Classick

its also entirely possible that I just have a throat irritation... and whatever the fumes are, regardless of base material, are exacerbating it.... But the timing seems suspicious to me. I only have a few more days of it, so i suppose ill see if it goes away when im done. the cough does not occur when im running vodka or gin

Hi all, Just wanted to pick your brain. So I'm distilling some Cabernet wine into brandy for port, and I just realized that the persistant cough that I am experiencing, I also experienced last year around the same time, doing a similar project. I know the wine we brought in had 30 ppm free so2, but I neutralized it with h2o2. I'm thinking though that maybe there is some kind of irritant in the air while I'm distilling... When I cough, I get a kind of metalic/tinny taste in my mouth. Just wondering if anyone else had exprienced anything similar Thanks much

We have done the mobile bottling line route before... and it worked fine.. but the trick with those guys is scheduling. We are doing about 1000-2000 cases a quarter, but not with any regular frequency, meaning we cant just say, yes every 30th day of the month we need to bottle. The mobile bottlers tend to need more structure with their scheduling.

Sorry for my delayed reply... apparently i do not get notifications when i have replies on this thread. depending on the bottling line. we have a 4 head gravity filler, and it takes me and crew of 2, 4 days to bottle 500 cases by hand.

Hey All, We are actively looking for a contract bottling solution. As a contract producer, we have at least 3 clients now who are at the growth stage of their efforts, and are now looking for a contract bottling solution for runs of 500-1000 cases at a time. Specifically we are looking for a high speed line that can push T-tops and has a shrink tunnel for PVC caps. Additionally, there would be some dilution/filtration that would need to happen for the vodka projects. We could handle that on our end if need be, but its usually simpler to do that just in time at the bottling facility. We've talked to blue egg in Colorado.. but that solution seemed a little pricey. Any suggestions? Thanks

sorry for the multi post... hopefully an admin will clean it up. stupid browsers

Hello All, Just wondering if anyone has heard of or has any references to locations that might be willing to "house" or store large volumes of high proof spirits. We have a potential project coming up that would see us needing to sit on almost 14,000 gallons of 190 proof spirit that we would need to draw off over the course of the year. That is well outside our bond limit, so we are trying to find some place that would be willing and able to sit on that amount. Could sit in 252 drums, 63 pallets (4 drums per) or in a large tank, from which we can fill IBC's realistically looking for california only, but any info is appreciated. Thanks much Dave

HI Mike, the forum software seems to be a little messed up. its not letting me email. i would very much appreciate the contact. Can you email it to me dcj at essentialspirits.com thanks much

We've been using Paulson t-tops for some time, as well as have referred several of our contract clients to them. We have always been pleased with the product, and believe it to be a superior product to other brands. I highly recommend getting a sample and seeing for yourself These kudos were unsolicited

Hello All, Just trying to see if such a place exists. We looking for a place to send 1000+ case orders to to be bottled via highspeed line, with the caveat that they be able to push t-top Anyone know of such a business? Perferably in California, where we are Thanks much for any help. DCJ

We made some Arak for a Lebanese client a while back

HI Barry, I was wondering if you had any results to report back. What did you end up putting into the barrels and how were the results? Is the test still ongoing? thanks much

We arent using a Charantais, but a Stupfler Alambic... We have the only one like it in North or South America. It was specially developed by a 3rd generation stillmaker for the production of exceptional fruit distillates and produces a medium bodied eau de vie that is a very accurate representation of the fruit from which it was distilled. Kristian, was the grappa you aged 120 proof into the barrel? how did it turn out? What did you notice in the way of angels share evaporation, roughly that is. And for how long was it in the barrel before you decided it was "ready" As for the barrels to be used.. im not sure i have an input on that. I am making this for an exceptional winery in central california, and i believe they will be deciding that information, I am just trying to figure out what the proof of their distillate i should suggest they put in the barrel. Thanks much

Looks like i just got invited to head out to vegas in a couple weeks to help launch a brand and work the booth. Just wondering if anyone else from here is headed out there for the Expo. Might be fun to meet up for some drinks

Hey everyone, I have a client that is thinking about aging some grappa i made for them, but as i have never really put anything into wood, i must admit i am at a loss on how to counsel them. I was hoping there might be some folks on here willing to share some information/technique I believe most spirits go into wood around 138 proof, is that about right? and if thats the case, would the same application apply to grappa? Im not yet sure which kind of barrel they are planning to use, if they will be used wine barrels, new barrels, etc, and i know that will affect the technique to a degree, but for the moment i am just looking for advice on the dilution side of things. Anyone have any insight to share, or willing to point me in the right direction? Thanks much Dave Jr

I dont think ill get a chance to go so far.. i've never been to portland so i am very excited to spend some time there soaking in all the weirdness and all the brews and foodie wonders... but eventually i will make an entire trip of the PNW visiting all the distilleries along the way.... "business expenses" hah!

Hello Organians, I just wanted to send a shout out,,, see if anyone was up for a visit/some tasting. Ill be in the area on the 9th of feb... was planning on heading over to distillery row to check out some tasting rooms, but wasnt sure who was where, or if there were any members from here.

Has anyone been using this? Any issues? Are you submitting paper copies or electronic?

so apparently they kicked it back again, and now are requiring us to provide a list of all previous DBA's... god damn TTB. We have done i dont know how many DBAs in the past, exactly as we have this one.. and never had any issue with it. and now all of a sudden we are required to register every single one? This is lunacy

Thanks Kristian. We did include a scan of the official DBA information along with the label approval as we have in every previous submission. I think what happened is in Step #2 when submitting the application, I might have forgotten to select from the drop down our DSP#. Thus, the submission would not be linked to our DSP permit. I have resubmitted the application, today and am hoping that that small change was the issue. Thanks for the suggestions folks. Hopefully if this is resolved, this thread will serve as a clue if this happens to anyone else. Have to remember to dot the I's and cross the T's

So i have a label in for approval, and they just rejected it with something i have never seen in 14 years of distilling/getting labels approved. We have completed in dont know how many DBA's in the past... and have never received this error. We had attached a scan of the approved DBA from our county along with the label submission. Any thoughts?

Thanks much, will give them a call

Hey guys, Does anyone have a decent source for stock PVC shrink capsules that have tear tabs in them? looking for 31.5mm Here in california, we have a few suppliers, but all the stock caps have grapes on them, and none of them have tear tabs. Any info would be greatly appreciated. Cheers

you would think... and Arthur has been very involved with organizing ideas and trying to get us some lobby power.. but as of yet, no real cohesion has been experienced. there was an effort a few years back, but it kind of dissolved when interests weren't aligned. Its a work in progress

Its actually the opposite.. not only did we already have less advantage than bars and restaurants (because they are already selling directly to consumers)... with this legislation, we have even LESS of an advantage, because suddenly bars and restaurants, without the same permiting process, and fees and taxes associated with it, are allowed to perform the same blending and mixing to create unique, revenue generating products as a rectifier would.