If you want to keep the yeast less stressed and still get a high ABV, try step feeding. It's a trick from the mead makers world where you start with a pound of honey and let it ferment, then add a pound of honey, and let it ferment, and keep repeating until you've reached either the yeast's tolerance or you've added all the honey/sugars your recipe calls for. Quite often this results in a much higher ABV than if you just included all the fermentables at the beginning, largely because you aren't stressing the yeast out with too much sugar all at once.
Quite humorous mate! I laughed so much. I'm glad you gave Turbo a chance. Keep on delving into more yeast selections for different types of mashes. I love your vids!
When I was reading about filtering, I see that many pref not too, since apparenly it makes ethanol more prone to oxidation and you can get some acetaldehyde taste. And filtering wont remove heads. So I found it best to filter low wines and get as much tails out of the low wines, then do a fast reflux run pushing 90-94% while also adding sodium carbonate to break up some of the heads, will also run high reflux in the start to bleed out some head. Then dilute it all down to 35% for a second run final run with normal cuts etc. lots of work, but it becomes very neutral.
Chief have just got in to the business of stilling at home. Videos like this are a wealth of help , they are providing guys like me some confidence of what's achievable and stepping it out. Literally was planning on doing this turbo workout later this week. Keep up the goodness.
This was a really solid expansion to the previous turbo vid. I think you did a great job highlighting the original recipe and process, and I like that you showed some easy stuff to do to make it even better. BTW, You need better staff. Those guys are a bit lippy on the set😂
I'd double check the voltage comment on the boiler element. The element is a 2000watt load regardless of the supply. It will just pull more current at the lower voltage (without some kind of controller in the circuit). Love the channel (jealous of the facial hair)
They sell different models for the different markets, and heating elements do change wattage on voltage change, and non-linearly. The same element driven at half the voltage would produce one quarter the power.
Products sold for different voltages will have different elements and practicalities may limit current like standard outlet maximum current. Here it is 230V 10A for most outlets but to get the same power on 115V you need twice the current so a 20A socket which I havre no idea if its a common socketbut thats a limit in mass marketed equipment where consumers don't want to modify their house wireing so say 115v 15A is common then devices will have max 1720W they can be designed to use.
Great stuff, Jesse! Your really kicked it up to next level. Very, very well done! Chasing the Craft, stilling for sure, but you hit it out of the park on your Film Craft too.Entertaining and informative and great humor! Thank you!
Hi Jesse, I have been using the Turbo 8 kit/pack, it has everything in it, & running it with a PureDistilling still, at the 3.45m mark you are adding the Tubo Sugar, & what might the black looking pepper seeds be? I have never seen them before. I do now as well run a Birdwatchers mix, to play more. Cheer from across the ditch.
Hey Jesse! I hope you're having a kick-ass week! Just going through a bunch of your videos because.. well, why not, they're all freaking awesome! You said something here which caught my attention, because it touched on something I've been thinking about for a little while now. You mentioned macerating grain in the "low wines" from the first run and then redistilling. I've been wondering what would happen if you did exactly that with fruit. I know it's not vodka related, but what about taking something like UJSSM that has some strong butterscotch notes and macerating apples or peaches in it? Would the finished product carry some of that fresh fruit flavor over? How would it compare to a brandy made from the same fruit?
Don't think you were disingenuous at all. Really, this was a way to see what the base recipe turned out like and to see if you could improve the base recipe. Betting if you did all your tips n tricks on another batch, but leave out the grain addition, and filter it, I'm betting you'll have a pretty badass spirit. I think the grain addition made it YOUR spirit, but not necessarily one everyone would like. Great video though, looking forward to watching the next!
I’ve been using the 24hr turbo yeast. This is my twist on it. I make it according to the packet, I then put just a pinch of sodium metabisulfite into the jug to stall it and I let it set over night. I then decant it off. From there I distill SLOWLY and I mean LOW AND SLOW… to come out with almost nothing but Ethanol and leave all the flavor I can behind. NEXT, I temper that down with a little bit of water, but mostly the juice from cans of pear halves. Once it is tempered down to about 100 - 120 proof, back into the still with it and I run it rather hot keeping the still head where it meets condenser at around 90-95C. I like as much water as will come over in that range because it has all that pear flavor. Jar it up with a slice of pear in the bottom. Should be about 35-40ABV, not too sweet, very crisp, hint of pear, smooth, and if it’s too hot just add a bit more water til you can drink it
Just a thought but I watch the video on bearded and board and he used sodium carbonate just like the sodium bicarbonate but this was sodium carbonate and he distilled vodka once and then he distilled it again and use the carbonate the sodium carbonate and it was virtually taste like water he said water had more taste than it did but it had a high-proof you might check that out with that turbo 500 just a thought thank you for thank you for your video
According to George, turbo yeast is DADY with added nutrients. Still Spirits may have a particularly high ABV tolerant DADY in their packet, and they would need to as their instructions/package targets a 20% ABV wash. An ABV that high is going to stress any yeast with potential to create some funky flavours. That's why you need AC in the wash and to AC filter the spirit to bring it back to neutral. But it's a system that maximises spirit production and it has its place.
I am glad you used the full turbo spirits products as per their recommendation, but my own experience of late would to use a ambelic top on your t-500 in conjunction with a PWM, as the t-500 is set to around 125 degrees which makes your still run way to hot hard and fast!
As the still is just a resistive load, mains voltage does not actually change the power output as the current draw will increase to compensate the lower voltage
The first version? Not even close. The second? actually pretty similar, a different flavour of course as it was different grains. Personally, I would prefer to make the FFV again. Its just as simple once you have the base knowledge for it. But it's going to take a while to build that up (nurturing a ferment more etc). Once you are there its going to be cheaper (don't need al the extra ingredients etc). And its still a nicer for my taste.
