2nd Gin Run

[Wellsy]

Hey Guys
did a 2 litre odin's gin run 2 weeks ago with rave reviews. Super clean super citrusy. it was amazingly good.
So i thought i would simply double the recipe and make twice as much. I believe i had everything the same but this batch is a cloudy and the other wasnt, i know that can bean issue so not diluting as much fixes that issue. The big issue is it is no where near as good and I am trying to figure out why.
the smell is different, you can smell the citrus but it is not clean and crisp it is slightly off. The taste is not as good as the lovely crisp citrus is gone and the citrus left is one that is slightly dirty, i know that sounds weird, but it is the simplest way to describe it.
I suspect I may have rushed the peeling of the oranges and limes and taken a little too much pith with the lime skin.
Has anybody else had this issue or know if i am on the right track. did I run the still too fast, it was running at a couple of drips a second which i thought was where i was last time but we all know what thought thought.
Thanks in advance

[RuddyCrazy]

It's all a part of learning mate :handgestures-thumbupleft: like when you said the licorice root run stole your taste buds when I did my run it came out close to purfect. So be anal with preparation make sure you give it time for maceration shaking/stirring every few days and most important a very slow spirit run. With my run in my 2" pot still yesterday I had a drip a second coming off so a very slow run to get the best out of the wash.

Just remember one simple rule

You only get out what you put in

So don't rush things just because your too keen as thats the easiest way to stuffup.

there is a saying in the distilling world

Just hurry up and wait

So when it comes to macerations be methodical in the preparation and make sure above all you are fully switched on when running it.

Cheers Bryan

[Wellsy]

Thanks Bryan
I definitely did not stir each day with this second batch. I can not be certain I gave the fruit a good wash before peeling either. I have already got another batch on prepared much the same way but I will stir that and run really slow.
I will get some more fruit and get anal in the preparation and see what I need to do to replicate the first batch I did.
I suspect I got cocky and thought you could not get things wrong. Lesson learned there
Thanks again

[Carol]

Hi Wellsy
Taste could be from differences in the citrus fruit. I make gin extract ( Zymurgy Bob) so I can't help with Odin's easy gin. I peeled and air dried orange skin for later use ( and ate the oranges). I got some oranges from my neighbour and some from the supermarket. Some were juicier than others and some were "orangier" than others. At the time I did not make notes of which was which.
How much citrus was in the current batch compared to the last batch?
Cheers
Carol

[Wellsy]

My first batch was 2 litres and second was 4 litres so I simply doubled the citrus.
First batch was a orange and a lime, second was 2 of each.

[Carol]

Fruit was from the same batch?
Less fresh fruit can have a different taste.

[howard]

the actual peel can be so different in flavour.
my early gin attempts i used local mandarin, then they went out of season.
when they re-appeared on the shelves months later, they were imported from USA, not much flavour in the peel.
same thing happens with different oranges.
just one more thing to keep us on our toes :mad:
i have chew on the peel now, to try and check citrustiness (new word)
i have ordered a citrusometer from fleabay :smile:

[Wellsy]

All fruit from our own tree, not sure how ripe the limes are, I will keep better notes so that I control all I can control

We have both Valencia and naval oranges, I am expecting the naval to be a little sweeter but have only used the Valencia so far

[Lesgold]

Hi Wellsy,

Just a thought but did you take the peel out before running the second batch? If you didn’t, that could be the problem.

[Wellsy]

Yes Lesgold, I strained everything out before distilling.

We will just start again and see what happens in 2 weeks time. I am letting the angels drink heavily of this batch to see if that helps but am thinking it will be redistilled to see if I can get it back to a clean spirit.

In my opinion mistakes are for learning from not for being forced to drink , if it goes down the drain so be it.
I will give it time to see if it improves at all.

[Wellsy]

Thanks for your help on this guys.
I took the easiest of options and let the angels have a sip for a week and the smell has gone and more importantly so has the faint off taste. I am still convinced I got cocky and thought I could rush things. This is definitely a hobby that needs time and love what ever stage we are at.
I will know for sure in a week when I run my next batch