Yellow Wash

[Tiger Lily]

Started my first wash last Wednesday week. I don't have a special cupboard for it so just had it on a towel on the kitchen floor. I am in Sydney and find the weather warm so didn't think I would need warming pads or any special treatment for it. Perhaps that was my first mistake. I used Turbo Yeast. It was what my HBS guy flopped on the counter for me and said it was best

3 days later (Saturday) the airlock had stopped bubbling but (from what I had read and been told) I was expecting fermentation to take 7-10 days. At this point I took the lid off, gave it a vigorous stir and wrapped it up in blankets. The airlock started bubbling again but very intermittently. I also took a hydrometer reading in a test tube which read 990

I let it be for another 4 days. Took more readings. Still 990. On the Thursday morning (which was a total of 7.5 days) I added the Turbo Clear Part A. At this point the wash was already clear. I left this for an hour then added Part B. Before I went to bed I checked it and it looked ok. The next morning (24 hours after adding Part B) the wash had turned yellow. Very yellow! I rang Dave at my local HB shop and he said to run it anyway. There were small clusters of bubbles on top which he said was probably escaping gas so I bit the bullet and ran it through the still.

This is my first question. Yellow wash? Why did it turn yellow? It looked like urine after taking tons of vitamin C

Bear with me please :)

[Kimbo]

Hi TL,
I' not an expert on Turbos, but i recon it may have been stressed yeast causing the issue.
My advice is:
run it, filter it and do a Tomato Paste wash :handgestures-thumbupleft:

[Tiger Lily]

I did run it :-D

From a 25L wash I ended up with about 3.2L of spirit. I did waste a lot. I wasn't sure how much sedimentation would be on the bottom of the fermenter so I wasted quite a LOT until I saw just a bit of brown sludge on the bottom. Oh well, you live and learn. I had no clue about "cuts" etc and just followed the directions for the super reflux. I DID toss out the first 150ml of the bad stuff though

I didn't like the smell of the end product either. Hard to describe. A bit like metho but not quite.

I flavoured it immediately and the rum tasted great but the bourbon was supposed to be akin to JD. Pppfffttt. Not close lol

2 days later though ie today. It tastes and smells a LOT better so I must have done something right

[Tiger Lily]

I am not sure what stressed yeast is sorry

[Kimbo]

Well done TL,
glad it went well for ya :handgestures-thumbupleft:

[MacStill]

I am not sure what stressed yeast is sorry

Yeast when driven to extremes such as high alcohol content of the wash can give off tastes, smells & possibly discolor a wash, we here as hobby stillers try to make the best possible booze we can by keeping our little farting friends (yeast) as happy as they can be, by providing them with a comfortable environment to do their thing in.

Happy yeast & a good recipe such as TPW found here http://aussiedistiller.com.au/viewtopic.php?f=32&t=8#p11 used with good distilling practices can provide you with a better than excellent product :handgestures-thumbupleft:

[dillsandwitch]

defiantly go with the tomato past wash next time. less worrys and way less smell. :D

not sure if this is right but maybe cause it was already clear after adding the clearing agent that it did something to make it yellow. :?

[Tiger Lily]

The "taste" and "smell' have dissipated over the last 2 days so I think I am on the right track

Still wondering why my wash turned yellow after adding Turbo Clear Part B though

[NotBenStiller]

The "taste" and "smell' have dissipated over the last 2 days so I think I am on the right track

Still wondering why my wash turned yellow after adding Turbo Clear Part B though

I have only ever done 1 turbo wash - and IIRC yes it was a weird yellowish colour once the the tuboclear stuff had done their job. It's prolly something to do with the fuel grade turbo yeast shitting in your wash more than an effect of the turboclear :))

But then a TPW is pinkish but you don't use finings at all.
WPOSW is yellowish as well but no finings are used either - they both come out as great product

[wedwards]

yeah that yellow colour is "normal" for a cleared turbo wash. I reckon it's caused by light refractions coming off the settled crap on the bottom of the fermenter after you put the second part in it. That's just a guess though - I honestly have no idea what I'm talking about ;)

[petes]

The "taste" and "smell' have dissipated over the last 2 days so I think I am on the right track

Still wondering why my wash turned yellow after adding Turbo Clear Part B though

Fair enough.....keep in mind tho' the wisdom imparted here; try a TPW.
HBS's ALWAYS push turbos to people who come looking for help. There are better choices.

You've probably figured now too that when the hydo reads 990, that's as far as it's going to go.
You can clear it then or filter and run it.

[Tiger Lily]

Thanks for all the info. You guys are so much more helpful and friendly here. I want to master the pleb basics before I think about a TPW but I am certainly considering that down the track a bit and have been reading up on it

I am ready to do a second run but I think I need to put a tax on bottles. They sure disappear fast!

[NotBenStiller]

Thanks for all the info. You guys are so much more helpful and friendly here. I want to master the pleb basics before I think about a TPW but I am certainly considering that down the track a bit and have been reading up on it

I am ready to do a second run but I think I need to put a tax on bottles. They sure disappear fast!

Well... if you've read about a TPW then you can run a TPW - skip the pleb basics (turboclear and carbon filtering) and go straight to the proper basics (don't stress the yeast, take good cuts etc)

I reckon it'll be better and easier to learn more of the basics on TPW - it's hell of a lot cheaper to make so any fuckups won't hurt the hip pocket as much.
Screw up a turbo and it's the cost of the sugar PLUS the 10-12 bucks for the overpriced yeast wasted.
:handgestures-thumbupleft:

[SBB]

skip the pleb basics (turboclear and carbon filtering) and go straight to the proper basics

+1 on that :handgestures-thumbupleft:
Jump in at the deep end and do a TPW...you will never look back