@@StillIt I've been making the FFV for around 6 months. Goes down a treat in my circles. Thanks for putting me onto it. Next I'm getting into all grain peated whiskies :o
Are you sure about that voltage tip? The only difference between 120v and 240v will be current. The same wattage and energy will be used. So for 240v if it draws 4 amps the 120v will draw 8.
well i like turbo clear , I only have a problem with the price. i used turbo clear when it first hit the market and now i find it to pricey. If u use the clarifier agent , carbon agent the overall cost to me is too high. I use various products now not hooked on any. But i like my vodka clean crisp and no smell and little flavor. keep it in freezer pour over ice with a lime or lemon work for me . thats my take on it. MOONSTILL SHINING.
Great video Jesse. Wondering what your thoughts are to just doing a full turbo wash but with adding rolled oats in to the ferment? I'm a turbo guy but this is something I've been pondering for a while just to add some smoothness.
dont skip the vinegar cleaning run 1st, they say its ready to go right out of the box.. mainly if you got a copper one but you gotta do that cleaning run, not mentioned in any notes in the damn pack. also lemon juice / citric acid give it a good clean too
Hi Jesse, when You are making neutral spirit, how you get rid off the Amyl Alcohol (fruity smell)? The problem is, it is releasing thru all process of distilling . After two Reflux Distilling I have 96.5% of Alcohol but fruity smell is still present.No matter how much Heads are removed, it is still slightly fruity. I think only activated carbon can kill it. I heard about 2.5 distilling
I'm a long time brewer and decided to give distilling a go. I bought at T500 and this was by far the best intro video i've seen. Great work mate, this (and the whole channel) is awesome.
Hello sir. My hobby is making homebrew wine and now i'm interested in distillation. I have a question, in this video you distilled the wash until you got around 90% abv then dilute it with water to get 40% (am i right?). The question is: do i need to get high percentage abv then dilute it with water, or can i just distilling it until i get the percentage abv i desired? Thanks.
Would be also useful to see a cost and time breakdown comparison with say tpw or TFFV although I suspect this video’s sponsor may not like to see it there
On those metrics I would wager a fair amount of $$ that the TPW of FFV would win. But that's not the point of this video, il follow up more in the QnA (to lazy to type the whole thing out lol). But basically do you think someone who has 1 day of research can make TSFFV or TPW? Im guessing their success's rate is going to be a fair bit lower.
@Still It Hi Jesse, have you ever heard of using pure NaOH ( commonly use as drain cleaner) to up the Ph of the low wines to 8 or a little above? It makes sure the tasteful esters are cleaved back into carboxylic acid and alcohol. IMO the most effective way to decrease the unwanted flavours and increase your yield. It would be a nice test!
Is the Turbo Carbon a stand in for something else that's usually used? Is it standard to add activated carbon when fermenting or this just Turbo bumping up sales?
Nah, I wouldn't use it in anything else. Its not needed. Turbo yeast kinda sacrifices' nuance and "polish" to make sure "it just works". It makes sure that a first timer that has not put a lot of effort into research can just get a result. To do that it needs to put a lot of extra stuff into the wash. It makes sure the yeast take off and do their job, but its nasty tasting. The carbon and turbo clear help to minimise that before it goes into the still. So in other words, it works for the "yay, I got distilling equipment for xmas, lets make it on boxing day". But if you put in some serious research time ( I would legit estimate it was around 100 hours total for me before I distilled my first drop) you will likely use another yeast type and not need it.
Jesse, have you checked out Odin's easy whiskey recipe? He runs whiskey at full reflux collecting up to 190 proof, keeps only the tightest cuts, and recycles all his feints into the next wash. 1.5? Kinda. I haven't received my new 53 plate 8" copper column try so I haven't tried it but he swears it produces a very rich, cool flavored whiskey even at that percentage. I would love to see you do a video on that
Jesse would you do a video of just crushed wheat with the yellow packet yeast and see if you can go to whiskey using just plain old wheat ? Wish we could do this in my country
If your talking angle yellow lable yeast then yes you can. I didn't do a straight wheat mash bill but corn oats barley and wheat all unmalted and it chews through it great just keep on eye on pH if you go with 3lbs of grain to gal of water or higher.
Hey Jesse! Talking about experiments, have you tried aging your hodge podge vodka with charred oak? You Don’t need to make a video on it, but the aged spirit is better than the vodka. I can tell you from experience! ;)
I had to watch several times to make sure I was seeing it right. Well and the wife wanted help with dinner so there was that. Lol... Jesse, is there carbon in that Stillspirits sugar? It seems to make Turbo nice you have to add a whole bunch of other Turbo products to clean it up. Cheeky marketing guys!
I am a novice at spirits but did a fair bit of beer and mead brewing... I think the carbon is supposed to eat the yeast flavours, not much else. I remember the homely smell of beer yeast and bread baking... none of these from the turbo kit.
Oh I agree. It just stuck me as odd. I'm actually interested in trying the Sodium Carbonate trick that Bearded and Bored did on his pot still vodka vid. Sounds interesting.
Hmm. I do not have a T500. The idea of putting carbon mud into the fermenter suggests that the Turbo yeast does some nasty stuff that needs to be cleared out. Obviously it works, but why not make a clean ferment in the first place? I don’t get it. Following the instructions, you don’t have a way to cut the Heads, but you later suggest that. I do get charcoal filtering the final spirit, but you lose volume. My hat is off to you for giving this a go.
Good fair test this time🙄. I have had a t500 for 18 months and have carried out 12 spirit runs using a variety of turbo, classic and pure, PTW and black beauty yeasts, here in NZ. A few comments on your tips. Leaving the wash for a week after adding the turbo clear produces the same result as cold crashing. The peg to control the water is genius, I have the still spirits water supply tank and it is still very sensitive. I stabilise the column for 15 min by adjusting the reflux flow to keep the temp around 40 degrees C. Instead of running to a temperature I control the production rate to around 10cc per min. Over a period of several hours you end up reducing the water flow and as a result he temperature increases. I take off the first 200 cc as feints the next 400cc I keep as a seperate cut ( this cut ends up with a sweeter smell and taste, it needs to be filtered separately) all the rest until the temperature reaches 60 deg is fine. I stop then as the tails come through. Dilute to 40% and add contact carbon at 10 gms per litre, leave for 7 days then filter through activated carbon. All but the first cut ends up with absolutely no odour it’s a great consistent base to experiment with flavouring.
