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Started By
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re: anyone on here ever have any experience in the manufacturing of moonshine?
Posted on 11/13/12 at 7:48 am to Nodust
Posted on 11/13/12 at 7:48 am to Nodust
quote:yes
So it's the ethanol you want?
quote:
Let the first pint go because it will be methanol boiled off first?
You get methanol, then ethanol, then water. All have different boiling points in that order. A good themometer is a must to no waste and keep it below the boiling point of water for a more pure finished product.
A pint is alot. About how much we get doing 10 gals, so if you are have less mash, it will be less methanol. You can find how much to dump online. Save it though for lighter fluid, works great.
Posted on 11/13/12 at 9:58 am to Langston
Seems as though I am late to the dance on this thread but willing to answer any and all questions.
Main rule of thumb I got to add as I havent read the whole thread yet is Nothing but copper and stainless in the vapor path. Period.
I have built a few still, both pot as well as a very nice reflux still. Easy to do and can be pretty cheap depending on how big or fancy you wanna go.
as for making a mash - well again depending on what you wanna go for there are tons of ways to do it but to get the most bang for your buck you wanna follow a tried and true recipe. something simple as a couple of boxes of total bran ceral can turn out to be a very nice smooth white whiskey. Let me know if there is any interest and I can add to this thread.
Main rule of thumb I got to add as I havent read the whole thread yet is Nothing but copper and stainless in the vapor path. Period.
I have built a few still, both pot as well as a very nice reflux still. Easy to do and can be pretty cheap depending on how big or fancy you wanna go.
as for making a mash - well again depending on what you wanna go for there are tons of ways to do it but to get the most bang for your buck you wanna follow a tried and true recipe. something simple as a couple of boxes of total bran ceral can turn out to be a very nice smooth white whiskey. Let me know if there is any interest and I can add to this thread.
Posted on 11/13/12 at 10:02 am to medic
add to the thread or shoot me an email, if you will
< @ yahoo dot com
< @ yahoo dot com
Posted on 11/13/12 at 10:12 am to Flair Chops
Well, the still part is simple - copper and stainless only in the vapor path as anything else can leach toxins over into the final product - Nothing - I mean nothing but copper and stainless. I build all of my stills out of a 15.5 stainless keg which you can get from just about any store that sells them. The most I have ever paid for one is like 75.00 from there you need to build you head - out of copper of course. a 2 inch copper pipe fits up nice with the keg and you can get a adapter from hillbilly stills to save some time and effort. ask any questions you would like - I will do my best to answer them.
Posted on 11/13/12 at 10:20 am to medic
i'm not wanting to do a big run, maybe 5 gallons. i don't really want to do apple pie or anything like that on the first batch, just keep it fairly simple.
Posted on 11/13/12 at 10:39 am to Flair Chops
A keg will be the best way to go - you can run anything up to 12 gallons in it and trust me you will want to run more than five gallons in the future. In terms of how much you make the first time - remember a 5 gallon wash will only produce about 500 mils of product depending on your startin specific gravity of the wash. a couple of basic supplies you will need ....
1. ferment bucket, you can pick this up at any homebrew supply with a lid and airlock. 7.5 gallon bucket so you have room for it to breathe
2. a Hydrometer and Specific gravity meter - this allows you to see the proof (hydrometer) of your final product as well as aid in making your cuts of the final product. Specific gravity meter allows you to adjust the SG of your wash as well as being able to see when your wash is fully done, in this you can also calc your yeild of the wash - or how much alcohol you should get.
3. a good recipe, a no boil corn mash will give you a quick ferment as well as a slight hint of corn, the ferment usually takes about 5-7 days on Uncle jesses simple sour mash. again your SG meter will tell you all you need to know about when the mash/wash is done. you are shooting for a 0.99 SG or when it stops bubbling in the airlock.
4. as it has been said you ALWAYS discard the first 100-200 mils of product to ensure no mathanol is in you final product.
5. a propane burner is optimal for heating the mash up, hold a steady temp for you to bring it up and maintain it.
Out of a 12 gallon wash I can get about a gallon or so of product at around 130-140 proof. once I add spring water to get the desired proof -60-70 proof I have about 2 gallons of white liqour. again this is where the hydrometer comes into play. Dont be greedy and read read and then read some more before you start this. Your still has to be cleaned and check for leaks before you ever start this process, dont be fooled by that show - you can cause some VERY serious harm either by methanol intake or a serious fire hazard.
READ ALL YOU CAN GET YOUR HANDS ON.
1. ferment bucket, you can pick this up at any homebrew supply with a lid and airlock. 7.5 gallon bucket so you have room for it to breathe
2. a Hydrometer and Specific gravity meter - this allows you to see the proof (hydrometer) of your final product as well as aid in making your cuts of the final product. Specific gravity meter allows you to adjust the SG of your wash as well as being able to see when your wash is fully done, in this you can also calc your yeild of the wash - or how much alcohol you should get.
