TPW headache

[Milky]

So... No matter how well I cut my TPW after running it through my pure distilling Reflux, I get a nasty headache after drinking the results.

Both a mate and i have the same problem. (And he is even in another state but has the same gear. He had only just changed to TPW from turbo. I've never done a turbo. Always TPW in the 5 weeks I've had my still.)

Last night I drank 300ml that was soaking on spirits unlimited JD Chips for 4 weeks & I wake up this morning with a headache. I don't get a headache when drinking this amount of grog when I buy store bought alcohol.

I used filtered tap water in all my washes & also when diluting all results.

All my gear was Squeaky clean & the copper column is washed with fresh filtered water after every run.

Any thoughts?

[Milky]

Oh, final dilution of the soaked spirit was 38 percent. Soaked it at 40 percent.

[bt1]

Howdy,

don't know your still so won't comment on that but

I'd strongly suggest you stop drinking it until we sort this out asap cos that sounds like methanol contamination for mine...err on the side of caution here bloke for health's sake.

bt1

[tipsy]

How are you doing your cuts?

[Urrazeb]

Couple of thoughts.

How many washes have you done? Its possible you were too generous with the heads a few times in a row and still haven't mastered the cuts.

I know different still and different wash but my last run I cut FROM jar #20 to #32

Also what temps are you fermenting at?

[BackyardBrewer]

I have the same still, and it sounds like your cuts are still not harsh enough and there may have been an issue with the quality of your wash? Also if there wasn't enough coolant going into the still to reflux the vapour properly you'd find a pretty harsh spirit at the end of the run - how's your coolant?

Or - did you just drink too much at too high an ABV? Are you sure it's all 40%? Test the temp to correct it to 20º.


I am brutal on my cuts and I am always in awe of people here who say their gear never gives them a hangover. I suspect they aren't trying hard enough! 8-} I don't usually drink until I'm blind, but I can assure you if I suck back enough of my gear I can still wake up with a headache/hangover...Never as bad as a store bought hangover, but enough booze will always dehydrate you and that can be the cause of the headache.

Last night I drank 300ml that was soaking on spirits unlimited JD Chips for 4 weeks & I wake up this morning with a headache.

That's 10 standard units of booze - any chance that 10 drinks might be the cause?

So - is it the wash? is it the cuts? is it too much consumption?

As bt1 said I would be stopping the consumption of this batch as of now. Re-run it with your next tpw.

[blond.chap]

Oh, final dilution of the soaked spirit was 38 percent. Soaked it at 40 percent.

Just on another note (as others have covered your hangover pretty well), you're better off having it sit on oak at around 65%, then water down at drinking time.

[crow]

Ok bud I have the same still so its not the still and if you have followed the recipe that ain't it either. So time for a bit more imfo, how are you doing your cuts , do you have an alcometer and if you do at what ABV% are you drinking it at. Say at 74% 300 mls you have drank the equivalent of 600 mls (almost a bottle) of your average store bought spirit (37%)

[Milky]

Ok, I appreciate all the posts so far so here is some more info based on the posts above.

I have put on 2 x 27 litre TPW’s and 1 x 60 litre TPW, of which all have been run. I haven’t run the Turbo that came with my Still.

All washes were left for 14 days to clear. (I can post the amounts of Tomato Paste/Lowans Yeast/Sugar when I get home as it is in my book in the shed)

All washes were at a stable 23 degrees C during the 14 days.

Yeast was pitched when wash was at 30 degrees C

Coolant flow was at 1 litre per minute from the garden hose.

I wont rule out consumption completely before more testing at a lower amounts in the future(of other spirit as I have “Quarantined” all the product I have made). I have had 300mls Little over half a bottle 700ml) of Jack Daniels, Jim Beam, Makers Mark, Captain Morgans, Gentleman Jack, Wild Turkey, Wild Turkey Rare Breed and am a seasoned drinker and I don’t get head aches after drink this amount with these brands. So this is why it has left me stumped.

Cuts
At the moment my cuts experience is pretty limited. I have tried to be brutal.