Hi Jesse: while I understand that you're doing it "by the book" because Still Spirits sponsored this video, but previously you've questioned the need to clear your wash if you're distilling in a boiler that doesn't have exposed elements, eg. the Still Spirits system with a T500 column. Do you still stand by that? Interested in your comments.
Hows it mate, yup I do totall stand by that still. But, regardless of the sponsorship (They were pretty cool letting me say whatever the hell I thought lol) think its best to use it in this context. Il mention this comment in a video coming out ASAP for more info :)
Alex ... it is a safety issue ... 40% + is very flammable .... personally I go to 30% as I find my still more controllable at 30% than 40% (less sensitive to power and water flow changes)
my comment made it to the pop pop pop screen XD . interesting enough in my part of the world (PNW), my T500 does not produce unless it is over 64C... wonder if there is a nice chart they can make ...
pop pop screen? Not sure what you mean sorry mate haha. Yeah, good point man should have included that! Atmospheric pressure is going to mess with those numbers! Do you have some altitude?
@@StillIt the sound effect of screen caps going up 🤣 we are right about sea level here... maybe 60 meters up. How high was the area in NZ where they design these stills? Sounds like it is higher pressure here needing a higher boiling point.
If I had to guess, I would give Ian a double distilled... clean, sharp, spirit... I think that's what he likes in a vodka. Somebody taught me that "good vodka has no taste (flavour)"... it is Russian for "water". Aquavita comes to mind!
Very interesting concept, but you didn’t explain what you did with the reflux column. You also mentioned doing cuts which is not usually done when using a ‘packed’ column. I’m genuinely interested in knowing exactly what you are doing here. Thanks and cheers!
Not sure what you mean about the reflux column sorry mate? what info are you lacking? And you absolutely need to take cuts from a reflux column. How you do it depends on the exact type of column.
Greeting from Mexico. I subscribed because I'm in the tequila capital of the world and had a crazy idea the other day, I would like to distill pulque. I'd like to send you some stuff some time for content on your videos!
Welcome to the channel mate :) Unfortunately its almost impossible to privately sent any plant material into NZ unless its a vacuum sealed commercial product:(
@@StillIt well pulque is a drink, an actual alcoholic bevarage. I imagine I could send it bottled with its fermentation stopped. There's also its precursor sort of speak, called aguamiel. Its just boiled down honey (think agave honey) that comes from the juices inside of a maguey plant, sealed and packaged. They're interesting stuff, and not a lot of this has been distilled
I guess you cut Mike and Camron loose. Maybe B&B could use their services. When you say cement taste do you mean petrichor? Also I'm curious about the flavoring with oats and malt, IDK if you have ever had rye vodka but it has a flavor and in some things it rocks. Is the flavoring you did along those lines? When you describe what you're looking for in a vodka I think 20% potato 30% oat 50% rye (in the mash). It's not "neutral" but it is good.
Temps vary by elevation where you are. I'm at 1500 ft. above sea level and those temps don't work here. Filter it and add glycerin to make it drinkable. I see the production budget was minimal this time. Good show but pay them in booze.
Because that’s how you control both the reflux and product condenser on this still and that flow rate is the recommended one to balance the reflux and product off take speed
At the end of the day it becomes a choice of whether you prefer "'vodka" or "whodka". GNS has its place for flavoured spirits and vodka but when you make your own, whodka seems the more appealing thing to make. You can buy cheap flavourless alcohol at the store any day of the week and it all tastes exactly the same (like nothing).
"You can buy cheap flavourless alcohol at the store any day of the week" - Nope, no you can't. PS: to others: GNS = Grain Neutral Spirit. Whodka = Vodka for whiskey (that is American whiskey) drinkers available only in the US AFAIK.
@@vtbn53 Here in Canada almost every bottle of vodka on the shelf is GNS plus water with a fancy label. Most consumers prefer this over a pot stilled/small number of plates to get a vodka with flavour. Marketing plus a tanker truck that pulls up and pumps the GNS. Water Source and Glycerin are the big differentiating factors. The number of "distilleries" that make there own is few and far between. New distilleries try to survive on Gin and Vodka made from GNS until they can actually deliver aged Whiskey. There is a small market for white dog but usually not enough to keep the lights on. For most it is cheaper to buy a tanker of GNS from the big guys than it is to do it at a smaller scale. Similarly many small "distilleries" will blend mass produced whiskeys or just have them delivered and put their own stamp on them being essentially marketing businesse. Order by the Barrel from MGP and get a sticker machine. So usually you can walk into the liquor store and buy whatever vodka is cheapest and you can count on getting GNS + RO filtered water.
@@robertfontaine3650 I suppose the upside of that is that that spirit is probably much cheaper than what we can get our hands on here in Oz and NZ. I can assure you that virtually everything you wrote is gobbeldygook to us (in the sense it is terminology we are not used to, although it's entirely possible that the younger generation are I am not sure, but they seemed to be enamored of everything American theses days).
@@robertfontaine3650 I never said you were, all I am saying is none of those terms and products, which originate in the US, are used here in Australia.
Err whats going on with that thermostat?! You shouldn't be getting any product at 50C-60C. You wont be getting any significant liquid ethanol volume out until the liquid hits the high 80's.
Thought something was weird with that, my t500 came with a very basic column that does have the thermometer at the top, I did my first run ever with it the other day and it sat at pretty much 77.7c for the majority of the run, I stopped it at 78.7 because the guy at the shop said when it went one degree higher to stop but I didn't get a very good yield... I also got a bit worried about hitting 82c because that when other compounds start evaporating, is there an actual issue running it until you've got the expected quantity of ethanol regardless of the temp increase?? I lost about 30% of what I should've got but it was 97% or so and after charcoal filtering 3x it's delicious and has no off tastes.
