Airstills - Banter me hearties!!

[crow]

1984 ah yeah, Prolly the yr I started....... :shock: wait umm nothing

[Bushy]

1984 ah yeah, Prolly the yr I started....... :shock: wait umm nothing

Hah. Started rippin the top off it?

[kiwikeg]

The old bird up the road has had a airstill for years, sits the on the bench in her home unit next to the kambrook breadmaker,
She's been happly making her vodka and gin for years no real cuts just carbon filters and flavors with essences.
Hey she's happy.
There is no way she could sling around a 25l boiler.... :whistle:

[Dominator]

Spot on mate, horses for courses. But for me, an airstill would never do. :))

[twobottles]

You sir have great enthusiasm. Once youve made yourself a nice drop you'll want to progress onto another still, then probably another still and eventually another one! Keep that enthusiasm!

[Bushy]

Can't believe we got two pages out of a fkn airstill thread. Fuck airstills.... :teasing-neener:

[crow]

Can't believe we got two pages out of a fkn airstill thread. Fuck airstills.... :teasing-neener:

:naughty: I'm taking this as harmless shit stirring but lets not put airstills down too much , they are what they are and the only sensible option for some people :handgestures-thumbupleft:

[Stinger]

Look lots of guys started with them stills, they are not a total waste of time and for some ppl say old or infermed folks living in a little flat they are the only option. you will learn the basics with it, cuts will be hard due to the very small boiler charge and they are a tremendous amount of work for a modest out put, that's just the fact of the matter but it will give you a chance to prove you can make your own product and if you find you enjoy the hobby you will move to bigger and better things. Just don't despair on the quality of product or amount of work as this still is not a good gauge of either involved with a better still. This may not be all that you would like to hear but it is an honest assessment

+1 :handgestures-thumbupleft:

I now use mine MOSTLY for distilling water, though I wouldn't be without it for distilling 4L macerations using clean neutral.

Most airstill owners started stilling with them when we didn't know the difference between a "cut" and a "slash" (which was why the product often tasted like a "slash"). Some people who "hate" them have never even used them. 8-}

Just to see whether it could be done, I recently ran it and produced a VERY GOOD rum on it. Amazing how much better the product was after many years of experience with larger/better equipment.

If you can produce good hooch on an airstill, you'll find it a breeze on better equipment - and so much EASIER to produce an EXCELLENT product.

Meanwhile - Go for it. :handgestures-thumbupleft:

[bang300]

+1 for an airstill in every kitchen...or something like that.

I have a column that can make azeotrope, five sizes of boilers and a airstill. Some times the airstill is the easiest to fill and run for an experiment...or to clean up some feints for an experiment macerating something.

Wife wants to distill some herb shit she's working on...go right ahead in the airstill.

Also, you can make cuts on it! Science says what comes out and always in the same order just like any other pot still...the cuts are just very, very small.

[Kimbo]

+1 for an airstill in every kitchen...or something like that.

I have a column that can make azeotrope, five sizes of boilers and a airstill. Some times the airstill is the easiest to fill and run for an experiment...or to clean up some feints for an experiment macerating something.

Wife wants to distill some herb shit she's working on...go right ahead in the airstill.

Also, you can make cuts on it! Science says what comes out and always in the same order just like any other pot still...the cuts are just very, very small.

So, there is no reason why you could make some nice neutral with your VM, Bubbler or what ever then use the air still to do your experiments without having to make cuts :handgestures-thumbupleft:
I believe they have a place, not everyone has the option for a big setup ;-)

[Frothwizard]

You love it Bushy!!! Secretly you want one...

Bit of an update. My neutral wash has been fermenting for exactly two weeks now and is bubbling once every 15 seconds or so....so we're almost there.

I got tired of not using my airstill so I decided to run some rose I got on special a while ago through it.

It's 14% booze from a 750ml bottle....which puts me at about 105ml of alcohol total in there. I discarded the first 20ml and kept the middle 60ml or so to see what would happen.

My goodness, it was truly awful. The old crap in crap out motif really went to work here. Don't distill cheap rose.

The first 20ml was so offensive to my nose I couldn't throw it away fast enough.

The middle 60ml had a kind of warm smell to it and wasn't terribly offensive. Still tasted rubbish so tipped that out too.

Guess I'll just keep waiting on this neutral wash....



Thanks for the airstill love boys. Keep it coming.

[Bushy]

You love it Bushy!!! Secretly you want one...
Thanks for the airstill love boys. Keep it coming.

Yep. You got me.

[crow]

I think your expectations are a little high bud. An air still is a pot still and expecting a good product in a single run with no airing is simply not realistic from a pot still and very rarely achievable from any still..24 hrs of airing will make a world of difference and as with any type of pot still so will doing a strip run followed by a spirit run . Just reading between the lines here and forgive me if I'm wrong I really feel you may benefit from some more research in the newbies corner and pot stills :handgestures-thumbupleft:

[Sam.]

Putting that 60ml on oak for while would improve it as well :handgestures-thumbupleft: About 1 gram of oak should do, bet if you let it air for too long you will probably end up with about 20ml of water :laughing-rolling:

[noname4670]

1974 for me LOL i feel soooo old ok so slap me but i do like the air stills for thoese of us that are short on space that do not have an entire room or shed to devote to the hobby airstills have there place i run 2x air stills at the same time as i also put down 5x25 Litre fermenters as a single run and that yeilds me 26 Litres of spirit at 40% i store all of my spirit in a 50L ss keg so 2 runs and i will have it full then i can pack my gear away for a while
so in ending air still = good

[Chips Molasses]

I too am yet to graduate beyond the airstill. I have a double reducer boka in mind for my next still. I think to date I have produced around 50-60l of spirit from the little air still - the last 30l being a molasses based rum, double distilled and oaked. Cuts are a PITA on the air still - its only 4L. Between my practical learning with the still and the immense knowledge and experience available here, I think I am ready to go bigger. for the $200 I paid for the air still, I have had my fun, and definitely seen an economic return well in excess of the purchase price.

[Frothwizard]

1974 for me LOL i feel soooo old ok so slap me but i do like the air stills for thoese of us that are short on space that do not have an entire room or shed to devote to the hobby airstills have there place i run 2x air stills at the same time as i also put down 5x25 Litre fermenters as a single run and that yeilds me 26 Litres of spirit at 40% i store all of my spirit in a 50L ss keg so 2 runs and i will have it full then i can pack my gear away for a while
so in ending air still = good

You must REALLY love running those puppies. I can't imagine having to run 125L of wash through 2 x 4L stills. I remember my airstilling days, each 4L run took about 2 hours to complete.

Must take you weeks to get through all that wash?

[Brendan]

I remember my airstilling days

We're so proud Frothy, all grown up now :cry:

:))

[Zak Griffin]

Air still to FSD Bubbler in a matter of weeks... Some sort of record?

[Frothwizard]

Air still to FSD Bubbler in a matter of weeks... Some sort of record?

It was a little bit longer...about 6 months.

I think I got my Airstill back in July.

Got the 50L keg / pot head in August.

Bubbler in December.