Skip

No secrets here. As mentioned above, I've been making a perfectly clear honey-sweetened limoncello at Letterpress Distilling for ten years now. Like OneFootKev says, it's not easy and it's not cheap. This is my process: 1. Make a honey syrup (honey and water) and heat it to 160F before adding it to the spirit; this actually changes the structure (denatures) of the proteins so that they'll precipitate even faster and much more cleanly. Blend the honey syrup with the spirit well. Chill the product. Like, REALLY chill it. Depending on your volume, you can chill it in carboys in a chest freezer (we used to do this) or in a tank with a glycol chiller (we do this now). Basically, the cold temps will cause the honey proteins to crash out much more quickly and cleanly. Then chill it for a few days. In a freezer, 2–3 days will do it. In a glycol tank, we let it run about a week. Then we let it come back to room temp, at which point the now-separated proteins will either float or sink (we can't figure out why it does which, but they almost always float). Then we slowly open the bottom of the tank and rack out the clear stuff (if it's floating) or the goop (if it's sinking). Once we have as much clear product as we can get and the proteins start to creep in, we collect what's left separately (we call this the dregs) and then put those in chest freezers to separate again. See the attached photo for the end result. Hope this helps some folks.

This complete PDA-2 liquid management fractionating column still was built by Mike McCaw, co-author of The Compleat Distiller and still builder in Seattle, WA. The still can be used to make lower-proof, fuller-flavored distillates or run packed and slow to provide clean 190+-proof for vodka/gin/liqueur bases, etc. The two-column setup allows for twice the production from the same boiler. These were used as spirit stills (there was a separate wash still) for several years at a commercial distillery only to make neutral(ish) spirit and they are in excellent condition. The boiler is fabricated from a 55-gallon drum with reinforcement to support the columns. This still runs of electric heat (two 5500-watt heating elements) making it very inexpensive to get up and running. A great deal for someone who wants a pilot still, just needs to distill smaller amounts, or is starting a newer shop. Paid approximately $14k new. PRICE - $6000 LOCATION - Seattle, WA

Are there any plans to create a variable pricing model based on production? $4200 a year is simply out of reach for a lot of the smaller producers. I think you'd see a quick expansion of your customer base if you had levels for <1k PG, 1-5k PG, 5-25k PG, and >25k PG... Or something along those lines. I know I beat my head against the wall every month trying to get my reports right and I'm willing to pay up to a certain amount, but I can't justify this sort of cost at that percentage of my annual revenue.