As far as I am aware the early T-500 did use a thermometer at the top. The person that told me this implied it was many years ago. Which is a bit weird when you imply you brought it new. Don't worry though, my still is two generations before the T-500. It's all about knowing your equipment and using it well. 'I stopped it at 78.7'. I hope you mean the hearts, and not stopped the still. When the temp rises, still collect, but collect in a different container. This is the tails. You put that into the next run of the still, or collect a few heads and tails and do a separate run with just those components. I stop my still when I get somewhere between 92c and 95c. Up until now I have been basing my cuts on temp. However, Jesse has inspired me to collect everything in small jars and make decisions based on taste. Filtering is another whole thing. I assume you are using Turbo yeast, and distilling once, so yeah filtering is probably required. People say using other yeast gives a cleaner wash, so filtering is not required. People give Turbo shit, but it makes things starting off for the new distiller much easier. The other thing is temp control for fermentation. This can also help by not stressing the yeast. Too cold yeast will die, too hot and off flavours are going to come through in the wash.
In Soviet Russia, we normally use 6% H2O2 to make the beard even mooooarrrr bushy, man. Was just kiddin. It's almost the rockets fuel oxidizer so, be careful to clean the stuff, not the beard with hydrogen peroxide.
After seeing one of your videos. I made a good vodka using what I had on hand. 4kg white sugar, 0.5kg raw sugar, 10 x wheat biscuits (generic brand version of Weetbix) juice of 1 lemon (I might have used 2, the water here is very alkaline, I was too distracted to take exact notes.) 2 teaspoons of yeast enhancer. Mixed the sugars up in 4 litres boiling water then added to fermenter. Mixed in rest of ingredients and filled with warm water to hit 20L. I used Australian premium spirit yeast when it got to 30C. Later that night the airlock sounded like a geiger counter. It was done in just over 24 hours. I couldn't believe it was done, tasted the wash and it was sour... not a hint of sweetness. Checked the hydro reading... yep, it was done. Used two part turbo clear and waited another 24 hours. Ran it through the pot still, it came out at 80%, then cut some to test. I was surprised how decent it was straight away. Left the small batch of hearts that I cut to 40% for a couple of days and it's good. I'm gonna use wheat biscuits again, next time I'm gonna use at least twice as much.
@@jeffreyfreeborn6879 LOL when was the last time you spent 20+ hours on a plane (one way)? And who is going to pay for it? But yeah, it would be great.
Funny...I don't remember ever using sanitizer when helping dad and grandpop in the North Carolina woods. Some of the most sought after liquor in those hills! Its great to see this art being carried on though. Love your content!
Interesting to hear you say this. I have been thinking about adding something like that to vids. Unfortunitly all of this stuff is very VERY subjective. Both in taste and also in "what the hell are we actually mesuring". Good to see some feedback on it though. Il do some more thinking.
Dude the boom guy holding the broom killed me! Haha
If you want to keep the yeast less stressed and still get a high ABV, try step feeding. It's a trick from the mead makers world where you start with a pound of honey and let it ferment, then add a pound of honey, and let it ferment, and keep repeating until you've reached either the yeast's tolerance or you've added all the honey/sugars your recipe calls for. Quite often this results in a much higher ABV than if you just included all the fermentables at the beginning, largely because you aren't stressing the yeast out with too much sugar all at once.
Yeah nice man. Keep the osmotic pressure down.
Love the add in especially the sound guy, hahaha, freaking hilarious
That guys a dick haha
Quite humorous mate! I laughed so much. I'm glad you gave Turbo a chance. Keep on delving into more yeast selections for different types of mashes. I love your vids!
Thanks! Will do!
As a newish distiller I quite like the subject of your videos to help me catch up and learn. You’ve a great idea on what to produce for your crowd
Can't believe you made Ian stand around in the dark for 15mins :)
When I was reading about filtering, I see that many pref not too, since apparenly it makes ethanol more prone to oxidation and you can get some acetaldehyde taste. And filtering wont remove heads. So I found it best to filter low wines and get as much tails out of the low wines, then do a fast reflux run pushing 90-94% while also adding sodium carbonate to break up some of the heads, will also run high reflux in the start to bleed out some head. Then dilute it all down to 35% for a second run final run with normal cuts etc. lots of work, but it becomes very neutral.
Excellent vid Jesse, simple but comprehensive breakdown of the process and well polished!
Glad you liked it!
Chief have just got in to the business of stilling at home. Videos like this are a wealth of help , they are providing guys like me some confidence of what's achievable and stepping it out. Literally was planning on doing this turbo workout later this week. Keep up the goodness.
This was a really solid expansion to the previous turbo vid. I think you did a great job highlighting the original recipe and process, and I like that you showed some easy stuff to do to make it even better. BTW, You need better staff. Those guys are a bit lippy on the set😂
He should probably double their pay. I think they'd appreciate it.
I'd double check the voltage comment on the boiler element. The element is a 2000watt load regardless of the supply. It will just pull more current at the lower voltage (without some kind of controller in the circuit).
Love the channel (jealous of the facial hair)
They sell different models for the different markets, and heating elements do change wattage on voltage change, and non-linearly. The same element driven at half the voltage would produce one quarter the power.
Products sold for different voltages will have different elements and practicalities may limit current like standard outlet maximum current. Here it is 230V 10A for most outlets but to get the same power on 115V you need twice the current so a 20A socket which I havre no idea if its a common socketbut thats a limit in mass marketed equipment where consumers don't want to modify their house wireing so say 115v 15A is common then devices will have max 1720W they can be designed to use.
Great stuff, Jesse! Your really kicked it up to next level. Very, very well done! Chasing the Craft, stilling for sure, but you hit it out of the park on your Film Craft too.Entertaining and informative and great humor! Thank you!
Thanks a ton :)
Hahahah I loved the editing in this,it was awesome :D
Glad you liked it!!
Instant classic. Love it bro.
Exellent vidio, props to the new sound guy.
Dude, dont take his side!!!! lol
So funny dude! Loved this video.
Hi Jesse, I have been using the Turbo 8 kit/pack, it has everything in it, & running it with a PureDistilling still, at the 3.45m mark you are adding the Tubo Sugar, & what might the black looking pepper seeds be? I have never seen them before. I do now as well run a Birdwatchers mix, to play more.