I have 10 x 900ml jam jars which I use. I usually take 200mlish in each jar after discarding 250mls of Fores (approx). I air it all for 48hrs then sniff and also taste on the lips with mixing with water on a teaspoon via a 20ml syringe(syringe filled with water to put water on the teaspoon).I rank the jars approx Heads, Hearts & Tails. I’ve been putting heads and tails in a 5 litre demijohn watered down to 40 Percent at approx 18 degrees in the kitchen. I’ve been watering down the hearts in another 5 litre demijohn to 40 percent at 18 degrees in the kitchen. If a jar is too rank I turf it into a feints jar.

I dilute my spirit with filtered tap water. I mix my washes with filtered tap water.

I’ve been taking product at roughly the following temps;

77.8C
78.3C
78.2C
78.3C

Then when temp raises 1 total degree I switch it off.

Hearts ABV after airing, cuts & before dilution, has been at approx 93 Percent every time.
Heads & Tails ABV after airing, cuts & before dilution, has been approx 91 percent most times.


I measured ABV of spirit that was soaking as I was bottling it ant it measured up at 38 percent at 18 degrees in the kitchen.

So questions I now have;

Are my cuts jars too big?
Am I taking enough cuts through the run?
Is my ferment temp to hi/low?
Is the time I am leaving the ferment before running too long?(usually they ferment out in 4-8 days)
Is my coolant flow too low for the Pure Distilling Reflux Column?
Am I actually mixing in heads with my hearts and not realising?
Is there anymore info I can give you all to help me out?
Is the temp I take my ABV in the kitchen too low/hi?


Is there anything else I can tell you?

[Camikaze]

When you add the hearts to these 5L demis mate, are you mixng it with previous runs or is it a fresh demi for each run? Could be contaminating your hooch if it a combination of runs in the demi. 1 bad batch will spoil the lot..

You mixin up the feints demi with the hearts demi?? That'll do it every time. :))

:think:

[crow]

Well that settles it , it is your cuts. I am also a pretty seasoned drinker and I get a headache pretty easily. I use to get hungover pretty much every Saturday and from there it can easily turn into a migraine> I am yet to have my first hangover directly contributed to my liquor :handgestures-thumbupleft:

[Milky]

When you add the hearts to these 5L demis mate, are you mixng it with previous runs or is it a fresh demi for each run? Could be contaminating your hooch if it a combination of runs in the demi. 1 bad batch will spoil the lot..

You mixin up the feints demi with the hearts demi?? That'll do it every time. :))

:think:

Ahhhh.......I have been putting the hearts from each run in with the hearts from previous runs in the one 5 litre demi.

I have the feints demi green taped up with texta "Feints DO NOT DRINK" written all over it. HAHA! I'm paranoid about that one!!!!

[Milky]

Well that settles it , it is your cuts. I am also a pretty seasoned drinker and I get a headache pretty easily. I use to get hungover pretty much every Saturday and from there it can easily turn into a migraine> I am yet to have my first hangover directly contributed to my liquor :handgestures-thumbupleft:

I very rarely get a headache. Only on all-nighters or mixing beer with spirits.

Well I guess I'll have to get more jars, more patience and more practice at this if I will have any hope of doing a Macstill whiskey wash/run!

So, more jars, less amounts in them from the run and more time airing????????

[Sam.]

What volume of hearts do you keep compared to how much you deem feints?

[Milky]

I'd have to look at my book at home but last run I kept approx 750ml of hearts @93% and 1.2L Feints @91%

[Bushy]

I see you got a bubbler on the way. Once that gets here there will be no more questions about headaches mate. I just dip me spoon into the stream for the first couple of pints. Heads heads heads BANG hearts hearts hearts. Monkey could do it. :handgestures-thumbupleft:

[Linny]

Do you double distill ??

[Milky]

No Linny, just using the reflux column.

Haven't tried a proper run on the pot Condenser yet.

[Linny]

Use the Pot to strip the wash down to 20%, then chuck the reflux on .... miles of difference :handgestures-thumbupleft:

[Milky]

Thanks Linny. I'll give that a go on the next run.

In the meantime do just run all of what I've flavoured on chips and unflavoured back in the boiler at no more than 40 percent? To at least salvage some?