Hey Popcorn!

[The Raven]

What's corn to malt ratio do you normally run?

[LoneRider]

ive not been running malt.
ground corn [20kg], 56 kg of sugar.
when thats fermented run it,then put more sugar water back into the corn [easy sour mash]

mind you,my mash is done in a 44.

if your making a bourbon,try corn/barley/malt rye.
rye is strong so use it the least amount.
your grain bill should equal 100%.
so 75/20/5 [roughly] corn being the bigger amount for bourbon.
malt rye or malt barley doesnt matter.try em both and see which you prefer.
grind everything to the smallest you can......
and boil it......

[The Raven]

Thanks for that.

I've been upping the malt content to see what will happen. If anything, more headaches...

Not tried sugar at that ratio, more like 1:1.50 but a second addition may be the go. WTF do you get it in that qty, no-one local stocks it in 20Kg... Oh, that little bit extra of raw makes a big difference.

Mine's straight white, although I tend to mix it when sipping. Been resisting oaking it, probably should try it.

If you do an Apple pie it'll vanish very quick, everyone likes it.

I'm not a big rye fan, but will have to try it again.

Been grinding the crap out of it and it's a lot better.

[LoneRider]

the flavour of the corn comes out much nicer when its ground.
dont throw that corn away,mash back in with sugar water.
oaking will just make it like from the barrel,but keep check on it,it will go dark in time and you probably wont want that.
i usually buy sugar in 3kg bags from woolies,they can barely keep enough on the shelves
7kg sugar to 25 ltr [56kg or so to 200ltr]
if its got starch or sugar in it,it can be made into grog... even nuts will give a flavour.

i made 40 ltrs of apple pie for me ol mum 2 yrs ago.its a bit strong for her so ive got to cut it back some more.

i mix it too,but only cause it hasnt got that oak barrel color yet.

[The Raven]

Ground corn definitely = more flavour.

Hmm, will have to think about reusing the corn. I see what you're suggesting.

3Kg is the best, black and gold usually the cheapest locally. I went 6Kg with an extra Kg of raw, that definitely pushed up the ABV.

May be mixing up some pie tonight...

[LoneRider]

reusing the corn makes it sour mash.
im on the forth run using the same corn.
french oak colors quickly [over night] but is a different taste.
try a small bottle and see what you think.

the wheat/corn mash didnt work.tipped it out.
i think it got an infection.
turned sour and didnt hold alc.
ill try it again another day.

in a 7kg/25 ltr wash try 3 kg of raw.
i used 8x25 ltr drums at that mix and got 40 ltrs of 86% instead of the usual 20 from all white.

[The Raven]

I'm limited in the scale of my operation and can't process as much as you can.

It takes me around a week to run 50+ L of mash (2x27l normally). That's running it twice.

Small pot, not reflux.

How do you store the corn that long, sounds like that could lead to infection?

Thinking of Apple Pie tonight...

[DSD]

I have found dextrose gives a better product.

I have only tried reflux though.
Only run it once but filter twice.
Can get 19lt 40% from 2x 8kg dex and 20ltr water + pack of yeast on a sunday but 4-5 days to filter. If i has the need/ desire could get that every weekend until winter then need heat belt to keep it turning over that quick.
Cost under 3 bucks a litre for neutral. How much your way?

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[LoneRider]

i havent had an infection in the corn,i just leave the lid on until im ready to mash in again [bit over a week last time]
just scale down what i use raven,to suit your lot.

dsd it costs me about 170 to make 20+ ltrs @ 86/87% cut down thats about 60 ltrs .

if its just sugar and im not fussed about the flavour i run it threw the high alc carbon filter.
you dont have to cut it down using that stuff.mine is a reflux [of sorts] too.

dont forget,a drum of ferment can last up to 3 months.you dont have to run it all off right away.

[The Raven]

My costs for neutral are:

6-7Kg of sugar (whatever's cheapest). Say $7 to $10
250gm of tomato paste (depending on brand, I get lazy and use the sachets which probably cost more) est. $1.50
a sprinkle of citric acid (50c)
and half a Turbo Yeast ($4.25)

Produces about 6-7l un-proofed for $16ish. Depending on ABV I usually get 9+ litres finished product.

Factoring in misc costs (charcoal filters but excluding electricity - heat pads and still) round numbers would make that $2+ per litre.

Oh, I have a nice 10l filtering system now. I filter at least 3-4 times, because it's so easy to just put it through again. Yep, need to order some new charcoal filters.

Never bothered with dextrose because no-one in Apalachia does, and those I know who have used dextrose don't produce a different taste.

You can cheap out on the yeast and go Lowan's but I find that takes at least two weeks to ferment vs 6 days, and the can invariably goes off before I finish it.

For shine, add the cost of roughly 5Kg of corn and 1Kg of malt per 25-27l of mash. I buy my corn at a feed store ($17 per 20Kg), the malt I bought in a huge bag from a local brew shop (can't remember).

[The Raven]

Looking for someone with copper working skills...

Would like a traditional setup with a worm and thumper (to throw on the BBQ)

Is that a black helicopter I hear hovering nearby?

[The Raven]

Apple pie cooling now.




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[LoneRider]

pretty sure i put a pic of my carbon filter on here awhile back,3 filters interlinked.
a bag of high alc carbon,about $5/half kilo, plastic plumbin bits some place around 30 including pipe and hose clamps.
the carbon can be re-activated in the micro wave,so its virtually a forever thing.

[The Raven]

I’ve seen the pic. It’s a good setup.

Mines an off the shelf brewing filter. It’s larger than the usual mini filters.

I’d like to know more about the microwave bit. I expect it would make my carbon filters disintegrate.


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[LoneRider]

with the granulated carbon,you can microwave it to clean and re activate it.
my mate does it all the time.
the high alc carbon means you can run right after distillation without the need to proof it down first.