Cheer from across the ditch.
Nicely produced video! I won't be using any of these products but I found it interesting nonetheless.
Yeah, agreed. Its not for everyone. Cheers mate
Thanks for making entertaining and enlightening content! I always enjoy your videos!
Thanks Jessie, i picked up a used turbo 500 with all the still spirits stuff(turbo, carbon, clear, etc) I was wondering what to expect.
Great vid and good advice.
Hey Jesse! I hope you're having a kick-ass week! Just going through a bunch of your videos because.. well, why not, they're all freaking awesome! You said something here which caught my attention, because it touched on something I've been thinking about for a little while now. You mentioned macerating grain in the "low wines" from the first run and then redistilling. I've been wondering what would happen if you did exactly that with fruit. I know it's not vodka related, but what about taking something like UJSSM that has some strong butterscotch notes and macerating apples or peaches in it? Would the finished product carry some of that fresh fruit flavor over? How would it compare to a brandy made from the same fruit?
Lol I liked your bit, the fake you team is funny :P, I liked the broomstick mic joke, totally got me
Isn't racking-off before de-gassing and clearing one of the steps?
Don't think you were disingenuous at all. Really, this was a way to see what the base recipe turned out like and to see if you could improve the base recipe. Betting if you did all your tips n tricks on another batch, but leave out the grain addition, and filter it, I'm betting you'll have a pretty badass spirit. I think the grain addition made it YOUR spirit, but not necessarily one everyone would like. Great video though, looking forward to watching the next!
great stuff, much appreciated :)
Pleasure :)
how long do you (or dont you) let the product stand / rest after you distil a batch, or proof it down or do a botanical run?
Generaly "the longer the better" but I would say you get diminishing returns pretty quickly after about 1 week.
I’ve been using the 24hr turbo yeast. This is my twist on it. I make it according to the packet, I then put just a pinch of sodium metabisulfite into the jug to stall it and I let it set over night. I then decant it off. From there I distill SLOWLY and I mean LOW AND SLOW… to come out with almost nothing but Ethanol and leave all the flavor I can behind. NEXT, I temper that down with a little bit of water, but mostly the juice from cans of pear halves. Once it is tempered down to about 100 - 120 proof, back into the still with it and I run it rather hot keeping the still head where it meets condenser at around 90-95C. I like as much water as will come over in that range because it has all that pear flavor. Jar it up with a slice of pear in the bottom. Should be about 35-40ABV, not too sweet, very crisp, hint of pear, smooth, and if it’s too hot just add a bit more water til you can drink it
Just a thought but I watch the video on bearded and board and he used sodium carbonate just like the sodium bicarbonate but this was sodium carbonate and he distilled vodka once and then he distilled it again and use the carbonate the sodium carbonate and it was virtually taste like water he said water had more taste than it did but it had a high-proof you might check that out with that turbo 500 just a thought thank you for thank you for your video
According to George, turbo yeast is DADY with added nutrients. Still Spirits may have a particularly high ABV tolerant DADY in their packet, and they would need to as their instructions/package targets a 20% ABV wash. An ABV that high is going to stress any yeast with potential to create some funky flavours. That's why you need AC in the wash and to AC filter the spirit to bring it back to neutral. But it's a system that maximises spirit production and it has its place.
PS. I love the malting tip in between distillations. Definitely adding that to the arsenal.
@@robsalvv5853 What malting tip? (Did you mean the macerating tip?)
@@vtbn53 - yep. I was being a bit efficient with my wording.
@@robsalvv5853 No worries, but it's just that malting has completely different meaning ha ha.
Love that you announced him as if he was the Stig!!!
I am glad you used the full turbo spirits products as per their recommendation, but my own experience of late would to use a ambelic top on your t-500 in conjunction with a PWM, as the t-500 is set to around 125 degrees which makes your still run way to hot hard and fast!
yeah I need to play with the alembic for sure
But if you do I recommend you use your PWM otherwise you may scorch the mash!
This is a great video. Must save.
Cheers mate :)
As the still is just a resistive load, mains voltage does not actually change the power output as the current draw will increase to compensate the lower voltage
Dont wory about the length of a video ...we'll still watch..lol good job
How does is stack up next to Teddys FFV?
The first version? Not even close. The second? actually pretty similar, a different flavour of course as it was different grains. Personally, I would prefer to make the FFV again. Its just as simple once you have the base knowledge for it. But it's going to take a while to build that up (nurturing a ferment more etc). Once you are there its going to be cheaper (don't need al the extra ingredients etc). And its still a nicer for my taste.
@@StillIt I've been making the FFV for around 6 months. Goes down a treat in my circles. Thanks for putting me onto it. Next I'm getting into all grain peated whiskies :o
1:38 lol, that shouldn't work, but certainly got a chuckle out of me.
Are you sure about that voltage tip? The only difference between 120v and 240v will be current. The same wattage and energy will be used. So for 240v if it draws 4 amps the 120v will draw 8.
hey jessie, on filtering, why not filter the 90% product then add water as to speed it up?
well i like turbo clear , I only have a problem with the price. i used turbo clear when it first hit the market and now i find it to pricey. If u use the clarifier agent , carbon agent the overall cost to me is too high. I use various products now not hooked on any. But i like my vodka clean crisp and no smell and little flavor. keep it in freezer pour over ice with a lime or lemon work for me . thats my take on it. MOONSTILL SHINING.
Have you tried bentonite? Some people swear by it but it never worked for me.
Bentonite does work but has to be “prepped” ie hydrated for 8+ hours before addition to the wash for efficiency
@@Teddysad ok thanks. :)
Hi, quick question Jesse...... can freeze refraction give a similar outcome to distilling
Great video Jesse. Wondering what your thoughts are to just doing a full turbo wash but with adding rolled oats in to the ferment? I'm a turbo guy but this is something I've been pondering for a while just to add some smoothness.
