Hi to all , now i know im trying to cheat the process but can anyone tell me if they have tried
this idea . Im fairly new to distilling and have only produced about 20 Gal of
sugar wash in 4, 5 Gal batches. Some with great success and some not so great, simply down
to my impatiance plus my want of experimenting with flavours and cutin down on costs. I have at
present 5 gals of Sugar wash ready for distilling, but rather than buying the fairly
expensive essences to make bourbon, could i make a corn solution to add to the wash prior to
my final distill . I always distill twice to get rid of any nasty tastes but could
i now add my corn solution prior to my final distill to capture some of its flavour and hopefully
capturing some bourbon base taste, of course i'd also be adding wood etc to the final product but is this idea ok as i already have a clean sugar wash ready..
Thanks in advance J Turner

i just made 2 batches with corn sugar and ran it twice...it has the sweet smell of corn....its now in 2 white oak charred kegs...cant wait to try it...
scott from texas
ps.. i think bourbon has to be aged for 6 years to be called bourbon...if not, is it whiskey ????
IS THAT RIGHT RICK, OR IS IT NOT THAT SIMPLE ??

thanks mr. E ...i do have a 2g and a 1g keg...when you say 'new' barrel does that mean it can not be bourbon if you have used the same barrel more then once or is 'new american' the type of white oak........is my question clear ???
thanks, scott from tx

mr. E, so when one ages in the keg over and over again...what does it do to the taste of your product and what is it, a 'whiskey' ???????
thanks, scott

Scott:

Other distillers re-use barrels all the time. As I said before, other distilleries even re-use bourbon barrels. I wouldn't worry about it. But to officially call it Bourbon, there are just some silly rules someone came up with long ago and got some laws passed to make it so. I say if it looks like a duck ...etc.. But yes, officially if it's in a used barrel it's whiskey. I think as long as you keep your kegs clean you can re-use them indefinatly.

What say you Brewhaus Rick?

JT:

If you get a chance, read the latest edition of Distilling Quarterly. I wrote a piece in there about taking the Bourbon Trail where I visited several Kentucky bourbon makers and among other things I wrote what their recipes are.

I am sold on corn sugar to make my bourbon/whiskey. I mean you can go the UJSM methoid if you like, but when I visited the Four Roses distillery they let me taste their white dog ,that's the just distillled raw whiskey before they put in the barrel, and it tasted 99% the same as a corn sugar distilate. So why not use it? It's a bit more expensive, and harder to find locally but well worth it.

Enjoy!

hey guy's Great topic.I was wondering if you are using the corn sugar with a turbo ?Do you have to add anything else?Thanks Scott from Canada

Unfortunately, no, you cannot re-use a barrel indefinitely. While the kegs can be used a number of times, with each use the aging time required to attain the same finished product will become longer. Consider that what is being contributed to your spirit is at the same time removing something from the oak. You can only do this so many times before it has nothing more to give.

Thanks for the info I will give it a try.Scott from canada.

JT:

Interesting. To those of us across the lake, what exactly is tinned sweet corn? I presume tinned means canned, but is this like whole kernel corn? So how many cups of wood chips are you using and how much maple syrup in what quanity of netural?

Just being nosey, if it turns out good I might want to give it a try. I love experimenting.

Fellow 'Shiners
I have never posted before but have read with great joy the progress of all. I have been chasing a taste that has been burned into my plate since the age of 15. I was introduced to Corn Whiskey by my, then to be brother in law, in the great state of Tennessee. All I know of the Moonshiner is that the old mans came with an orange top and his sons came with a blue top. What follows is the receipt that after too many failures gets me close to the 'good ole mountian dew'.

4 lbs of flaked maze
5 gallons of water
1 package of Complete_3_in_1_Enzyme from Brewhaus
18 lbs of Dextrose
1 Package of Turbo Yeast 48

First off find your local Bluegrass station on the radio or as I do XM Radio.

Second pour yourself a tall one......then....

Boil the maze in the 5 gallons of water for about 45 mintues ,don't let it burn,

Pour yourself another one

Let it sit till it drops down to 158 degrees F

Add the 3 in 1, let sit for an hour. Keep temp betwwen 158 and 150 F

Pour yourself another one.

Strain the residue ,save spent corn, out of the liquid and add the liquid to the fermentor. The fermentor will have the 18 lbs of Detrose in it already. Top to 6.5 gallons with water.

Pour another one.

Wait till you drop to 100 degrees F then add the yeast.

Ferment for 5 days.

Run it off as you would a beerstriping. In other words I am using my fractioning still as a pot still ,no packing no valves,. It should come off at an adjusted 54 to 60 abv. I perfer 54 abv. DO NOT DILUTE!! You will get about .5 of a gallon of great corn whiskey.

Now take the spent corn and make patties out of them. You can add brown sugar or just leave it plain. Pattie in some flour and fry in butter or deep fry in oil. Spread jelly over it or more butter and enjoy. No waste and the kids love them.

Thanks for all for your unknowing help in my search, and Rick thanks for the times you answered my question on the phone.

Tim
'Just an old Moonshiner'