour into the whisky (if anyone says bacon I will :crying-blue: )
- Has anyone got a better recipe for an Islay style whisky
- Is this idea brilliant or totally stupid?

by **Hill** » Mon Apr 29, 2013 11:17 am

love the Idea mate, it will be good to see how it works out.
My thoughts
Is 12 kg of malt going to be enough, I'm guessing your going to get either 20L at 1070 or 1030-40 sparging and total vol 40 odd liters. Depending on your system i'd be aiming for 1070 og just taking your first runnings, meaning you would need up near 18 - 20 kg of grain. Do you use beersmith?
Id also have a rest at 55deg rather than 40deg or even as well as 40deg if you prefer.

by **Brendan** » Mon Apr 29, 2013 11:42 am

Very interesting concept Blondy :think: I love my mildly or non-peated malt whiskies, so I don't have this dilemma, but it is very interesting nonetheless.

Do you have any research behind this to suggest that any flavour will carry over from vapour-infusion with grain? I mean it works with plant matter, but they have more readily extracted oils. Because the peat smoke is absorbed by the grain, you just might have a shot at pulling it off ;-)

By the sounds of your taste, you just need a big clump or burnt peat in your gin basket! :teasing-neener:

by **blond.chap** » Mon Apr 29, 2013 12:02 pm

Hill wrote:Is 12 kg of malt going to be enough, I'm guessing your going to get either 20L at 1070 or 1030-40 sparging and total vol 40 odd liters. Depending on your system i'd be aiming for 1070 og just taking your first runnings, meaning you would need up near 18 - 20 kg of grain. Do you use beersmith?

I was mainly basing that on my beer brewing days, where I used 6kg per 20L. But you're right that's more like an overall OG of 1.05. I'll bump it up to around 18kg. Cheers mate

Hill wrote:Id also have a rest at 55deg rather than 40deg or even as well as 40deg if you prefer.

Quite right again, I was getting my protein and Beta Glucan rests mixed up. 55degC will be the first rest

Brendan wrote:Very interesting concept Blondy :think: I love my mildly or non-peated malt whiskies, so I don't have this dilemma, but it is very interesting nonetheless.
Do you have any research behind this to suggest that any flavour will carry over from vapour-infusion with grain? I mean it works with plant matter, but they have more readily extracted oils. Because the peat smoke is absorbed by the grain, you just might have a shot at pulling it off ;-)
By the sounds of your taste, you just need a big clump or burnt peat in your gin basket! :teasing-neener:

No real research to speak of Brendan, just a pet theory. From what I understand the peat smoke is adsorbed rather than absorbed, so I would have though it would be even easier to remove than from plant matter, and hot ethanol is a pretty great solvent after all. My only concern in this regard is whether the phenols will be too heavy and won't want to carry over. But theory can only take you so far, and experimentation is more fun.

by **Brendan** » Mon Apr 29, 2013 12:07 pm

I think you are correct with 'adsorbed'. Hey if they are too heavy, make another gin basket to go before the PC, so that they fall down...you might get some more crap than you want though too, but nothing a filter couldn't remove.

by **blond.chap** » Mon Apr 29, 2013 1:49 pm

Sounds like a plan, I'll try some of the early stuff and if it's not getting any of the flavour then might move the peated malt above the PC.

by **Hill** » Mon Apr 29, 2013 2:50 pm

It will be really interesting to see how much flavor comes out doing it this way, I can tell you the scotch i did viewtopic.php?f=25&t=3324 got a really nice flavor from the peated malt, if this way doesn't work give my recipe a go, I added it up and its about $8 a liter, still cheaper than store brought stuff.

by **blond.chap** » Mon Apr 29, 2013 8:51 pm

Will do Hill, BTW I feel like you and I have come full circle, in that thread I suggested you used a 50deg rest.

by **emptyglass** » Mon Apr 29, 2013 8:56 pm

I hearda rumor years ago that Glenfiddich bubbled the peat smoke through the whiskey itself.
Dont know if its relavent or not, or true or not.

by **blond.chap** » Mon Apr 29, 2013 9:26 pm

WineGlass wrote:I hearda rumor years ago that Glenfiddich bubbled the peat smoke through the whiskey itself.
Dont know if its relavent or not, or true or not.

That is an interesting rumour, I'd have 2 issues with trying that myself, 1 is I can't find any peat km the second is you'd need to bubble it through 65% before ageing, and I'd worry about setting it on fire. Would be easy if I could suss those though.

by **Brendan** » Mon Apr 29, 2013 10:35 pm

I realise this probably won't help, but Tasmania is basically our Scotland. If you know anyone there, there is an abundance of peat bogs that they can dig up and mail to you :shifty:

by **blond.chap** » Mon Apr 29, 2013 10:41 pm

Brendan wrote:I realise this probably won't help, but Tasmania is basically our Scotland. If you know anyone there, there is an abundance of peat bogs that they can dig up and mail to you :shifty:

Unfortunately I know absolutely no one in Tasmania, if any Tassie members want to dig up some dirt and mail it to me, please let me know.

by **emptyglass** » Mon Apr 29, 2013 10:47 pm

Tassie stiller (der) and JayD are both down that way, and there is a few more.

There are peat bogs down Colac way in Vic, but some of them are perpetually on fire.

Bubbling smoke through strong spirit shouldn't be dangerous, smoke can be cool. If you havn't heard of a bong, I ain't going to tell you about it.
Might be a bit of a trick to rig up somethig to do it, but I still don't know if its true they do it that way.

by **Sam.** » Mon Apr 29, 2013 10:52 pm

Reckon there might be one or two.... As for the peat it is used in Scotland to dry the malt! Not used anywhere else, not sure where you want to go there....

by **Brendan** » Mon Apr 29, 2013 10:57 pm

sam_and_liv wrote:Reckon there might be one or two.... As for the peat it is used in Scotland to dry the malt! Not used anywhere else, not sure where you want to go there....

Blondy's being innovative and hoping for a miracle :-D

If you got peat Blondy, you prob would just be better off smoking a pile of grain yourself!

by **emptyglass** » Mon Apr 29, 2013 10:59 pm

sam_and_liv wrote:Reckon there might be one or two.... As for the peat it is used in Scotland to dry the malt! Not used anywhere else, not sure where you want to go there....

I'm not sure either.

by **blond.chap** » Mon Apr 29, 2013 11:00 pm

That is true, but the neighbours might complain about the smelly fire in the yard.

I'm not sure either for the record.

by **Brendan** » Mon Apr 29, 2013 11:01 pm

WineGlass wrote:I hearda rumor years ago that Glenfiddich bubbled the peat smoke through the whiskey itself.
Dont know if its relavent or not, or true or not.

I think this is where he's going, or thinking of going...

by **blond.chap** » Mon Apr 29, 2013 11:04 pm

Not exactly, I'm thinking of passing ethanol vapour through peated malt. Just an experiment, it'll just get rerun if it's no good.

by **emptyglass** » Mon Apr 29, 2013 11:21 pm

Brendan wrote:
WineGlass wrote:I hearda rumor years ago that Glenfiddich bubbled the peat smoke through the whiskey itself.
Dont know if its relavent or not, or true or not.

I think this is where he's going, or thinking of going...

Yeah, roger that houston.
You were on to it before with the suggestion of the peaty junk in the downward path of the P.C., Brendan. It cant escape that way.
Don't know how sucessful or unsucessful it would be. Your at the cutting edge here blonde. We'll all learn happily from your experiments.