Making spirits at home can seem daunting, but it’s a rewarding process that anyone can master with a little practice. This guide will take you through the essential steps to create your own spirits at home, highlighting the benefits of each step along the way.
Step 1: Gather Your Equipment and Ingredients
Before you start distilling, you'll need to gather all necessary equipment and ingredients. This includes:
- Still: The apparatus for distillation.
- Fermenter: A container for the fermentation process.
- Sanitiser: To ensure all equipment is clean.
- Fermentable Sugar (usually dextrose), Yeast, and Water: The main ingredients for your wash.
Tips:
- Ensure all your equipment is sanitised to avoid contamination.
Step 2: Prepare the Wash
The wash is the liquid mixture that contains the fermentable sugars needed for alcohol production.
- Mix Ingredients: Combine your fermentable sugar (dextrose), water, and yeast in the fermenter.
- Ferment: Allow the mixture to ferment for 1-2 weeks until the fermentation process is complete.
- Clearing: Use a clearing agent like Turbo Clear to clear your wash before transferring it to the boiler of your still
Tips:
- Keep the fermenter in a stable temperature environment to ensure proper fermentation.
- Use a hydrometer to monitor the fermentation progress.
Step 3: Distillation
Distillation is the process of heating the fermented wash to separate the alcohol from the mixture.
- Transfer the Wash: Pour the fermented wash into the still.
- Heat and Distill: Heat the still to boil off the alcohol, which is then condensed back into liquid form.
Tips:
- Monitor the temperature closely to ensure efficient distillation.
- Make sure to separate the distillate into heads, hearts, and tails, keeping the hearts for consumption.
Step 4: Cutting
Cutting is the process of separating the different parts of the distillate.
- Heads: The first part, which should be discarded due to high levels of impurities.
- Hearts: The middle part, which is the best quality and kept for consumption.
- Tails: The final part, which can contain unwanted flavors.
Tips:
- Use a tasting and smelling technique to accurately identify the different cuts.
- Be patient and careful during this process to ensure the best quality spirit.
Step 5: Bottling and Aging (Optional)
Once you’ve made the cuts, it’s time to bottle your spirit, and optionally, age it for improved flavour.
- Sanitise Bottles: Ensure all bottles are thoroughly sanitised.
- Adding the Flavour: Mix up your favourite flavoured essence as per the makers instruction into your alcohol base. We stock Still Spirits, Edwards Essences and Sam Willard's in store for you to try.
- Bottle the Spirit: Fill each bottle with the flavoured alcohol.
- Aging: Age the spirit in barrels or with wood chips if desired, to develop deeper flavours.
Tips:
- Store the bottled spirit in a cool, dark place.
- If aging, periodically taste the spirit to monitor its development.
Additional Tips
Extra Advice:
- Patience: Allow the spirit to age and develop its flavours fully for the best results.
- Experiment: Try different fermentable sugars and aging methods to find your preferred taste.
