"Does anybody drink/bottle/cask the first middle run (low wine), instead of combining several middles for a second distilling? Or is it too raw?

I haven't even received my equipment yet and I'm already in a hurry."

I'm NEW to this hobby and mtnwalker2 has helped me out a lot. This is what I did. I made a 5 gallon barley mash. (5 lbs. golden promise 5 lbs. peated malt, Ag yeast) Ran it once through my PSII VERY SLOWLY and got textbook cuts. No packing, pot distiller piece with no column, 1 cooling line, and insulated the outside. I did not feel the need to run it again because I basically got what I wanted. Used smell, taste and abv measurements for my cuts. Mixed together higher and lower proofs using the good stuff from the run. Threw 68 proof into a toasted oak barrel with a handfull of dark chips (2 Tbs.). Used coffee paper for 72 hours to get rid of harsh volatiles. It was a little harsh at first. Yesterday after 11 days in the oak cask I tasted it and WHAT A DIFFERENCE! I got the courage to give a shot to my neighbor. Mild peaty finish and the oak is starting to come in nicely with a light amber color. It even looks good. Next time I will: make 6 gallons to give more volume of water, do a stripper run and on the the 2nd run (as part of my learning curve to see what comes out), add baking soda, pack some copper, use propane etc., change the grain bill and add 1 lb. Breiss cherry smoked and 1 lb. Weyermann Smoked Malt to bring out a smokier finish. Hope this anwers your question or at least gives you some ideas. My $0.02. Thanks mtnwalker2!