lowerylisa1

ISO a source for 55C/44W/1MB, or a similar percentage, to put into 58 barrels for bourbon other than MGP. Must be high wheat.

@TwentySevenBrewingYes! It's exciting that you're so close to Wilmington, NC. I've experimented with many flavors & can produce a solid recipe. I'd love to help however I can!  Cheers!

@TwentySevenBrewing & @Pour Decisions Thank you so much for the suggestions!

ISO flavor house names, other than Mother Murphy, Sapphire which you've used in the past and had good experiences with.  I'm creating a new flavored vodka and need to request flavor samples.

That's a great idea, Chris!  Thank you.

Has anyone been to, or have pictures of, botanical storage rooms that the big guys use, like the Bombays of the world?  I understand that everything should be in a conditioned space and in air-tight containers, but I'm looking for a scalable solution.  Sometimes friends have the most interesting and creative ideas! 😉 

I'm currently using 30" activated carbon fiber cartridges and 30" cartridge housings (both triple and single) purchased from http://stpats.com/index.htm. Easy to use and affordable. Works great for 1000s of liters of vodka. If you decide on the triple housing, I suggest getting the blanks to fill the empty cartridge holes when not in use. Their website isn't the easiest to share, but their customer service is great!!

San Francisco Herb Co has orange peel granules (which is orange zest) for $9.40 / lb  https://www.sfherb.com/Orange-Peel-California-Granules--1-Lb_p_32.html

On 10/26/2022 at 1:12 AM, SlickFloss said:

There's a few very helpful oxidizing reactions for pesky "SO₂" in between your double distillations:

Calcium oxide is used, it will react with SO₃²⁻- in wine to precipitate out as CaSO_{3 in your kettle} 

-or-

Activated Carbon is effective as always, SO₂ can and will be absorbed and oxidized by AC in presence of O₂ and H₂O.

-or-

H₂O₂ is used to oxidize SO₃²⁻ to SO₄²in which case it leaves with your stillage instead of hopping over into your collections tank

 

 

Addressing SO₂ in it dissolved form SO₃²⁻ is the most convenient but flavor detrimental option.

 

Good luck

That is great info. Thank you so much!

Thank you both for your thoughts! I just read that "too much sulfur dioxide can cause unpleasant tastes, a burnt metallic aroma, sneezing and a burning sensation."  I experienced all of that from the time it started running down to about 55 proof!  I bet the wine maker did what JustAndy said. 

Hi! Looking for advice and opinions. I have 350 gallons of 12% wine that I’d like to make vodka from. I have a 600 gallon pot still that is used to strip our corn mash. I also have a 250 gallon finishing still with a vodka column. I’ve heard of distillers running the wine through the stripping still then through the vodka column, but I’ve also been advised to just run it through the finishing still. I’d like some of the flavors of the wine to transfer to the final distillate. Do I skip the stripping still?

Hi Adam. Just sent you an email. Is this still available?  Would you consider selling the heat exchanger by itself? My email is Lisa (at) socialhousevodka (dot) com. 

On 3/8/2022 at 7:18 PM, Golden Beaver Distillery said:

Lisa is good people - comes from the moonshining community. Might go easy on her @SlickFloss she posted a legitimate question to this forum and deserves a respectful response.  I asked similar questions 18-months ago and I don't remember you going off on me like you've done with Lisa.

Yes, bench distillation is the cheapest, but might not be faster or easier for someone not familiar with the process. If not done correctly, it's not accurate. 

I can have any of my crew pull a sample, run it in the AlcoTester and within five minute I have an accurate test result that is part of both our digital and written records for TTB. Five minutes. I don't have to worry if a mistake was made that might be a tax liability once the product is out the door. 

Every operation has its way of doing things that may not conform to your ideas of how it should be done but that doesn't mean it's not correct. 

https://www.wwaytv3.com/carolina-beach-distiller-on-discovery-channel-tv-show/

 

On 3/8/2022 at 7:18 PM, Golden Beaver Distillery said:

Lisa is good people - comes from the moonshining community. Might go easy on her @SlickFloss she posted a legitimate question to this forum and deserves a respectful response.  I asked similar questions 18-months ago and I don't remember you going off on me like you've done with Lisa.

Yes, bench distillation is the cheapest, but might not be faster or easier for someone not familiar with the process. If not done correctly, it's not accurate. 

I can have any of my crew pull a sample, run it in the AlcoTester and within five minute I have an accurate test result that is part of both our digital and written records for TTB. Five minutes. I don't have to worry if a mistake was made that might be a tax liability once the product is out the door. 

Every operation has its way of doing things that may not conform to your ideas of how it should be done but that doesn't mean it's not correct. 

https://www.wwaytv3.com/carolina-beach-distiller-on-discovery-channel-tv-show/

 

Thank you so much @Golden Beaver Distillery.  I got cold called by Anton Par for this purpose so they're going to bring devices out to use when we start canning production (obviously to sell me equipment too). I also took your recommendation and contacted Rudolph. 

