Best laid plans

[maheel]

can you pull out that temp gauge and try it in boiling water for 100'C ? also in ice cube water for 0'C

you should not be going over 100 ever (thats boiling water)

it might be able to be adjusted as some can be.... a cheap hongkong digi temp might be worth the $5

[devotus]

I'll pull it out and see if I can calibrate it. I have a couple of digi thermometers as well. I'm not all that fussed as long as it's consistent if it reads high then no real biggy except I paid $ for it.

[stubbydrainer]

HI devotus
Do you always get hungry when ya do the washing up? :laughing-rolling: :laughing-rolling: :laughing-rolling:

[devotus]

I had to go back and check the pics to see what the fcuk you were on about the banana is for scale as the problem I had when looking at photo's of peoples set ups was often there wasn't any scale reference and a 38mm column looked like a 100mm pipe. A drunk Banana is always great for scale

[Sam.]

It's all perspective....depends on where the banana is from, might be 1" might be 12" :laughing-rolling: :laughing-rolling: :laughing-rolling: :laughing-rolling:

[devotus]

A 12 " banana!!! grown on the Mururoa atoll!?

but you're right a better scale finder could of been used...a ruler for example

[Frank]

OK.banana issue resolved then. ;) and glad that is sorted...

Now.....what about the flaming dancers and the '80s new romantic dude with them?? :laughing-rolling:
I'm sure I've seen that guy on my little sister's bedroom wall posters at some stage :D ????

BTW mate, that is certainly a fine looking piece of stilling gear next to the washing up. I reckon even my wife would allow that 'upstairs' (maybe :roll: ). Great stuff really and well done.

EDIT: spelling (again)

[devotus]

Thanks Frank, I'm really liking it so far and the second run is coming out great. I found the good setting for the right heat and the wine that came out at 50% is now coming out with a beautiful clean taste at I don't know yet %.

I have a TPW sitting in the corner of the room that I made yesterday so I hope I have some success with that.

Should I stir that occasionally or just leave the thing?

I stirred the hell out of it with a big whisk to aerate it when I made it and a little stir when I pitched the hydrated yeast but have just left it be since then.




The flaming dancers are just stupidity to denote I really like my still and the dude is Zaphod Beeblebrox from the movie version of 'Hitchhikers guide to the galaxy'. If you haven't seen it, it's a funny movie but an even funnier set of books.

[SBB]

You shouldn't need to stir the TPW....just keep it nice n warm.

[devotus]

Danke

[QLD.Andy]

Zaphod Beeblebrox

Zaphod normally has 2 heads, the movie wasnt as good as the TV series IMO

[Frank]

Hey mate
..what Andy said re TPW ....can I add you might want to leave it as long as you can/ a while, as I've found it to be (relatively) slow to ferment completely but certainly worth the wait.

Re the still, if you do Absinth 'properly', it has :? wormwood and/or witchhazel or some such thing in it hasn't it? (the effect of which was a bit like a 'modern day' Laudenum :shhh: )????

Anyway, the forum (well...me anyway) would love to know the recipe when you're happy with it
...and good to hear its seeming like a winner thus far.

[devotus]

@Qld Andy; I agree the tv series was a lot better and Ford actor better suited.



@Frank; proper Absinthe has two types of wormwood the first being 'Grand wormwood' (Artemisia absinthium) and the second type 'Petite wormwood' also known as 'Roman wormwood' (Artemisia pontica).

The first imparts a sweet bitter taste to the Absinthe the latter the same to a lesser extent as its used for colouring after distillation.

Wormwood contains thujon which is said to have drug like effects...........it's bullshit............thujon in it's purist essential oil form is a neurotoxin but in even in the heaviest wormwood laden Absinthe the thujon levels are about 200-300 parts per million and harmless. The best absinthes that exist now and that even those that were pre ban sit between 10 ppm and 50 ppm so again negligible.

Absinthe has a few differing herbs in combination and it is said that that combination has an invigorating effect I would tend to agree as when I have a few glasses of Absinthe I don't get that heavy headed feeling I get with other drinks. That being said it's pretty mild and you'd be drawing a long bow to say it was (illicit) drug like.

All Absinthe sold in Australia or America, by law, must be under 10ppm thujon and this is solely because the government believes in the bogey man and doesn't do it's own research. This hinders the true Absinthe makers a bit, you CAN make an excellent Absinthe under 10ppm thujon however it is said that the better Absinthe is over this level most of the time because,

When the Absinthe is distilled the tails are recycled for the next maceration and in the tails is anethole and a few other goodies that impart flavour and texture to the distillate, however this practice also bumps the thujon limit over 10ppm probably to about 20ppm or 30ppm so no big deal to anyone but the drones that write the regulations.


When I get it all together I will definitely share the outcome and recipe.

[devotus]

MAN! this is a pain in the arse! trying to get supplies together and sorted here is a nightmare, pipe is measured metrically and fittings imperially to buy 2 metres 54mm pipe is 100€ (junk yards here sell all there copper to the recyclers €€€€€) and then to find fittings for a 54mm pipe is neart impossible and when you can one T piece is half the cost of the pipe!!.

I've decided to just go with 1 1/2 " or really 42mm (1.65") and can get 42mm T fittings for that but wonder if a 42mm pipe will fit in a 42mm T without a reducing joiner?

Valves....bloody hell!

This is all made 10x more frustrating because Deutsch is a extraordinarily hard language with 5 different words for the same bloody thing!

:angry-banghead: :angry-banghead: :angry-banghead: :angry-banghead:

[MacStill]

I have a few fittings here in 2" and a pretty good connection with a valve supplier, maybe we can work something out via post :think:

Let me know if I can help ;)

[devotus]

Thanks very much for the offer mate but post from Australia to Germany would lay waste to any savings (two jars vegemite and a tin milo = over $100 au).

I will just do the 42mm vm column here and flog the bits on ebay in 6 months just before I come home. When I get to OZ I'll make a better sized column. I'll probably need that valve contact then and if you still have the 2" T fitting then hopefully i could buy it from you then.

Cheers.

[SBB]

The thing in the last photo to the left of the bottle has had me intrigued .........Ive just found out what it is........ :dance: .....spoze I could have just asked. Is it a oldy or a reproduction?????

[devotus]

100% original reproduction :)

I like it, before I bought that I had a half bottle nailed to a tree stump with a hole poked in the bottle as my fountain. This is better.

[devotus]

stripping run in action




Hotplate is working well, easy to adjust even a few degrees. I'm interested how it goes with the column.

[devotus]

Collected to 95°c/35% it took approx 6 hours.

have to wait until next week to strip the rest but pretty happy with how everything went. A satisfying experience.

Thanks to all here who gave tips and even those who#s posts and threads I read that helped.

Next challenge.....the column :o