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Whiskey Still Pot Still

Satisfactory Essays

The Whiskey Still, Pot Still
By Dan Sutton
Jul 3, 2012
Pot stills are the modern descendant of the alembic still. They were among the earliest still types made to create spirits. Pot still are relatively inefficient which can be beneficial 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 one needs to make a product that maintains the flavors of mash. In this situation the pot still is optimal.

A pot still possesses 4 main parts: We will look at each one in more depth.

Pot: The shape of the pot is normally a cylinder that is wider on top than the bottom. The pot is filled with the fermented mash and heated up with fire or an internal heating …show more content…

For example, when the vapors rise up the neck and into the lyne arm the temperature becomes cooler and the less volatile compounds (water, flavor, etc.) change from a gas to a liquid. If the lyne arm is ascending at a 45 degree angle those compounds will flow back into the wash. This gives you a 'lighter' flavor and increased alcohol content in the final product. On the other hand if the lyne neck was angled down at a 45 degree angle the less volatile substances will condense and flow into the condenser along with the ethanol vapors thus giving the distillate a more flavorful, 'fuller', taste.

Condenser: The condenser cools the ethanol vapors to a temperature that is less than the boiling point of the ethanol. Thus, it condenses the vapors to liquid. Condensers may be cooled by the surrounding air temperature, moving air (a fan) or water. With a water cooled condenser the cool water will be pumped through a coil or around the exterior of the tube that carries the ethanol vapors. Different types will utilize various methods. The key is to chill the vapors so that they drip into a collection container versus escaping into the atmosphere.

In the long run, the distiller must experiment with numerous mash recipes, still shapes and designs to create the end product that the distiller set out to create. Bottom line, take notes, don't rush, have fun and try new things

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