Foreshot

We have a really bad tendency to equate all spirit production as the same. So when we get into discussion like this we miss one point that we really need to say: Different flavor profiles are made with different tools and processes. We know this we just seem to ignore it for our own point of view on our on products. What's best for a lightly flavored Brandy is different than a heavy rum or whiskey or a neutral. Who's going to use a 40 plate stainless steel still to make a scotch style whiskey? Who's going to use a copper pot still to make a neutral? Can you do it? Yes - but it doesn't mean it will do it well. I like where this thread is going but when you reply remember to explain a little bit as to your thinking. It's important to let the readers understand why you say what you say so they can make better decisions and better educate themselves.

I still have it but the person that was going to do the analysis flaked on me. It still may happen I hope.

Rat pechuga?

Ask some local breweries what they do. I found an environmental group that takes them.

https://www.distillerytrail.com/blog/getting-ttb-labels-conditionally-approved-will-help-speed-up-time-to-market

For Vodka for a good neutral profile chill filtering is a good idea. Anything with flavor though chill filtering can effect the flavor. https://homedistiller.org/wiki/index.php/Chill_Filtering For Filtering - Chilling causes the oils (tails) to solidify enabling them to be filtered by a barrier (physical) filter. Activated Carbon does not filter it out. If you use the search button you will find multiple discussions on this topic - pros/cons, technique, etc. It's somewhat controversial. In the end it is flavor vs appearance. To test for chill haze throw a bottle in a freezer overnight. If it's clear the next day no need to chill filter.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-06-13/on-dc-s-chopping-block-whiskey-racehorses-and-other-tax-breaks

Brettanomyces is characterized as phenolic - horsey, bandaids, etc. I'm not saying it is, only that it is a possibility.

No dirt/dust will come over in the distillate. The only things in the distillate will be volatiles that have boiling points near or less than water.

I know several that have taken it. Feedback has been good but I didn't get into details. The distilling programs has been around at least 6-7 years. Let me hit up someone I know that went in the last year or two.

Siebel's is way less and is very well respected. https://www.siebelinstitute.com/education/continuing-education/craft-distilling-operations-and-technology https://www.siebelinstitute.com/education/continuing-education/craft-distilling-operations-and-technology/dates

I'm not sure there's been any real discussion on the subject. So let's discuss: While I highly respect Mr. Hubert Germain-Robin, I find his writing to be hard to understand. He states something is great, but rarely says how or why. I've read his books and this article is the same. So ok, slow distillation is awesome, but why? It tastes better - ok, but why?

Ha - I was like why do you have a gin basket? I know though if you did make gin it would be good. Thanks for the info.

One would think I would have checked the literal only post. One would be wrong. But hey - the formatting is nicer on the distiller page.

So most gin basket designs are of the "tall" variety. Why not more flat? I was wondering if something like two 8" to 4" bowl reducers would make a better gin basket. For me I see that the tall design won't allow as much vapor flow to the center of the basket. I would think a perforated plate sat in the bowl might allow for better extraction. But in the back of my head I think "It's that way for a reason, you just might not know it". And I don't know why it's tall versus flat. Tradition? Is there something else?

https://distilling.com/distillermagazine/slow-distillation/

How are you cleaning it? Just spray on and clean off or CIP for a while or what? If it's built up anything it will take a while to break down. If you don't have a CIP maybe hit a couple paper towels with Citric and let it sit on it for a while. Wet paper towels should be able to stick to most vertical surfaces for a while. If you don't have a CIP ball you can get them cheap at Brewer's Hardware or most of the other vendors that frequent here.

Some info here: http://adiforums.com/topic/10394-discussion-on-sale-of-distillery/

Probably not want your looking for but may still be usable: https://pittsburgh.craigslist.org/bfs/d/olyphant-brewing-kettles-mash-tun/6849073634.html Also you may want to try some pro brewing forums, that's a crossover piece of equipment. And there is many more of them than us for now.

In distilling you'll find that yeast selection is a little different than beer. The differences between yeasts in distilling are more subtle than beer and some effects aren't immediately apparent. It may take a few years to know if a yeast works out or not. The second thing is that there's a number of distilleries that only use generic bread yeast for everything. Or they only produce one type of product (e.g. "Moonshine"). You'll find that attitude is due to the moonshining culture. Use what works and is cheap. Add in the illegality and not many people nor companies shared info or catered to us. This is changing drastically, but it's still just the beginning of the change.

Try that, it worked for me.

Listen to this podcast (second half-ish time stamp): https://www.boozewerks.com/2019/04/05-potato-distilling/ Devin is a member here.

That's the key. Like many have said before: We're all in a marketing business that happens to sell booze. If you don't understand that, you're going to have a very difficult time.

Bull. Shit. They don't understand what is happening. The liberalization of distilling laws is changing the dynamics of the market. However uneven it will be, those areas that encourage it will lead the charge. In 10 years there will be cheap enough distilling equipment and enough training that new entrants to the market will have incredible market knowledge and experience. You can, even now, open a distillery for similar costs to a brewery. What you'll see is a proliferation of distillery brewpub style restaurants. Most likely you're going to start seeing more brewery/distillery or winery/distillery or triple brewery/winery/distillery. The hardest part will be distribution. If you plan on that for your business plan you're going to find it very difficult. Think of it from a perspective of an existing brewery/winery. You can extend your product line for $50-$250k. Why wouldn't you? It's already many examples, and it's growing. There's ~7000 breweries, ~7500 wineries. How many distilleries will there be? 10k? How many stand alone vs combo? No idea. But when the equipment isn't that expensive and you only need to add 1-2 people a year, it quickly makes economic sense for a reasonable extension of the business. Distribution will be come a mess. You can already see the trend - large players take bites of smaller players to see what takes off. Nearly the only way to get distribution outside of your region will be that way - or collective sales groups. Distributors will become overloaded and refuse most small players - or take them in and do nothing with them to placate the bigger brands. If it fails it won't be a huge loss to them. It's called portfolio effect for the VC crowd. A tough business will only get tougher.

Is this realtime or every X seconds or minutes? Does it get tracked? Can you trigger alerts/actions?