Still Smart

UPDATE JAN 2012 – As pointed out by David in the comments, the ‘Recipes’ section of the site mentioned below is currently being flagged as malicious by Google. This may change, or may be a mistake but still – proceed with caution!

In their own words :

Infusions of Grandeur is a blog of vodka infusions and mad science. Your hosts, renowned mad scienticians Brendan and Wayland, begin an experiment each week, infusing vodka with a new flavor. We began this blog in December 2006, and before that point, we had never attempted to create an infused vodka before.

We are learning about infusions through experiments, research, and the kind suggestions of our readers. By blogging every step of the process, we hope to teach others to create their own infusions (and hopefully entertain them in the process).

In my words :

Two silly men make lots of drinks with vodka, some good and some bad. Great attention to detail, loads of pictures and a suitably scientific style mean that this is both an amusing and useful resource.

Hi everyone! This is just to let you know that we have setup an Amazon store featuring lots of books and other items that may be of interest to the home distiller. I must point out that we are not selling these ourselves, we just collected the Amazon items into one place for your convenience. However, we do get a small commission if you buy through our store, which goes towards supporting this site.

Here is the link – enjoy your shopping!

After our recent article about preventing the top popping loose on your SmartStill/EasyStill, I’ve received some more detailed information about the issue. It seems that all stills now come with a set of Raschig rings, as I recommended earlier. If you have one of the older models, then my advice to purchase some for yourself is still valid.

Read the rest of this entry »

Continuing with our mission to demystify the SmartStill/EasyStill range, here is a guide to the various parts of the machine showing their location and what each part does. Yes I know, it’s a boring theory lesson rather than a tale of booze and glamour but the more you learn, the better you will understand what is happening!

Read the rest of this entry »

I was drinking a bottle of tasty Vimto the other day, when the thought suddenly struck me that Vimto syrup would be an excellent basis for a fruity wash – it’s high in sugar, contains lots of interesting fruit flavourings, even some barley malt and spices.

I did some research online, but I couldn’t find anyone else who had done anything similar. This set off warning bells in my mind, surely someone else had thought along the same lines? I did find one post where someone mentioned that a friend had made delicious wine from Vimto (and Ribena!) but with no further details. Being a bit silly with this kind of thing, I decided it should be my mission to make Vimto brandy!

Read the rest of this entry »

In the interest of helping others, I now present my guide to completely failing to make apple brandy. The keen-eyed amongst you will quickly spot the folly of this method, but perhaps it will serve to educate those who are as stupid as myself and prevent more innocent fruit giving their lives for nothing. Luckily, I only did this on a small scale as a test!

Read the rest of this entry »

If you’ve done your research about distilling at home, I’m sure you’ve come across the many different types of spirit essences that are available to flavour your drinks. Generally speaking they are added to plain vodka, sometimes with sugar or cream additives, to make approximations of various different drinks.

Read the rest of this entry »

The daddy of distillation websites, Tony Ackland’s Home Distillation of Alcohol pages are a goldmine of useful information. There’s theory, still designs, wash preparation, distilling, flavouring, aging… pretty much anything you can want is here. The downside is that there is so much information that it’s sometimes hard to find an answer quickly. Also, much of the material is submitted by others and their views can differ dramatically – sometimes you have to just go with your own instinct and hope for the best.

Overall then, it’s an excellent site and it should be essential reading for anyone who is even considering distilling at home. I would urge everyone to read through as much as they can before getting involved, so that they understand the theory and the different options available.

Home Distiller

Here is a website that I stumbled upon which contains some great detailed information about making Amaretto, Almond Liqueur, several other fruit liqueurs and uniquely also includes recipes for pies and pastries you can make using your left-over macerated fruit! Well worth checking out, doesn’t have as many liqueurs as some sites but the detailed instructions are superb.

Homebrew Underground

Here is a glossary of terms relating to fermentation, distillation and associated subjects. I will keep adding terms as often as I can to keep it up to date.

A.B.V. – Alcohol By Volume, a measure of the quantity of alcohol in a given volume of liquid. This is different to the proof of a spirit, which is calculated as double the A.B.V. amount.

Beer – A general term given to fermented malt beverages, also another term for some types of wash.

Denaturing – The process of adding a substance to ethyl alcohol to make it unfit for human consumption. This allows retailers to sell the product without incurring the usual taxes, and is extremely difficult to reverse without a lot of expensive equipment – your home still is no good here!

Distillate – That portion of a liquid which is removed as a vapour and condensed during a distillation process.

Distillation – The process of separating the components of a mixture by differences in boiling point.

Ethanol – The alcohol product of fermentation that is used in alcohol beverages and for industrial purposes, i.e. the ‘good’ alcohol for our purposes!

Fermentation – The process by which yeast turns sugars into alcohol and carbon dioxide.

Heads – The initial run of distillate at the start of the distillation process.

Mash – A mixture consisting of crushed grains and water that can be fermented to produce alcohol.

Proof – Measure of alcohol strength, used in the U.S.A. – proof is twice the A.B.V. so 50% ABV is 100% proof.

Rectification – Re-distillation of a previously distilled liquid, so technically when you double or triple distill you are actually rectifying.

Still – A device used for distillation, often of alcohol.

Tails – The last parts collected during a distillation, generally weaker and containing undesirable congeners and fusel oils.

Wash – The liquid produced by fermentation, which can then be distilled.