Seriously @SlickFloss, why do you have to be so mean spirited?

On 3/8/2022 at 11:29 AM, Kindred Spirits said:

I believe she is the "consultant" for the distillery.

 

Just agreeing with the others, an obscuration proof is the cheapest and fastest way to answer the question.

The other option is sending it out for lab testing or buying a very expensive piece of equipment.

 

 

Nope, not the "consultant" as you mentioned, just the distiller tasked with something I've never dealt with which is why I turned to this forum for help.

How do I test the ABV of the finished canned cocktail after mixing all liquids & dry ingredients (vodka, flavors, citric acid, water, etc)? I'm not starting from fermentation so I don't have an OG reading to go off of.

On 2/17/2022 at 2:23 AM, MichaelAtTCW said:

Hi @lowerylisa1 FM CSC EP 2 is food-grade, and has all the alphabet soup certifications to back it up: FDA, NSF, CFIA. It's best used as a lubricant for sliding surfaces or bearings where incidental contact may occur. Regarding the particular application in this thread—as a grease for the sliding surface of the Mori Filler nozzle—it works well.

As for the o-rings in your pump, there are some greases specifically for o-rings that will likely work well. We sell Huskey Lube-"O"-Seal (the "O" is for o-ring), for example. It's another food-grade grease that's very tacky/sticky to stay in place even in harsh/turbulent conditions. It's teflon-based rather than mineral-based.

I don't know that there is a "best", per se. With regard to mineral-based vs. polymer-based, I suppose it depends on the o-ring material itself. If you go with something like the Huskey that's specifically for o-rings, it's unlikely that you'll go astray. If you're looking specifically for a silicone-based lubricant the Haynes that @Silk City Distillers mentioned is probably good. We don't sell it. We do sell this silicone-based lubricant from Polysi that works very well.

My guess is that unless the o-rings are made of a very exotic elastomer, any of the above will work just fine. If the pump manufacturer specified a Silicone-based lubricant then there's no need to reinvent the wheel, and the Haynes or PolySi will do just fine.

@MichaelAtTCW Thank you again for your recommendation above, and your recent cartridge filtration recommendation!!  We just purchased the system we talked about.  You're my new HERO!! Next up, more distillery hoses!

On 12/17/2021 at 2:24 PM, MichaelAtTCW said:

@Silk City Distillers Yes, it could be just metal/metal wear and binding. I'd break the nozzle down removing all elastomers and slide the outer nozzle slowly over the inner to try and determine the source of binding. It could be a bit of stainless that has worn over time or because of the entry of some foreign particle. If you have some fine grit sand paper and scotchbrite you may be able to bring any protrusions back to level and get the action back where you like it. If the source is on the inside of the tubing it may be more difficult to access, of course, and would probably require a round file

As far as grease, you should try a thin layer of some tackier grease on the area of the nozzle just behind the spring so that it stays on longer than silicone spray, which is very thin. A standard general purpose grease like FM CSC EP 2 would be good. We sell it, or if there's a store local to you that offers food-grade tools & supplies for restaurants or the like, they probably carry it as well.

Keep me posted.

Same applies to you @Foreshot

Usually nozzles get smoother over time, so it sounds like something got into the interface between the outer and inner tubing and is causing binding.

Hi @MichaelAtTCW

I see where you mentioned FM CSC EP 2 as your go to gen purpose grease, but according to it's safety data sheet it's mineral oil based. I'm trying to find the best food grade silicone lubricant for o-rings in my pump (as recommended by the manufacturer).  Does the base material make a difference - mineral vs silicone? I see that @Silk City Distillers recommended FM CSC EP 2 as well. So curious!

Hey there!  We are about to produce canned cocktails and I have so many questions being new to this. Two questions that are eating me up are:

1) What (low cost) device should I use for measuring Dissolved Oxygen? I'm not ready to sink $20k on a CBox from Anton Par.

2) How do I test the ABV of the finished product after mixing all liquids & dry ingredients (vodka, flavors, citric acid, water, etc)? I'm not starting from fermentation so I don't have an OG reading to go off of.

Thank you in advance!!!! I welcome all discussions pertaining to canned cocktails. 

Thank you everyone!  As always, you're so very helpful and supportive. 

Does anyone have an all inclusive list of lab equipment needed for a medium sized distillery? If money were no object, what would I purchase? I’m not sure I even know the right questions to ask, but I’m about to be tasked with equipping one. 

Yes, are you open to selling the equipment?

Love Post Modern!  I had the pleasure of spending two hours with Stanton Webster at the distillery last fall to talk about all things gin. Quite a memorable, and educational, experience for me.