Pot stills are the modern descendant of the alembic still. They were among the earliest still types used to manufacture spirits. Pot still are comparatively inefficient which can be a good thing when making whiskey. For example, when making neutral spirit with no flavor and high alcohol yield you would use a reflux or column still. For whiskey you will need to produce a product that maintains the flavors of mash. In this situation the pot still is most suitable.
A pot still possesses 4 primary parts: We will look at each one in more depth.
Pot: The shape of the pot is normally a cylinder that's wider at the top than the bottom. The pot is loaded with the fermented mash and heated up with fire or perhaps an internal heating apparatus. The majority of commercial distilleries heat up the wort (aka wash) with four hundred degree steam pumped by means of tubing which is coiled inside of the pot.
Swan Neck: The neck allows the vaporized alcohol as well as some water\flavor to rise up and enter into the lyne arm. The neck is often narrower at the topin comparison to the bottom allowing for non-ethanol components to condense around the walls and fall down again into the wash.
Lyne Arm: The lyne arm will affect the amount of non-ethanol components that make it into the distillate. For instance, as the vapors rise up the neck and into the lyne arm the temperature becomes cooler while the less volatile compounds (h2o, flavor, etc.) change from a gas to a liquid. If the lyne arm is ascending at a 45 degree angle those compounds will pass back down into the wash. This gives you a 'lighter' flavour and greater alcohol content in the final product. Alternatively if the lyne neck was angled down at a forty-five degree angle the less volatile substances will condense and drip into the condenser combined with the ethanol vapors thus providing the distillate a far more flavorful, 'fuller', taste.
Condenser: The condenser cools the ethanol vapors to a temperature that is less than the boiling point of the ethanol. Therefore, it condenses the vapors into liquid. Condensers might be cooled by the surrounding air temperature, flowing air (a fan) or water. With a water cooled condenser the cool water will be pumped through a coil or around the outside of the tube that carries the ethanol vapors. Different types will utilize different approaches. The key is to chill the vapors so that they drip into a collection container versus escaping into the atmosphere.
Simply, the distiller must test out different mash recipes, still shapes and designs to develop the end product that the distiller set out to produce. In a nutshell, take notes, don't rush, enjoy yourself and experiment.
A pot still possesses 4 primary parts: We will look at each one in more depth.
Pot: The shape of the pot is normally a cylinder that's wider at the top than the bottom. The pot is loaded with the fermented mash and heated up with fire or perhaps an internal heating apparatus. The majority of commercial distilleries heat up the wort (aka wash) with four hundred degree steam pumped by means of tubing which is coiled inside of the pot.
Swan Neck: The neck allows the vaporized alcohol as well as some water\flavor to rise up and enter into the lyne arm. The neck is often narrower at the topin comparison to the bottom allowing for non-ethanol components to condense around the walls and fall down again into the wash.
Lyne Arm: The lyne arm will affect the amount of non-ethanol components that make it into the distillate. For instance, as the vapors rise up the neck and into the lyne arm the temperature becomes cooler while the less volatile compounds (h2o, flavor, etc.) change from a gas to a liquid. If the lyne arm is ascending at a 45 degree angle those compounds will pass back down into the wash. This gives you a 'lighter' flavour and greater alcohol content in the final product. Alternatively if the lyne neck was angled down at a forty-five degree angle the less volatile substances will condense and drip into the condenser combined with the ethanol vapors thus providing the distillate a far more flavorful, 'fuller', taste.
Condenser: The condenser cools the ethanol vapors to a temperature that is less than the boiling point of the ethanol. Therefore, it condenses the vapors into liquid. Condensers might be cooled by the surrounding air temperature, flowing air (a fan) or water. With a water cooled condenser the cool water will be pumped through a coil or around the outside of the tube that carries the ethanol vapors. Different types will utilize different approaches. The key is to chill the vapors so that they drip into a collection container versus escaping into the atmosphere.
Simply, the distiller must test out different mash recipes, still shapes and designs to develop the end product that the distiller set out to produce. In a nutshell, take notes, don't rush, enjoy yourself and experiment.
About the Author:
To learn more about making moonshine at home, the how to distill and info on the equipment and tools used in distillation visit your local craft distillery.
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