nabtastic

nobody?

Allen, if you are intending to get a foothold in Cali try out libdib. It's an interesting and innovative (which means it's not all glitters and gold) but a good entry platform. They are much more flexible than any other distributor but their flexibility may be their limiting factors... i.e. you can hit a few locations but I doubt they'd ever go statewide. If you're only planning to ship a few cases, understand that it'll be expensive. You can probably get a flight and pack it in your luggage for the price of a few cases in shipping. (Hawaii to mainland can often cost ^$75/case). Have your family go to their local store and request it be brought in, then call the retailer with a "hey, I've got some inquiries from Cali, can you fill them? Here's the local rep.." Happy hunting

I think they may be referring to Rafael Arroyo? https://www.google.com/patents/US2295150

Does anybody have experience with Destainex available through GW Kent? DESTAINEX PEROXY-ALKALINE DETERGENT 5 KG. I've been using PBW or caustic soda followed by a heavy does of citric acid. One step would be great for me.

There are a tonne of flavor houses. Givaudan is one that I have used previously, for example. Orange is not "orange" from one company to another (they'll taste different). Check out Moonshine University in Louisville, or whatever their bottling line is called,. It might be worth hiring out your first couple batches while you can use their flavor scientist. I've never used Dehner but he apparently knows what he is doing as well. To the OP - make it from scratch, buy extracts, blend the two together - doesn't matter in the end. Do what is right for your brand. There's nothing immoral about being an NDP, blender, or anything else as long as you're honest with your customers. Be cautious when working with really small batches - you'll need to scale the production and if it'll get wonky if you're chopping lines tumeric like Escobar. Try multiple maceration duration, proof contents, and concentrations. Each variable can make a substantial difference. I have to reiterate the other's comments about making separate concentrates and blending them together. Also, keep in mind that sugar and filtration will change your final product as well.

at what point are you proofing your spirit? you may need to slowly lower the proof over a matter of days. I agree on adding the sugar last, just before the final filtering edit: My bad. noticed the month of OP not the year..

This is probably the coolest posting on ADI yet

What are you making? I know this is heretical to mention on this forum, but what is your purpose for the distillery? If you are on a super tight budget (which it looks like) have you considered being a warehouse/processor instead of starting off distilling stuff yourself? You can go to several distilleries and have custom mash bills distilled for you. Turn that into warehouse and processing and put the money towards that equipment into a barrel program and build your distillery when you can afford it (my 2 cents). In my 7+ years of doing this, probably the most important lessons I've learned are: 1) people care if your product is good first, and your story a distant second (marketing fatigue), 2) if you can't scale without rebuilding you'll soon be retired, 3) barely making it work on paper (physical layout or financial dreams) means you are tweaking the data and you will fall short of success [if it doesn't work in the worst case scenario, then it just doesn't work]. I don't use molasses so I'm not sure what the lauter tun is for? If it's grain based, where are you going to store the grain (I'm assuming it would be pre-ground) or are you planning on daily deliveries? You're going to hate that finished goods area the moment you get two pallets in there. Also, you'll need a man-door and a garage door to keep from going insane (not to mention the codes). I don't see a door for pallets or a rigger to get your equipment in or out of the building. Retail will need to be physically separated from the bonded area. It looks to me like you've got too little space and will soon regret not having dedicated space... maybe turn the deck into a finished room and make that your retail? With a gift shop the size of a walk-in closet, I'd recommend deleting backstock and find a way to get everything on the floor (put the back stock for shirts under the display table, e.g.). Where are you putting your scales for proof reduction? If you are proofing an aged product, you'll need a holding tank to proof slowly over days and another holding tank for actively bottling (unless time isn't an issue).

I'd certainly agree with your general view point on having your own cash over loans/investors. An investor, in my experience, should be vetted harder than your employees because you essentially have a boss (or manager) that you have to answer to. If they do not understand the business then it can be an incredibly hard battle to purchase the right equipment in the right timeline for the business. A bank can be much harder to get on board but that is probably a good thing - you need to be able to at least make it work on paper where as an investor may be wooed simply by an idea. LOL to the 50K - it's easily gone in a single bottle order.. Hawaii is quite forgiving in many ways. We producers (beer, wine, and spirits) have a lot less regulations to deal with. However, the pace of bureaucracy can be maddening and confusing. How has BC been able to convince the regulators to work with the industry - or are your policy makers more proactive naturally?

Careful Glenlyon, or you'll have all of us moving to CA

RC - I’m using a 3M stainless housing 10” cartridge. It was recommended by them. Probably a smaller filter would be better.

Might be worth trying mineral oil? Fda safe and is used to seal wood cutting boards..

Well yes, tell your FedEx rep what you want to do and follow the rules/their obstructions (I thought that was implied, my bad). FedEx is your only option unless you ship freight.

FedEx. Mark it containing alcohol.

They are warehoused in Louisville (I think) so shipping should be pretty easy on you. Their customer service is quality too. I'm not affiliated with them other than being a satisfied customer. I was actually looking for bottle filler solutions when I came across your post - so if you have any recommendations... lol

wouldn't it be more cost effective to put the nibs in the vapor path somewhere?

containerandpackaging.com

Y'all need to stop assuming rational behavior. Yes, some individuals will behave rationally. But most will still buy the "cheaper gas" at Costco and never realize the significant drop in mpg (if you catch my analogy)

Agreed. I run about 1#/gallon at 140F and cycle through my plates and head. Normally takes a couple 10 minute cycles (about 25 minutes per area total) Mostly do it in rotating cycles because the CIP pump moves too much gallonage for the return line to keep up.

Has anybody had definitive experience with Leuconostoc? i'm reading "introduction to sugarcane techonology" and it references Leuconostoc as a common infection that causes a slime or jelly-like build up. It's in the family with Lacto.

depends how bad it is. I use PBW when the copper parts are really worse for the wear, but generally use a strong mix of citric acid keeps the copper clean. If your pot is copper, I'd guess you have to use PBW (we have a stainless pot with copper in the vapor pathway) but like the other's said, be careful with caustic on copper.

What is too high? 5%? 10? 15%? We are in a hit humid environment and routinely hit 12-17% loss. Idk about linseed but parafin works pretty good. Without further data I'd have to venture it's better and easier to change your barreling environment than the barrels themselves.

Don't you also need a permanently attached gauging method for spirit tanks over 60 wine gallons (load cells)?

try the superjet first. it's available on amazon and you can get small qty of pads to see if it solves the issues. TCW is a great place for inline filters too - maybe MichaelTCW (I think that's his tag) should be able to help too.

definitely follow Meerkat's advice and follow the TTB video verbatim. As for the sugar, soak it in PBW or whatever caustic you prefer, in hot water. it'll come off. Also, use boiling beads and a kjeldahl bulb - idk if those are specified in the video. You absolutely need an accurate water bath and, since you're new, I recommend running several distillations from the same batch to make sure your technique is right. You should get the same result on each attempt. Also make sure your equipment is clean, fresh, and dry. I keep several lab stills on hand for this purpose.