Aussiedistiller, Home Distilling, Moonshine, Home Brew

After reading through most of this discussion I figured I just had to try this. Put my first batch down yesterday. Small to have a go at it first up, just 9L total wash, 1.1L Molassas (bundaberg, expensive I know but easy to get for my first batch) and 1.1Kg sugar. OG of 1.100. I decided to pitch angel red label yeast as I'm trying that for my 4th batch whiskey run, pitched at 38C with about 3 inches headroom and I needed every inch (that's what she said). AFter 1 hour it was close to hitting the lid of the fermenter.

No mess though, within 2 hours it was just bubbling away with little to no head. Curious to see how the angel yeast goes with the rum and if it'll do fine with a second generation or more. Thanks for all great advice, this thread has made my first batch so much easier!

Third generation in, each subsequent generation has a much higher OG and final SG, I assume this is the unfermentable sugars going through the batches.

I haven't been able to re-use my yeast at all, I find that I put my mix back into the batch at 28C and it's just silent. Someone suggested some cool water on top of my yeast sludge will keep it happy while I brew up my next batch, I'll be trying that this time to see if it helps, gen 3 should be ready for the still tomorrow.

I am going to put this batch away on some apple wood I bought, I've toasted it medium and I'm charring half of it before I add it in. I've heard it can add a little fruity flavour, fingers crossed it comes out tasty.

I reuse my yeast by leaving an inch or 2 of wash in the fermenter on top of the yeast bed and when I start the next generation I scoop out a jug of the yeast bed from the bottom and put it aside, dump molasses in the fermenter, dissolve it with the hot backset in the boiler from the last run, add water, get it to pitching temperature and I then just dump the jug back into the fermenter and it takes off within a few hours.

Anyone know of a recipe that comes out like bumbu? That stuff is liquid gold! Fairly sweet, candy banana, caramel, vanilla flavours. Not sure if it’s flavoured after the fact or they use a certain yeast to bring out the banana?

unsub wrote:I reuse my yeast by leaving an inch or 2 of wash in the fermenter on top of the yeast bed and when I start the next generation I scoop out a jug of the yeast bed from the bottom and put it aside, dump molasses in the fermenter, dissolve it with the hot backset in the boiler from the last run, add water, get it to pitching temperature and I then just dump the jug back into the fermenter and it takes off within a few hours.

Thanks for the advice I'll give this a shot. I've been drawing off the top until I have only about a couple of mill on top of the cake. The Red Label yeast I've been using is great but perhaps it needs a little more tender are. I'll try this next.

Bustah wrote:Anyone know of a recipe that comes out like bumbu? That stuff is liquid gold! Fairly sweet, candy banana, caramel, vanilla flavours. Not sure if it’s flavoured after the fact or they use a certain yeast to bring out the banana?

I checked their website and it may be the combination of using cane juice instead of molasses and their "secret" yeast plus how they ferment it.

I tried adding some water to the yeast cake after draining the yeast, it was about 25C, still no activity.

Perhaps it's the Angel Red I'm using?

unsub wrote:

Bustah wrote:Anyone know of a recipe that comes out like bumbu? That stuff is liquid gold! Fairly sweet, candy banana, caramel, vanilla flavours. Not sure if it’s flavoured after the fact or they use a certain yeast to bring out the banana?

I checked their website and it may be the combination of using cane juice instead of molasses and their "secret" yeast plus how they ferment it.

Thanks for the detective work! Seems like that idea's out the window, from what i've read it's almost impossible to get cane juice if you're not in QLD :laughing-rolling:

See if you can find jaggery, I think it's dehydrated cane juice.

Hi

I completed my first batch of rum with 3.5L feed grade molasses and 2.5kg brown sugar. The wash stopped bubbling and there was no sign of activity so I left it for another week before doing a stripping run. I have an Ultra Low density 2400w element. After the stripping run I got 5.5L at 45% however my element was caked in sediment that took a lot of soaking and cleaning to remove.

