Rock Filtering bonus

by **bt1** » Mon Jan 28, 2013 8:51 am

Howdy,

The newish perf plater includes a short EG/Crow rock filtering section which I use for all washes. Thinking is if it helps clean the spirit it's a bonus.

I've done about 6 or so runs, about 12 in total, without pulling the still apart as it gets flushed with clean water whilst warm after every run. These rocks where double long boiled and rinsed x 6 before being used and are the untreated barbeque genuine article.

Pulled it apart to inspect things and noticed a fairly strong tails / gunk smell of the volcanic rocks. I dumped rocks into a bucket of bicarb to clean up.

I was surprised at the shite that came off the volcanic rocks. It has a strong tails smell, dark, a slight blue/grey colour and has that film you get when cleaning up feints with bicarb for longer term storage we used to do years ago. Can't say exactly what it is but a punt would be sulphides and tails/wash contaminants.

I'm rather grateful for the filtering work the rock section does cos the spirit I'm getting is the best I've ever had and very tasty as well even at this early stage.

I'd suggest for the current rash of platers being built you might just want to consider a rock filtering section in your build, even if it's relatively short.

Heres a picy of the shite after just a few hours of soaking and it's not just discoloured... it's rank.

Image001.jpg

cheers
bt1

by **emptyglass** » Mon Jan 28, 2013 9:42 am

It goes to show all the crap we get in our final product that we don't know.

Good to see the rocks are working out for you. :handgestures-thumbupleft:

by **Brendan** » Mon Jan 28, 2013 3:32 pm

Here's my only concern with this bt/eg/crow...

When carbon filtering a neutral, you can remove a large part of the odours and flavours of congeners. However, their presence and effect at giving a mad hangover are still there in the spirit, only masked....(IIRC)

What is different about your rock filtering? Is this process merely stripping the flavour and odour of congeners while allowing them through for collection. When I carbon filtered, the change in spirit was identical to what you report bt, and washing the carbon would yield an identical result to the glass pictured.

My concern is, that if what I suggested is what is happening...then you are merely masking the congeners and making them unidentifiable for the purposes of cutting, and essentially collecting more heads and tails as hearts...and would be up for one hell of a hangover with your product...? :think:

by **googe** » Mon Jan 28, 2013 3:53 pm

Could you put your gin botanicals in the rock packing and run it like that for gin?.

by **emptyglass** » Mon Jan 28, 2013 4:57 pm

Sure can googe. You can leave the rock in there for a more pure spirit, or drop them out and just hang a gin basket in there.
If you made the support plate right, you could empty the rocks and slide the plate up a bit- instant botanical area, as big or as small as you want.

Brendan, this stuff is sort of experimental, so you will see all sorts of comments/findings. Its not the same as carbon filtering, the product made this way needs no further filtering, just like the big boys do.

by **bt1** » Tue Jan 29, 2013 6:45 am

Brendan,

I'm not filtering to change my cuts. my cuts are near identical regardless of rock section used or not. I've spend a lot of time checking cuts with a new still. This is where it varies from post run carbon treatment and being part of run process lower cost, and no additional process needed.

What I can say is the quality of what I retain is better, has less "bite".

For gins guys this would be a pain...tainting rock, gin ingredients running back into column, cleaning hassles ....I've made a caddy that slots in above the PC to avoid all this hassle... all ingredients, oils etc run straight out...learnt this on first gin run where used in column method I'd used in the past in pot still, I ended up with 1/2 a gin..rest stayed trapped in column.

bt1

by **Sam.** » Tue Jan 29, 2013 7:58 am

So you are using this on all your washes, not just nuetrel?

Wouldn't this be taking some of the flavor out of your flavored washes if it is acting similar to a carbon filter?

by **unsub** » Tue Jan 29, 2013 10:36 am

If it's not refluxed for too long it should still carry the flavour over even with the packed section.

by **emptyglass** » Tue Jan 29, 2013 5:03 pm

You probably wouldn't want to run whiskey or rum through the stones. You might retain some flavor, but its going to be a very light flavor left, if any. I made an accepable vodka from a rum wash. There was a hint of flavor left.