I am waiting for delivery of my first still (Turo 500) Your videos are very helpful for a beginner and help understand the process. Thanks.
dont skip the vinegar cleaning run 1st, they say its ready to go right out of the box.. mainly if you got a copper one but you gotta do that cleaning run, not mentioned in any notes in the damn pack. also lemon juice / citric acid give it a good clean too
@@woofnstuff Thank you. I'm new to stilling and all advice is appreciated
I can already tell the turbo yeast worked because I'm seeing double!
16:16 "Some say..." 🤣
Hi Jesse, when You are making neutral spirit, how you get rid off the Amyl Alcohol (fruity smell)? The problem is, it is releasing thru all process of distilling . After two Reflux Distilling I have 96.5% of Alcohol but fruity smell is still present.No matter how much Heads are removed, it is still slightly fruity. I think only activated carbon can kill it. I heard about 2.5 distilling
I'm a long time brewer and decided to give distilling a go. I bought at T500 and this was by far the best intro video i've seen.
Great work mate, this (and the whole channel) is awesome.
Hello sir. My hobby is making homebrew wine and now i'm interested in distillation. I have a question, in this video you distilled the wash until you got around 90% abv then dilute it with water to get 40% (am i right?). The question is: do i need to get high percentage abv then dilute it with water, or can i just distilling it until i get the percentage abv i desired? Thanks.
Would be also useful to see a cost and time breakdown comparison with say tpw or TFFV although I suspect this video’s sponsor may not like to see it there
On those metrics I would wager a fair amount of $$ that the TPW of FFV would win.
But that's not the point of this video, il follow up more in the QnA (to lazy to type the whole thing out lol). But basically do you think someone who has 1 day of research can make TSFFV or TPW? Im guessing their success's rate is going to be a fair bit lower.
I love that J hangs out with his old lecturer hahahaha
What a legend!!!
Hang out? Not as often as I would like. Catch up for a beer / coffee when we can? Definitely!
@@StillIt lol, fine then, I love that vibe that you defined :)
@Still It Hi Jesse, have you ever heard of using pure NaOH ( commonly use as drain cleaner) to up the Ph of the low wines to 8 or a little above? It makes sure the tasteful esters are cleaved back into carboxylic acid and alcohol. IMO the most effective way to decrease the unwanted flavours and increase your yield. It would be a nice test!
Is the Turbo Carbon a stand in for something else that's usually used? Is it standard to add activated carbon when fermenting or this just Turbo bumping up sales?
Nah, I wouldn't use it in anything else. Its not needed. Turbo yeast kinda sacrifices' nuance and "polish" to make sure "it just works". It makes sure that a first timer that has not put a lot of effort into research can just get a result. To do that it needs to put a lot of extra stuff into the wash. It makes sure the yeast take off and do their job, but its nasty tasting. The carbon and turbo clear help to minimise that before it goes into the still.
So in other words, it works for the "yay, I got distilling equipment for xmas, lets make it on boxing day". But if you put in some serious research time ( I would legit estimate it was around 100 hours total for me before I distilled my first drop) you will likely use another yeast type and not need it.
Jesse, have you checked out Odin's easy whiskey recipe?
He runs whiskey at full reflux collecting up to 190 proof, keeps only the tightest cuts, and recycles all his feints into the next wash.
1.5? Kinda. I haven't received my new 53 plate 8" copper column try so I haven't tried it but he swears it produces a very rich, cool flavored whiskey even at that percentage.
I would love to see you do a video on that
I have seen a lot of people talk about it. I have not tried it yet. Its something I need to try for sure.
@@StillIt I'll be doing it this autumn. 5 grain. Going to be exciting
Jesse would you do a video of just crushed wheat with the yellow packet yeast and see if you can go to whiskey using just plain old wheat ?
Wish we could do this in my country
If your talking angle yellow lable yeast then yes you can. I didn't do a straight wheat mash bill but corn oats barley and wheat all unmalted and it chews through it great just keep on eye on pH if you go with 3lbs of grain to gal of water or higher.
Hey Jesse! Talking about experiments, have you tried aging your hodge podge vodka with charred oak? You Don’t need to make a video on it, but the aged spirit is better than the vodka. I can tell you from experience! ;)
I had to watch several times to make sure I was seeing it right. Well and the wife wanted help with dinner so there was that. Lol... Jesse, is there carbon in that Stillspirits sugar? It seems to make Turbo nice you have to add a whole bunch of other Turbo products to clean it up. Cheeky marketing guys!
I am a novice at spirits but did a fair bit of beer and mead brewing... I think the carbon is supposed to eat the yeast flavours, not much else. I remember the homely smell of beer yeast and bread baking... none of these from the turbo kit.
Oh I agree. It just stuck me as odd. I'm actually interested in trying the Sodium Carbonate trick that Bearded and Bored did on his pot still vodka vid. Sounds interesting.
Didn’t you do a video using an Anvil Foundry 10 gallon brew pot to distill?
Hmm. I do not have a T500. The idea of putting carbon mud into the fermenter suggests that the Turbo yeast does some nasty stuff that needs to be cleared out. Obviously it works, but why not make a clean ferment in the first place? I don’t get it. Following the instructions, you don’t have a way to cut the Heads, but you later suggest that. I do get charcoal filtering the final spirit, but you lose volume. My hat is off to you for giving this a go.
You have to clear ALL ferments for best results - there are different ways to do it though.
This is just so hilarious I had to watch it twice.. I just couldn't hear everything said the first time I was laughing so hard..
