coop

Off premise sales are about 300 to 1. If you want to be picked up by a major distributor you must be occupying enough shelf space for them to see you. Stores only have so much space and money. Each time you sell a case you are taking away from the big guys. There is some magic number, for us in Colorado it was around 250 liquor stores and 6 restaurants before it happened. Coop

We would be more than happy for a visit. Take the scenic drive through and over the mountains to Cedaredge Colorado and visit us at Colorado Gold Distillery. We have a retail store and give tours on a daily basis. Give us a call at 970-856-2600 and ask for Coop.

Scams, I have been getting these for 3 years. I also get them about purchasing product for overseas. They claim that just send them web site information along with reply DUUUUU. If you found me overseas you already have web information. They are just a nuisance. Delete with out opening. Coop

Are you sure you have the right size corks?? Sometimes even with the right fill height and you fill at 60F just the expansion of the alcohol putting pressure on the cork will cause it to rise. If the bottle is in the sun or seat of a car that is hot the contents will expand much more than you think it would. Coop

Brasso and elbow grease. Do it when cold of course. Coop

I call it sneaking up to proof. I get my correct proof by diluting short at least three times. Each time you add water everything changes mainly temperature. I add water, mix, let set for an hour or so. Then take another set of readings, make temperature adjustment to get proof at 60F. Re calculate, add more water and so on. Coop

Hello Cowdery, the pre sales in Colorado was done by me here at Colorado Gold Distillery. What we did was allow people to purchase as many bottles as they wanted out of a certain numbered barrel. We had them pay 50% down like it was on lay away and we contacted them when the barrel was ready to bottle. They came in and picked up their numbered bottle, paid the balance and went on about there way. On our first run we pre sold one complete barrel before it was bottled. Good cash flow and allowed us to put up more. Coop

Now add my .02 and you can retire for sure. Our water company only chlorinates the water. No other elements present. We use a inline activated carbon filter to remove chlorine before cutting the spirits. Not necessary in the mashing process as all Chlorine is cooked off. So not a problem here. Coop

We use steam here for everything. Very efficient and cost effective. I do not like flames or open fire around alcohol. The ttb does not care how or what you use to heat with but all local agencies do. Do it your self things can get you into many problems you do not need. Coop

This is the exact kinds of distributors I was referring to in my other post. Not real distributors. Coop

When we started in September 2007 it took us until March 2008 before we had anything to sell. You will find out that until you are taking up shelve space in 250 to 300 stores most distributors will not take you on. You must do everything your selves to get to the point that they are assured you have a good product and will be in business for a long time. We were able to make enough money to pay all the bills within 6 months, but nothing for us at all. Then it took three more years to get to the point that a real distributor came to us and ask it they could represent our products. Let me clarify "real distributor". We had several small distributors before now, and nothing worked out. They did not pay on time and we had to pursue legal means to get our money. We still had to do all the work to build our brand name. But remember if it was easy their would be thousands of us trying their hand at this. Coop

Our distributor works on about a 27% mark up. Then they allow a 30% to 35% mark up for the liquor stores and restaurants. So when you come up with your selling price to the distributor you need to work it backwards from the retail price. You need to set the retail price high enough so that when every one else takes their share you need and must make a profit. Without making a profit in any business you will fail. No one should work for nothing. Coop

This is a real good example. I, for the last two years of production, have been getting 4.5 to 5 gallons of 120 proof alcohol for every 80 gallons of wash. It starts to go down a little if I get my grind a little to large for the mash runs. Every one who signs on here should get this information. It seams to come up a lot. Coop

We here in Colorado have cold weather also. I have a room set up which I keep at 83 degrees in the winter to keep fermentation going. coop

Way to go, I will stop by whenever I get over to Denver. Coop

I use a granulated activated carbon. The size of the granules are about 1/4" to 3/8" in size. Not messy at all. I get about 6 hundred to 7 hundred gallons run through it at least 6 times each use and that means 3600 to 4200 gallons total run through it and use only 100# of carbon. Not bad I think. Coop

I thank you all for your help on this topic. I think I will wait till some time this winter to try Rye Whiskey. Have all I can do right now with my tequila. Fermentation is tough for this one. Thanks again. Coop

I am looking at making some Rye Whiskey and am not sure where to start. Is only Rye used in the mash? What kinds of Rye? Do I mash it the same way as my other grain mashes? If I use other grains in my Rye mash what would the ratio be? For converting starches to sugar will my malted barley amounts be the same as my Bourbon mash? Thanks, Coop

I am fairly certain that fermentation amounts never count and you do not have to keep alcohol records on this. Until it is distilled you have no proof to measure. I start taking all my records once it comes off the still. That is the point where the TTB has the first lien right. I start my production records on each mash run I do as you are required to keep and file each month how much grain you use. coop

My two cents worth. You can call me anything you want to as long as you purchase my products which we all know is responsible for keeping us in business. Coop

My guess would be you are on a sewer system? If so they want to know just what and how much you will be dumping into that system. Everything that goes down the drain effects sewer treatment. They are full of good bugs that help break up and consume solids. If you let them know how much volume you will be dumping it will help them. Also let them know that you will be adding some yeast to the system, they like yeast as it helps the bugs grow and multiply. Let them know that the your discharge will have been sterilized before dumping. It will also help if you separate what ever you are using from the liquid first before dumping. The solids is what they have to process out of their system. Coop

OK have not been able to find my chart but will keep looking. As for the refractometer is is a model ATC 513. I purchased it from G.W.Kent, their item 1729 for $39.00

I am an old man, 62 now and memory not at good as 3 years ago when I used it. I will try to find it and when I get back to the shop on Tuesday will send you info on refractometer. I think it only cost me around $40.00. Coop

[quote name='JohnD' date='14 May 2010 - 06:53 PM' timestamp='1273884788' post='5556'] I may be wrong here but these refractometers give an indication of simple sugars in the mash, but have no way of quantifying starch left in the mash. You know that you are getting hydrolysis, but have no way of knowing whether you are hydrolyzing completely. I'd say if you want to remove solids invest in a small centrifuge. If a person is mashing up any thing, grain,fruits whatever they should already know what amounts of starch or sugars are available from that product. The TTB does. That is why you have to record all purchases and uses and report it every month. That way the TTB can see if you are claiming the right amount of alcohol produced from those products. There are charts that show the maximum amount of sugars available in what ever you are using. Say you are using three different kinds of grain. Each one has a value. You take the total of all three and divide it by three, that gives you a % amount that you should be shooting for. So if that value adds up to say 7.5 % and after converting all available starches to sugar and you use a refractometer that shows both brix and value of alcohol, your reading should be close to the 7.5% available. If you get a reading of say 4% available then you did not get all the starches either converted or cooked out of the mash. when I start to get about .5% to .75% lower than I should be getting it is usually that my grind of the grains is not small enough to get the starch cooked out of the grain in the allotted cooking time. I either have to cook longer or grind a little smaller. I know that it is that my grinder needs to be set a little smaller then it goes right back up to where it should be. The brix reading on the left does away with any particulates that would effect a specific gravity reading making the process much easier. Coop

I use a refractometer also. I use it at the end of my mash run after conversion with malted barley. Mine reads brix on one side of the scale and possible alcohol on the other side. This lets me know if I have a complete conversion of the starches and just how much starch i am really getting cooked out. It only takes a drop of liquid to work and you can always get a clean drop. Coop