To stop the caking of sediment on the element could I,

1. Use a clearing agent on wash or let it sit longer
2. Run the element on lower power.

Or could it be the molasses I’m using.

Thoughts.

I suspect like my George Washington all grain too many particulates came out in the wash, they must be filtered out to stop the scorching on the element. I learnt my lesson.

After some input of anyone if this thread is still getting some views.

Ive been doing a MacRum Recipie but having to re pitch the yeast to get the fermet active again each time.
I know that this is not the usual done thing but it wont kick off once ive put everything back in.
My Method completed:

-added 15L of hot backset into a fresh fermenter
-Added 6L Stockfeed Molasses, 6KG Raw sugar, 5L water and mixed it all up to combine
-Temp was 38-40 Degrees
-Added DAP and Epsomsalts
-Added 7L slops from old Macrum Ferment and topped up with water to get to 50L
-PH was 4.8
5 Hours later no action...
I then hydrated and pitched 80Grams of Lowans and BANG shes off again.
Any advice why the generation is not kicking off itself without the added need for the re pitching of Yeast?

THanks to all in advance

Coastie wrote:After some input of anyone if this thread is still getting some views.

Ive been doing a MacRum Recipie but having to re pitch the yeast to get the fermet active again each time.
I know that this is not the usual done thing but it wont kick off once ive put everything back in.
My Method completed:

-added 15L of hot backset into a fresh fermenter
-Added 6L Stockfeed Molasses, 6KG Raw sugar, 5L water and mixed it all up to combine
-Temp was 38-40 Degrees
-Added DAP and Epsomsalts
-Added 7L slops from old Macrum Ferment and topped up with water to get to 50L
-PH was 4.8
5 Hours later no action...
I then hydrated and pitched 80Grams of Lowans and BANG shes off again.
Any advice why the generation is not kicking off itself without the added need for the re pitching of Yeast?

THanks to all in advance

i think the amount of acidic dunder (not hot backset) is too much for 2nd ferment in that recipe, especially combined with acidic slops.
i'm guessing that PH would be your problem, addition of chicken grit/oyster shell would help the PH crashing.
i know the recipe calls for 10l of dunder in a 25L wash, but i only use 4/5L now.
i did a small experiment some time ago, see attached.....

Thankyou Howard Ill try this on the next ferment.

Ill reduce the old trub and addd an oyster Shell. Ill let you know how I go :text-thankyoublue:

Its happily bubbling away downstairs so ill keep an eye on it and re asses on the next run.

Coastie wrote:Thankyou Howard Ill try this on the next ferment.

Ill reduce the old trub and addd an oyster Shell. Ill let you know how I go :text-thankyoublue:

Its happily bubbling away downstairs so ill keep an eye on it and re asses on the next run.

NB if i do it this way with dunder & trub, it's the dunder i've reduced from 10L to 4/5L, not the trub.
although 7L of trub is a lot TBH.
after syphoning into the boiler, i only have about 2-3L of trub left.

Iam looking at a 50L ferment so i was trying to double the quantities.

How much Trub are you using? are you sugesting that i move away from using the old trub? I was under the impression that that was where all the additional flavours and old yeast settled to?

Simple answer is to work out what ph the yeast will tolerate and adjust trub/backset usage down to there.

Everyone's water and molly are different unfortunately so there really are no set ratio's you can use

Have a search for ph buffers

I made a single generation of this rum when i only had an airstill, but i had a cheap alcometer that stuffed up and read far too high, so i thought i was oak-ageing 3l at 65% and it turns out I am actually only ageing 3 l at 50%. Should i keep ageing it at 50% or throw it in with the finished cuts from my next 4 generations that i am working on now, and oak it at 65% instead as recommended?

It has only been about 6 weeks, so i am not losing good aged product if i decide to throw it all in together.

Puk

I would leave it as is and see how it goes , 50% isn’t too bad for aging .
A lot of Facebook users are aging at 40% cos they know no better

Thanks Stig,
It is already starting to show some improvement, so i am 6 weeks closer to drinking rum than I would have been if i had to throw it in with this new batch. :)