Tom's Foolery

I have a new chiller and want to test chill filtering my apple brandy. The question is ... how cold do I need to make the brandy for the chill filtering process to be effective? Thanks, Tom

Kristian - Contratulations. Sounds exciting. Now on to making some great product ... Tom

Thank you guys. This is perfect! The link to expedia from Will has the table ... the link from Sherman has a pretty chart. Exactly what I was looking for. Tom

I am trying to locate a table or chart showing the resultant abv of the distillate on Y axis and corresponding abv of the charge wash on the x axis. This is for a simple distillation (no plates or additional rectification). I know I have seen one before, but I can not find it now. The table or chart would let me determine: if the wash is 7% ABV, then the resulting vapor (or distillate) will be 60% ABV after one distillation (as an example). I am able to find the "Distillation Temperature and Concentration Relationship" chart, which shows Temperature on the Y axis and the resultant ABV of the distillate on the x axis, but it is not what I am looking for. I appreciate any help. Thanks, Tom

What type of pump is properly rated for pumping flammable liquids, like alcohol? Can you tell me a brand and model number? Tom

Thank you Sherman. Shounds like it should take about an hour (with the proper HP).

How long should it take to heat a 200-gallon stripping still from room temperature to the start of the distillation run? I know there are lots of varibles, such as product being distilled, type of still, etc., but a general range would be helpful. Thanks, Tom

I will send you PM or email to your business email address. Tom

Nick- I went to Normandy for 2 weeks (Dec 09 - Jan 10 holidays) and visited Calvados distilleries. A great experience, despite the exchange rate and the off-season weather. There are definite advantages to travelling off-season (lower costs, no crowds, distillers with time to talk). Next time, I'll go in the spring or summer, for sure. We can chat off line if you would like. Tom

Nick- Maybe you should keep the "Hoochbitch" name. Might be fun to have a dark and secret online persona. A good contrast to the serious New-England-apple-brandy-distiller that works at Shelburn Orchards! Tom

Scott- Thanks for the info. I'll reach out to Kothe about the pump. Tom

What type of pump is needed to pump mash from the tun to still? I have seen some really expensive equipment for the brewery industry, but have and also heard that some distillers use new sludge pumps. Unfortunately, gravity is not an option for me.

I believe it is permitted to chaptalize cider prior to fermentation. The impact on the spirit will be negative, unless your end product is a neutral spitit (vodka). If you are hoping to make an apple brandy (aka applejack according to the CRF), a better route would be to ameliorate the cider with water for the occasional batch where the brix are above 12% or 13%. While adding sugar will increase the yield, it will significantly harm the quality of an apple brandy.

I am producing fruit brandy now but plan to reconfigure my distillery for whiskey. (Malt, bourbon, and rye). I was reading the comments about the hammer mill vs the roller mill, and noticed Eric's comments in the last thread that "phenol issues or the chance of bacterial influence" can come from distilling without lautering. I had not planned to lauter, thinking that it would be a real convenience to skip added step of removing the grain. My still can handle beer or the whole un-lautered mess. Is there a concensus on what produces a better whiskey, or what is more efficient, lautered or not-lautered? Tom

Coop - if you don't mind ... please cc copies of the pictures to me in Cleveland. Thanks, Tom

Robert- The seminar sounds great. I remember meeting Dr. Hagmann at your seminar in May 2009. You have a great resource to share with Charles. Charles- Send me your email address and I can send you the tasting sheet that I have used. While it is not perfect, it is designed for apple brandy so it could be a helpful starting point for you. By the way, I enjoyed meeting your dad at the Great Lakes Cider competition earlier this year at Uncle John's Cider Mill. My favorite was your naturally-conditioned hard cider. Tom Tom

I am aware of another micro-distillery that recieved a call and letter from Makers Mark regarding the trademark of the red wax seal random drip pattern. The distiller had been using a similar design (and color) on a 375 ml brandy bottle, produced in small quantity and distributed locally. Neverthelss, Makers Mark did defend their trademark. I believe that the Makers Mark claim had been limited to the color red. In reading the link provided in this string regarding the trademark, it does seem to indicated that it is for Whiskey, but in this instance they objected to the red wax drip on a brandy bottle. By the way, if you want to learn how Makers Mark does it, you can visit the distillery and dip a bottle yourself. It is part of the tour. And they will even give you a red bib to wear and take your picture doing it. Pretty cool, actually. And the bourbon tastes good too.

Like you said Chuck, in some of the whiskey distilleries, old (batch) pot stills have been converted to doublers, so the pot still is part of their continuous distillation process. Clearly this use of a pot still is different than what most micros are doing. People get confused with the terms "column", "continuous", "pot" and "batch."

I have heard that a slow cooling is better. Also, I noticed that Anchor might have an air-cooled condenser. Tom

Are you aware of any distillers using air-cooled condensers? I mean just a copper coil (worm) that is not submerged in water? Thanks, Tom

Jonathan- You have been an important and much appreciated part of this forum. I wish you the best in you move. I look forward to hearing about your next distilling venture. Tom

Hi- I am currently heating my still with a direct flame, but am looking into converting to steam. Can you tell me what size steam boiler you have (in BTU's) and what size still (in gallons) you are heating? Thank you very much, Tom

Great information about keeping the equipment clean. I was wondering about frequency. How often do you clean? For me, I have been doing a water flush after every use and doing a chemical wash after about 6 uses. Tom

I have been using the sodium hydroxide flush followed by a citric acid flush with pretty good results, but I do have few questions: What percent solutions are you using for cleaning? Also, how long do you flush the solution through the still? And, how long do you use your wash before replacing it? Thanks.

Jonathan- I assume the purpose of the circulation is to prevent solids in the beer or wine from burning on the bottom. How did you identify the problem of solids burning (see it, taste it, smell it?)? From time to time I get a bitter taste in my distillate, and it seems to happen if I am distilling wine that has just completed fermentation (and not completely settled or clarified). You have me wondering if it could be from dead yeast cells burning on the bottom. Tom