3. a good recipe, a no boil corn mash will give you a quick ferment as well as a slight hint of corn, the ferment usually takes about 5-7 days on Uncle jesses simple sour mash. again your SG meter will tell you all you need to know about when the mash/wash is done. you are shooting for a 0.99 SG or when it stops bubbling in the airlock.
4. as it has been said you ALWAYS discard the first 100-200 mils of product to ensure no mathanol is in you final product.
5. a propane burner is optimal for heating the mash up, hold a steady temp for you to bring it up and maintain it.
Out of a 12 gallon wash I can get about a gallon or so of product at around 130-140 proof. once I add spring water to get the desired proof -60-70 proof I have about 2 gallons of white liqour. again this is where the hydrometer comes into play. Dont be greedy and read read and then read some more before you start this. Your still has to be cleaned and check for leaks before you ever start this process, dont be fooled by that show - you can cause some VERY serious harm either by methanol intake or a serious fire hazard.
READ ALL YOU CAN GET YOUR HANDS ON.
Posted on 11/13/12 at 10:47 am to medic
Please - dont watch that show for anything other than entertainment!
Apple pie is simple to make and it can be done with any highproof liqour such as everclear, not sure why they showed that guy out in the woods making it. You dont add the liqour until the end of the process - pretty simple actually.
Apple pie is simple to make and it can be done with any highproof liqour such as everclear, not sure why they showed that guy out in the woods making it. You dont add the liqour until the end of the process - pretty simple actually.
Posted on 11/13/12 at 10:48 am to medic
shoot me a email if you would like - medic_30852 at yahoo
Posted on 11/13/12 at 10:58 am to medic
Medic obviously has more experience than me so I would use him and his knowledge.
Posted on 11/13/12 at 11:02 am to Langston
Ha! I have done this a time or two :) and I am sure you can add to the discussion - hell I am always up for learning a new trick or two.
If you have ever bought shine in the north Ga area - chances are it was some of mine, if it was quality that is!
If you have ever bought shine in the north Ga area - chances are it was some of mine, if it was quality that is!
Posted on 11/13/12 at 11:05 am to medic
We just make our own. Started making 10-15 gals at a time (mash) recently so its small. I love it though. Making it is almost as fun as drinking it.
Posted on 11/13/12 at 11:21 am to Langston
I agree - love this time of year and spending the day with the still. I dont do large scale stuff anymore and mine is basically for gift giving and to see if I could do it. Lot of science behind making a good quality hooch, more so than those idiots on tv let on!
Posted on 11/13/12 at 12:33 pm to medic
Yes it is. I almost hate the show, but it serves its purpose I guess. Its so fake it isnt even funny.
Posted on 11/13/12 at 12:36 pm to medic
I found a 5gal copper pot still for 300 from whiskeystill.net. Best price anywhere and its plenty big enough for ome use Homedistiller.org has plenty of info. Trial and error. Took a few runs before I got something worth a shite.
The still comes with a simple potatoe mash and it's not bad. Cost about $8 in ingredients for store and I get about 2/3 gal.
The still comes with a simple potatoe mash and it's not bad. Cost about $8 in ingredients for store and I get about 2/3 gal.
Posted on 11/13/12 at 1:13 pm to wiltznucs
quote:
never, ever drink the first few ounces that come off
Yep, that's the methanol, and it will kill you.
Other than that, practice makes perfect. Crawfish burner, beer keg, and copper tubing running through 5 gal buckets with icewater inside and you're good to go.
For the mash, get the corn as fine as you can get it and order some yeast online or pour a beer in it if you're cheap. Let sit for a week or so.
Posted on 11/13/12 at 1:54 pm to Flair Chops
I emailed you back with the response - let me know if you got it, might want to check you spam folder could have got caught up there.
Posted on 11/13/12 at 1:57 pm to TheDrunkenTigah
quote:
order some yeast online or pour a beer in it if you're cheap. Let sit for a week or so
Really ??? I mean really ?? Beer doesnt have any active yeast in it. and what you will get out of this is nothing but a lacto infected slop.
Pick up some red star at the grocery store - make a yeast bomb and add to the wash.
Posted on 11/13/12 at 2:05 pm to medic
I was halfway joking. There are yeast spores in almost all beer, not active yeast, but enough to seed fermentation. It's an old hillbilly engineering trick. Didn't say that was the best way to go about it.
Posted on 11/13/12 at 2:15 pm to TheDrunkenTigah
I was hoping you were joking! I would be interested to see if a active wash could be made from it - though again the chances of a lacto infection would probably be through the roof. Savable but Im not big on distilling anything that has that infected smell to it.
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