How much heads to throw away

Commercial distillers make high proof alcohol by using distillation to separate alcohol from water. Note, distillation does not produce alcohol; it only concentrates the alcohol that is already present. Distillation is actually the last step in the process of making very high proof alcohol. In the first part of the process, commercial distillers essentially make a low proof beer, which gets distilled later.

So, how does a commercial distiller like Ole Smoky make moonshine? They complete the following steps:. Make a mash using grains such as corn or sugar. The specific type of alcohol that commercial distillers seek is called ethyl alcohol.

Ethanol is able to be separated from water in a wash because ethanol boils at a lower temperature than water pure ethanol boils at degrees Fahrenheit, while water does not boil until degrees. In a nutshell, wash is heated up in a still to a temperature above degrees, but below degrees. Ethanol starts to boil and turns into a vapor, separating from the wash water. The vapor is then condensed turned back into a liquid and drips out of the still into a mason jar or some other collection vessel.

The overall process of distillation is pretty cut and dry, but it is complicated slightly by the fact that there are several different types of alcohol as well as many additional chemical compounds that will be extracted during the distilling process. These are known as congeners remember this word, it will come up again and some are desirable in small quantities, while others such as the foreshots are not.

Like ethanol and water, these compounds have different boiling temperatures. How does Absolut make vodka? When making vodka, as many congers are removed as possible because it is supposed to be a very pure, flavorless spirit. When making whiskey, the congeners are desirable because they add flavor and complexity. However, with the good congeners come some of the bad. One of the reasons that whiskey, like Jack Daniel's, is aged is to smooth out the flavorful, but somewhat harsh congeners present in the final product.

Because the various alcohols and chemical compounds in a wash separate at different boiling temperatures, there are several phases of each distillation run: foreshots, heads, hearts, and tails.

Some say touch, but I haven't figured that part out yet If yer using something other than a pot head, I have no idea. Good luck. Re: how much distillate to throw away Post by Mud Mechanik » Tue May 03, pm With a 1 gallon charge, it is very difficult to make proper cuts, on a 15 gallon charge, I consider the first ml foreshots.

I know it may be overkill, but I'm in it for the best likker possible. Courage is being scared to death and saddling up anywayJohn Wayne. Re: how much distillate to throw away Post by WalkingWolf » Wed May 04, am The only reason I'm adding anything on this is you appear to be "right-out-of-the-box" so I'll offer up some info.

As has been stated you're making cut-learning pretty tough with only 1 gallon read this near impossible. The fact that you are going with such a small amount I'd recommend you collect in small containers -- say 50mls at a time -- and save all of the containers. Number the containers 1 through X. Take a look if you have time to go down the rabbit hole. Or you can check out our entire blog here. Foreshots The first stuff that comes out of the still is the bad stuff.

The term bootlegger is derived from the practice of transporting alcohol during times of prohibition but transporting it in high boots. The amount of methanol in a package of aspartame is 10 mg. It would take packets of aspartame to equal 10 mL of methanol, yet people are still hysterical about it despite decades of safe use.

Enough to make you want to drink. So, instead of a bottle of Jack, you will instead get Jack. View the discussion thread. Josh Bloom, the Director of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Science, comes from the world of drug discovery, where he did research for more than 20 years.

He holds a Ph. Skip to main content. It's the Pot, Stupid. By Josh Bloom — June 6, Good thing that you can now make your own booze. Popcorn would be proud. Notes: 1 Moonshine gets its name because it was traditionally made at night to evade law enforcement.