Did the turbo yeast do a good job. Taste good or was it a yeastie taste
I cant say for certain. But my take on it is the "potatoey" taste Ian mentioned is the nutrients not the yeast itself.
long overdue an update on your dunder pit and a Rum video lol
Good fair test this time🙄. I have had a t500 for 18 months and have carried out 12 spirit runs using a variety of turbo, classic and pure, PTW and black beauty yeasts, here in NZ. A few comments on your tips. Leaving the wash for a week after adding the turbo clear produces the same result as cold crashing. The peg to control the water is genius, I have the still spirits water supply tank and it is still very sensitive. I stabilise the column for 15 min by adjusting the reflux flow to keep the temp around 40 degrees C. Instead of running to a temperature I control the production rate to around 10cc per min. Over a period of several hours you end up reducing the water flow and as a result he temperature increases. I take off the first 200 cc as feints the next 400cc I keep as a seperate cut ( this cut ends up with a sweeter smell and taste, it needs to be filtered separately) all the rest until the temperature reaches 60 deg is fine. I stop then as the tails come through. Dilute to 40% and add contact carbon at 10 gms per litre, leave for 7 days then filter through activated carbon. All but the first cut ends up with absolutely no odour it’s a great consistent base to experiment with flavouring.
have a look for "Big Red" in some of the brew shops, 1 pack i put into a 55L and add extra tomato paste, works a treat
I follow instructions with the Turbo packs... The clearing agent has worked 3 out of 6 times? I got ZERO taste difference??
Hi Jesse: while I understand that you're doing it "by the book" because Still Spirits sponsored this video, but previously you've questioned the need to clear your wash if you're distilling in a boiler that doesn't have exposed elements, eg. the Still Spirits system with a T500 column. Do you still stand by that? Interested in your comments.
Hows it mate, yup I do totall stand by that still. But, regardless of the sponsorship (They were pretty cool letting me say whatever the hell I thought lol) think its best to use it in this context. Il mention this comment in a video coming out ASAP for more info :)
Why proof down to below 40% before redistilling? Sry maybe it's obvious but I just started distilling and only did the birdwatchers till now.
Alex ... it is a safety issue ... 40% + is very flammable .... personally I go to 30% as I find my still more controllable at 30% than 40% (less sensitive to power and water flow changes)
@@marty8583 ok thanks it's always nice to learn something new.
my comment made it to the pop pop pop screen XD . interesting enough in my part of the world (PNW), my T500 does not produce unless it is over 64C... wonder if there is a nice chart they can make ...
pop pop screen? Not sure what you mean sorry mate haha. Yeah, good point man should have included that! Atmospheric pressure is going to mess with those numbers! Do you have some altitude?
@@StillIt the sound effect of screen caps going up 🤣 we are right about sea level here... maybe 60 meters up. How high was the area in NZ where they design these stills? Sounds like it is higher pressure here needing a higher boiling point.
If I had to guess, I would give Ian a double distilled... clean, sharp, spirit... I think that's what he likes in a vodka. Somebody taught me that "good vodka has no taste (flavour)"... it is Russian for "water". Aquavita comes to mind!
Very interesting concept, but you didn’t explain what you did with the reflux column. You also mentioned doing cuts which is not usually done when using a ‘packed’ column.
I’m genuinely interested in knowing exactly what you are doing here.
Thanks and cheers!
Not sure what you mean about the reflux column sorry mate? what info are you lacking?
And you absolutely need to take cuts from a reflux column. How you do it depends on the exact type of column.
Greeting from Mexico. I subscribed because I'm in the tequila capital of the world and had a crazy idea the other day, I would like to distill pulque. I'd like to send you some stuff some time for content on your videos!
Welcome to the channel mate :)
Unfortunately its almost impossible to privately sent any plant material into NZ unless its a vacuum sealed commercial product:(
@@StillIt well pulque is a drink, an actual alcoholic bevarage. I imagine I could send it bottled with its fermentation stopped. There's also its precursor sort of speak, called aguamiel. Its just boiled down honey (think agave honey) that comes from the juices inside of a maguey plant, sealed and packaged. They're interesting stuff, and not a lot of this has been distilled
Hi mate, new to the Channel , are you Kiwi?
I am indeed :) You just made it into the QnA on the latest vid about to go out haha.
Making rum from mash made 8 months ago. Might need to double distill lol
I guess you cut Mike and Camron loose. Maybe B&B could use their services. When you say cement taste do you mean petrichor?
Also I'm curious about the flavoring with oats and malt, IDK if you have ever had rye vodka but it has a flavor and in some things it rocks. Is the flavoring you did along those lines? When you describe what you're looking for in a vodka I think 20% potato 30% oat 50% rye (in the mash). It's not "neutral" but it is good.
Just commenting how nicely your beard grows! Much respect for beard-brother!
Temps vary by elevation where you are. I'm at 1500 ft. above sea level and those temps don't work here. Filter it and add glycerin to make it drinkable. I see the production budget was minimal this time. Good show but pay them in booze.
Why does the water flow through the condenser have to be so precise?
Because that’s how you control both the reflux and product condenser on this still and that flow rate is the recommended one to balance the reflux and product off take speed
I want to see Jesse on Moonshiners: Master Distiller
May be hard from NZ lol
Much better mate.
😂😂😂😂😂 big salute from Saudi Arabia 🇸🇦 i hope you include my country on your shipping lists
At the end of the day it becomes a choice of whether you prefer "'vodka" or "whodka". GNS has its place for flavoured spirits and vodka but when you make your own, whodka seems the more appealing thing to make. You can buy cheap flavourless alcohol at the store any day of the week and it all tastes exactly the same (like nothing).
"You can buy cheap flavourless alcohol at the store any day of the week" - Nope, no you can't.
PS: to others: GNS = Grain Neutral Spirit.
Whodka = Vodka for whiskey (that is American whiskey) drinkers available only in the US AFAIK.
@@vtbn53 Here in Canada almost every bottle of vodka on the shelf is GNS plus water with a fancy label. Most consumers prefer this over a pot stilled/small number of plates to get a vodka with flavour. Marketing plus a tanker truck that pulls up and pumps the GNS. Water Source and Glycerin are the big differentiating factors. The number of "distilleries" that make there own is few and far between. New distilleries try to survive on Gin and Vodka made from GNS until they can actually deliver aged Whiskey. There is a small market for white dog but usually not enough to keep the lights on. For most it is cheaper to buy a tanker of GNS from the big guys than it is to do it at a smaller scale. Similarly many small "distilleries" will blend mass produced whiskeys or just have them delivered and put their own stamp on them being essentially marketing businesse. Order by the Barrel from MGP and get a sticker machine. So usually you can walk into the liquor store and buy whatever vodka is cheapest and you can count on getting GNS + RO filtered water.
