New schnapps distiller in CN, advice needed

[Luciano C]

Im a graduate student wish to learn how to distill fruit brandy, now just taking classes. Also Im an importer of spirits down here, and in China distilling on your own is okay.

Currently Im raising money for my first 100l jacketed simple pot as my first still which might be ready in the end of the year. Is that a safe choice? Also, is there any teaching material for cask management and distilling fruit brandy you guys can recommend? Now Im just going through “ distilling fruit brandy” by Josef Pischl.

Cheers everyone.

-Luciano C

 

 

[Jedd Haas]

100 liters is good for a start. Make sure the drain is at least 2" (50mm) or even larger if you plan to distill mash with fruit. It's very easy to clog a smaller drain.

The Pischl book is interesting and useful, but there are a number of things he says that are specific to European practice and are incorrect for USA. I also recall reading several points in his book that were obsolete. Overall, this book is focused on very small scale production and doesn't consider what needs to be done for working at a larger scale.

Look for the book "Artisan Distilling" by Kris Berglund. A PDF is available free online. Overall, it's a more modern approach than Pischl and more relevant to commercial production.

To make good fruit brandy, you need good wine. So you should start reading any wine making books you can find as well. Try to visit some wineries if there are any in your area so that you can learn as much as possible about best practices, particularly regarding mashing and fermentation.

[Luciano C]

20 hours ago, Jedd Haas said:

100 liters is good for a start. Make sure the drain is at least 2" (50mm) or even larger if you plan to distill mash with fruit. It's very easy to clog a smaller drain.

The Pischl book is interesting and useful, but there are a number of things he says that are specific to European practice and are incorrect for USA. I also recall reading several points in his book that were obsolete. Overall, this book is focused on very small scale production and doesn't consider what needs to be done for working at a larger scale.

Look for the book "Artisan Distilling" by Kris Berglund. A PDF is available free online. Overall, it's a more modern approach than Pischl and more relevant to commercial production.

To make good fruit brandy, you need good wine. So you should start reading any wine making books you can find as well. Try to visit some wineries if there are any in your area so that you can learn as much as possible about best practices, particularly regarding mashing and fermentation.

Sure, I got the paper/book you mentioned, thanks

For the Pischl book I found it was largely based on the scenario and experience of a Europe fram house distilling. Some idea on fermentation and heart cutting is contradict with what Caribbean rum distillers do. But its still a handy book for beginner like me, cause my initial production is quite like an euroland framer would have.

[Foreshot]

As Jedd said learn how to make the best wine possible, then learn how to distill it. 

3 hours ago, Luciano C said:

Some idea on fermentation and heart cutting is contradict with what Caribbean rum distillers do.

You're not making rum. Don't try to make schnapps that way. For schnapps, you want to make a spirit true to the material you're using.  There's no point in making a spirit like schnapps that muddles flavors. 

[Luciano C]

15 hours ago, Foreshot said:

As Jedd said learn how to make the best wine possible, then learn how to distill it. 

You're not making rum. Don't try to make schnapps that way. For schnapps, you want to make a spirit true to the material you're using.  There's no point in making a spirit like schnapps that muddles flavors. 

Okay, thanks for the advices. Seems like I should make cidre right now