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"So, I took about 10-12lbs of very ripe bananas and ran them through a blender.
I added 20 cups of sugar and a little over 3lbs. of brown sugar.
Then I added warm water to make 6 gallons.
I heated it up on the stove for about 15min to get it pretty warm. I then put the mixture into my fermentation vessels (2-3gallon jugs) and let it sit for 24 hours. I then added 3 little packages of bakers yeast to each jug. (1package per gallon)
I just bought the essential extractor from brewhaus. I plan on running it slow as a pot still for this batch.
Just wondering if anyone can tell me what to expect? Good? Yea? Nae?
Your thoughts . . ."
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"I know that wine made from bananas does not taste like bananas- Where did you get this idea?
My first thought is weather it will ferment at all without having been aerated before pitching."
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Wuglar,
Do a forum search for "bananas" to see the various discussions.
I don't know anything about using bananas for a wash, but they contain more sugar per pound than many other fruits, and they certainly have plenty of potassium. I suppose the trick is to figure out how to get those sugar into solution, then successfully ferment them. Regardless, since you're using mostly sugar, you should be able to get something to ferment provided you address the other issues (such as aeration as Scotty mentions) and nutrition.
--JB
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you can use a pectolase enzyme which breaks down the cell structure and pectin in fruits.It also seems to increase the flavor carry over in the distillate to me.
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The bananas were very cheap. The recipe I kinda made up myself after reading a few different recipes online.
It is day 3 of fermentation and the air locks are still gurgling.
This will be my first run out of a decent still. I have only done 3 runs total so far, so I am still very much a Noob. lol
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" Originally Posted by: Wuglar  So, I took about 10-12lbs of very ripe bananas and ran them through a blender.
I added 20 cups of sugar and a little over 3lbs. of brown sugar.
Then I added warm water to make 6 gallons.
I heated it up on the stove for about 15min to get it pretty warm. I then put the mixture into my fermentation vessels (2-3gallon jugs) and let it sit for 24 hours. I then added 3 little packages of bakers yeast to each jug. (1package per gallon)
I just bought the essential extractor from brewhaus. I plan on running it slow as a pot still for this batch.
Just wondering if anyone can tell me what to expect? Good? Yea? Nae?
Your thoughts . . . Well, with only 3 lbs of sugar in 6 gallons of wash dont expect too much finished product. As to flavor careover if you push your heat up alittle that might give a noticable aroma to your likker. To make this work in your favor you really need a few more essential items, enzymes for conversion and nutrients for healthy yeast and aeration of the wash before adding yeast. You said the airlock is working so thats good - hope it comes out good. I'm not trying to be a smart azz but try something thats for sure gonna work before you experiment anymore, you'll be happier in the end."
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Originally Posted by: heeler Well, with only 3 lbs of sugar in 6 gallons of wash dont expect too much finished product. Correction: I used 3 lbs of brown sugar and 20 cups of white sugar. Day 5 of fermentation and still gurgling. As far as the aeration... If i did not boil the mixture would I have to aerate it? I just heated it up enough to dissolve the sugar. Here is a good video I watched about comparing the different kinds of yeast and what results each one had. http://www.clawhammersup...st-yeasts-for-distilling After reading about 2 hours worth of recipes I was pretty sure this would work...I just hope the finished product is worth my time. :) If not... Guess I will get to try again and again and again.
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Quote:If i did not boil the mixture would I have to aerate it? I used to do the aeration thing with sugar washes. Now I just drop the sugar in the bucket and dissolve it with about 6 quarts of boiling water thrown in on top. Then I top it off with cold water from the faucet. The faucet has an aeration screen, so I don't bother aerating. I haven't noticed any problems doing it this way. If it's still working off the sugar after 5 days, you're probably doing just fine. I'm sure it's worth your time even if it doesn't turn out the quite the way you were hoping ... it's just the cost of experimentation. I think experimentation that lets you take away some useful knowledge & experience is worth the effort ... especially when you're playing in an area where most of us don't go. It would be great to have a banana expert among our ranks! :) Enjoy, --JB
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Originally Posted by: John Barleycorn I used to do the aeration thing with sugar washes. Now I just drop the sugar in the bucket and dissolve it with about 6 quarts of boiling water thrown in on top. Then I top it off with cold water from the faucet. The faucet has an aeration screen, so I don't bother aerating. I haven't noticed any problems doing it this way. Ahhh... good idea! And easy.
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Originally Posted by: heeler Well, with only 3 lbs of sugar in 6 gallons of wash dont expect too much finished product. As to flavor careover if you push your heat up alittle that might give a noticable aroma to your likker.
To make this work in your favor you really need a few more essential items, enzymes for conversion and nutrients for healthy yeast and aeration of the wash before adding yeast. You said the airlock is working so thats good - hope it comes out good.
I'm not trying to be a smart azz but try something thats for sure gonna work before you experiment anymore, you'll be happier in the end. So Im about to run this banana wash thru my still ... I have the two piece reflux pci still from brewhaus. I will only be running this with one column But ... should I run the reflux part? Or do you think it would strip it down to much and loose the banana flavor? hrmmmm? Was thinking just leaving it off. That way I would maybe get some sweetness and banana flavor. Your thoughts
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I would keep the reflux off and collect as slow as possible. Did banana a cpl of months ago and turned out great. I used both pieces though with only 1/2 the copper in place
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So I finished the run. At 135 proof I could still taste the bananas but it was really hot. Now at 85 proof I have lost the banana flavor. Still taste decent. I will be drinking it. lol
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"Depends on how close you measured the volume of the sugar. Rule of thumb on white sugar is about 2 1/4 cups sugar per pound. If you cups are rounded, then you might be closer to 2 cups per pound. I suggest you get a scale to have a better handle. It really doesn't make any difference unless you want to duplicate the run at a later date.
Personally, I would run in pot mode to try to get essense carry over. You can always run it again if you want it more neutral. The brown sugar might give the run a little rum like characteristic. Interesting. Keep us posted"
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