@@robertfontaine3650 I suppose the upside of that is that that spirit is probably much cheaper than what we can get our hands on here in Oz and NZ. I can assure you that virtually everything you wrote is gobbeldygook to us (in the sense it is terminology we are not used to, although it's entirely possible that the younger generation are I am not sure, but they seemed to be enamored of everything American theses days).
@@vtbn53 A) I am not American B) I am not young. :)
@@robertfontaine3650 I never said you were, all I am saying is none of those terms and products, which originate in the US, are used here in Australia.
It’s flocculated out not precipitation 😋😜
Let's see more of the sound and camera guy alter egos!
Err whats going on with that thermostat?! You shouldn't be getting any product at 50C-60C. You wont be getting any significant liquid ethanol volume out until the liquid hits the high 80's.
Picked up on that one as well 👍
The T-500 has the thermometer in a weird place. It is NOT at the top of the column. It is at the output of the water on the product condenser.
@@asdfas3432523dsd Ta for that. As the vid is kinda aimed at newish distillers, seems a bit of an oversight for this not to have been qualified.
Thought something was weird with that, my t500 came with a very basic column that does have the thermometer at the top, I did my first run ever with it the other day and it sat at pretty much 77.7c for the majority of the run, I stopped it at 78.7 because the guy at the shop said when it went one degree higher to stop but I didn't get a very good yield... I also got a bit worried about hitting 82c because that when other compounds start evaporating, is there an actual issue running it until you've got the expected quantity of ethanol regardless of the temp increase?? I lost about 30% of what I should've got but it was 97% or so and after charcoal filtering 3x it's delicious and has no off tastes.
As far as I am aware the early T-500 did use a thermometer at the top. The person that told me this implied it was many years ago. Which is a bit weird when you imply you brought it new. Don't worry though, my still is two generations before the T-500. It's all about knowing your equipment and using it well.
'I stopped it at 78.7'. I hope you mean the hearts, and not stopped the still. When the temp rises, still collect, but collect in a different container. This is the tails. You put that into the next run of the still, or collect a few heads and tails and do a separate run with just those components. I stop my still when I get somewhere between 92c and 95c. Up until now I have been basing my cuts on temp. However, Jesse has inspired me to collect everything in small jars and make decisions based on taste.
Filtering is another whole thing. I assume you are using Turbo yeast, and distilling once, so yeah filtering is probably required. People say using other yeast gives a cleaner wash, so filtering is not required. People give Turbo shit, but it makes things starting off for the new distiller much easier.
The other thing is temp control for fermentation. This can also help by not stressing the yeast. Too cold yeast will die, too hot and off flavours are going to come through in the wash.
distill diy gasoline, same method, with some extra heat to make the starter, just the same
yes use alcohol as the source biomass, to be pyrolysed
turbo, grin
sugar/charcoal + metal + water + pyrolysis = syn gas = gasoline distil
That D-bag boom mic guy, was the worst. Thanks for telling him off.
A wine yeast specifically a dry wine will go below 0. Dady will not get there from my experience
In Soviet Russia, we normally use 6% H2O2 to make the beard even mooooarrrr bushy, man.
Was just kiddin. It's almost the rockets fuel oxidizer so, be careful to clean the stuff, not the beard with hydrogen peroxide.
After seeing one of your videos. I made a good vodka using what I had on hand. 4kg white sugar, 0.5kg raw sugar, 10 x wheat biscuits (generic brand version of Weetbix) juice of 1 lemon (I might have used 2, the water here is very alkaline, I was too distracted to take exact notes.) 2 teaspoons of yeast enhancer. Mixed the sugars up in 4 litres boiling water then added to fermenter. Mixed in rest of ingredients and filled with warm water to hit 20L. I used Australian premium spirit yeast when it got to 30C. Later that night the airlock sounded like a geiger counter. It was done in just over 24 hours. I couldn't believe it was done, tasted the wash and it was sour... not a hint of sweetness. Checked the hydro reading... yep, it was done. Used two part turbo clear and waited another 24 hours.
Ran it through the pot still, it came out at 80%, then cut some to test. I was surprised how decent it was straight away. Left the small batch of hearts that I cut to 40% for a couple of days and it's good. I'm gonna use wheat biscuits again, next time I'm gonna use at least twice as much.
So if you had a temperature controlled conical fermenter, you’d be pretty set?
when I saw a dude "in the dark" I thought it was George! Damn, it'll be so freaking cool to have him as a final boss sometime
It would, but a long way for him to travel.
@@vtbn53 shit! I think it's gonna worth it!
@@jeffreyfreeborn6879 LOL when was the last time you spent 20+ hours on a plane (one way)? And who is going to pay for it? But yeah, it would be great.
Funny...I don't remember ever using sanitizer when helping dad and grandpop in the North Carolina woods. Some of the most sought after liquor in those hills! Its great to see this art being carried on though. Love your content!
Your preference in vodka is the same reasons I like sake.
to better suit Ian, add dash of petrol
George is a fukin legend!!
Barley and hops brewing
How come you never explained what the final boss Ian had tasted? As in what was A B and C in the taste test...?
What is the advantages/disadvantages of different storage containers? Glass (brown and clear) vs stainless vs plastic vs wood etc
I can't believe he didn't actually rate them from out of something 1-10 🤔
Interesting to hear you say this. I have been thinking about adding something like that to vids. Unfortunitly all of this stuff is very VERY subjective. Both in taste and also in "what the hell are we actually mesuring". Good to see some feedback on it though. Il do some more thinking.
You really should put a disclaimer about sing star scan as a beard product
Haha! Sweet intro. Love when you do something new, even if it’s just a small touch. We’ll done!
OMG! It was moronic, and greatly lessened my respect for Jesse. Truly pathetic.
At the beginning of the video, sanitize sanitize sanitize, @5:34 sucks on the end of a siphon hose.
Still encouraging people to kick donkeys, don`t fret I turn off the sound at that point then turn it back on for the good content.
Yeah he should be reported to the RSPCA. Although, at least he doesn't actually SAY it.