"Hi Ya'll
.

I built a copper still recently (what fun). It is only 5 gallon with an inline condenser.

I slopped some mash together nite before last, not sure i did it right, if you have any advice i could use it.

my recipe was
5 gallon water at 165 degrees
8.5 lbs cracked corn
1.5 lbs malted barley
1 small package turbo yeast

i put the corn in at 165 and stirred for 5 minutes, then added barley when temp went to 152 degrees.

I put a lid on it and next morning it was still at 100 degrees. I stirred it again and when the temp got down to 80 degrees, I added the pack of turbo yeast.

then worried because the package of yeast said it only made 1.1 gallons, I added a handful of Fleischman's yeast. I tasted it and since it did not taste very sweet I threw in 2 red solo cups of sugar, although recipe did not call for sugar

I do have an alcohol tester doohickey but no other equipment like specific gravity doohickey.

now it has quit bubbling after only 24 hrs. oh i get an occasional bubble or two.

what have i messed up? anyone wanna help out?

thank you.

Susie Moonshiner

okay yesterday it was tearing up the bubbler on top, and this morning, barely bubbling."

if it was a 24 or 48 turbo it could be done. However it's hard to tell without an OG . Try using something that works slower next time and maybe start with a sugar wash until you get the hang of things

i hope so. specific gravity was 1.0o0

you need a hydrometer for you wash (which will not work in a distilled spirit) but will let you the potential ABV. I guess thats what you are talking about doohickey. An alcoholmeter will let you know the ABV in a distilled spirit. Think you need to do some reading

If you have a triple scale hydrometer you still can get a Potential alcohol reading telling you the potential of the rest of the ferment.

Didn't it come with instructions?

Umm, Ms. Susie.. You need some AG (enzyme) to help break up that gooey mess. The AG enzyme helps convert the starches in the corn to sugars...

I reccomend you take some time to read about preparing ferments as it is also important what temps you cook that corn at too....

http://homedistiller.org/forum/viewforum.php?f=46 - This is a good start - Look at the fementing/mashing section...

Unfortuntately, this isn't like making a prized meat loaf (and believe me, I make a mean Texas style meatloaf). There's quite a bit of science to it and at first, I too took off like you did, and I had several bad starts until I stopped and went back and read it ALL two or three times until I understood how to use my gear, and what to expect along the way. I promise you, it's a LOT more fun that way... There are Youtube vids out there on how to use the Hydrometer, how to make a mash, etc... Some of it is bunk, but some is very valuable too.


Cheers

It can, but at the right porportions... I typically make Sweet Feed washes and they also use Barley, but I still use a yeast that as AG added to it.

The biggest secret to getting this right is doing your research and knowing how the ingredients interact. A lot of the folks here are going to ask you questions to help support you and knowing the above information is essential to giving answers that work for ya.


Heh - not Doomed, just excited about the hobby. Nothing wrong with that, but like a toddler, thay have to learn to walk before running

both batches still working today. i am shocked the first batch still working. yum yum corn likker...

that makes sense. wonder why it is still fermenting? it is bubbling, sorta a glowing embers kinda ferment.

the second batch i made had initial specific gravity of 1.04 after adjusting for the temp. do i check it again after it quits bubbling? how long does that take, like a week?

lots of the stuff i am reading uses so much brewing slang i don't understand it very much.

mash smells like whiskey to me?? smells sorta yeasty and good. hope something works. fingers crossed.