I didn't think about all the gin botanicals ending up back in the wash bt1, I should have as I read your comments on it.
Do you think there would be any advantage placing a gin basket after the bend?

by **bt1** » Tue Jan 29, 2013 6:32 pm

yeh EG

that's where it is on the downward track just prior to PC. That way all the goodies end up where they should...in your cut jars with reduced clean up effort.
It's your suggested mini plate section for 2" btw...

http://aussiedistiller.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=2115&start=80#p43708
just a fixed soldered in plate at the bottom...all 2.5mm holes which don't seem to clog up.

I guess Sam and it's only a guess that a longer section for rock would filter out flavours we want. Agree not for rum use. But for current wash 50% cracked corn, 50% pale malt rough grind as a sugar head and 8kg sugar in 55lt it's coming across very nice.
I won't have said anything if all I was getting was a half arsed set of cuts but it's truly very good even at this young age. It's very clean smelling in the aging jars.

cheers
bt1

by **emptyglass** » Tue Jan 29, 2013 9:27 pm

bt1 wrote:yeh EG

that's where it is on the downward track just prior to PC. That way all the goodies end up where they should...in your cut jars with reduced clean up effort.
It's your suggested mini plate section for 2" btw...

http://aussiedistiller.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=36&t=2115&start=80#p43708
just a fixed soldered in plate at the bottom...all 2.5mm holes which don't seem to clog up.

Looks sweet bt1
Just a thought, when you run vodka, you could fill the gin basket with some final filtering stones :mrgreen: .
I tried 3 plates with 1meter of stones, and 5 plates with 600mm stones. Both setups were equally good on vodka, but I'm still a bit undecided as which one was the best overall still. The 3 plate/1meter made a real fast flavor still with the packed section removed, with an abv closer to 80%for barreling, but I still like the nice clean flavor a 5 plate gives. I guess I'm trying to say I havn't noticed a difference between packed section lengths. There would naturally be a minimum length to give results.

by **Hill** » Mon Feb 18, 2013 10:38 am

Have you done anymore tests with this empty? I'm getting my packed section cut this week and just reading up on how long to make it.

by **crow** » Mon Feb 18, 2013 10:58 am

yes I want to try 600mm on 4 plate next, if I'm not 100% happy with that I will knock up a perf plate for the base :handgestures-thumbupleft: as some of you know I intend to test a different strata that I believe with give an even better result but i guess I should do scoria first so I have something to compare it to

by **blond.chap** » Mon Feb 18, 2013 11:14 am

Hey Hilly,

I'm not an expert, but I've got a 400mm 4" section with scoria and it seems to be working pretty well. With it and 3 plates I'm getting 93%, and with a TPW it's got no flavour coming over, makes a really good gin. I only made it that short because I had some spare 4".

by **Hill** » Mon Feb 18, 2013 11:18 am

Have decided to go a 500mm packed section, I figure its a good number.

by **bt1** » Mon Feb 18, 2013 11:46 am

This is all good news!

reckon the more ppl who try it the better. We'll get a good section of views on rock filtering.

Can say a run without a rock filtering section did one Sunday am don't smell as good straight after run with no airing time to me.

I'd really like to try small, new oak chips when I have a run free to play with.

cheers
bt1

by **Kimbo** » Mon Feb 18, 2013 12:08 pm

Correct me if I'm wrong here fellas, I recon with running a TPW thru a 3 plated bubbler without a packed section you will get a 93% spirit with no flavour anyway? :think:

by **blond.chap** » Mon Feb 18, 2013 12:14 pm

That may well be the case, haven't tried it yet, I'll report back after further testing.

by **crow** » Mon Feb 18, 2013 1:01 pm

yeah don't know about that, EG ran stuff though that 10 plate set up and well yeah it was vodka but it wasn't my idea of neutral though as in a hint of some flavour and a totally different mouth feel to neutral. it was almost like an ultra light white rum (can't think what they call that rummy vodka drink)

by **Kimbo** » Mon Feb 18, 2013 2:08 pm

crow wrote:yeah don't know about that, EG ran stuff though that 10 plate set up and well yeah it was vodka but it wasn't my idea of neutral though as in a hint of some flavour and a totally different mouth feel to neutral. it was almost like an ultra light white rum (can't think what they call that rummy vodka drink)

So that was a Molasses wash Crow? how D'ya recon a TPW would go, coz I've run a tpw thru my bubbler and it came out with stuff all flavour.
A molasses wash has a lot more flavour to begin with. :think:

I would be very interested to hear that one of you guys has done a side by side comparison with a 4 plater alone and then a 4 plater with a rock section :happy-partydance: