This video is so accurate and informative with regards to distillation in general, let alone continuous. Thank you so much, excellent information. There is so much bad and even dangerous information about "makin' moonshine" that it's refreshing to see serious minded-distillers on here.
Hi Peter, Good question. The distilling column itself would have to be configured as a true fractional column with a take off port installed somewhere within the column's temp gradient,,, based upon the product that the distiller is trying to collect. So for example collecting a very pure/thin/insipid product like vodka,,the collection port would be located at a higher elevation on the column. For collecting a flavored spirit, the collection port would be located further down the column. The product being drawn off would depend entirely on vapor temperatures and the distiller would have to collect product very slowly in order not to disrupt the columns temp gradient. In my humble opinion,within the context of making good spirits,,continuous stills are best used as strippers and then using batch distillation for making cuts. Though I do understand that some of the big boys are using continuous rigs for finish product and having success doing so,,,they are also very likely using carbon filter technology to mask there inability to make a proper cut. I hope this helps?
@@smaug147 Not so much. Continuous production usually requires many extra plates as well as a separation plates for 'heads'. Also Vodka definitionally (in the US) may be treated with charcoal filtration. Aside from Tennessee whiskey, no US whiskey is regularly treated with charcoal. The continuous still uses dramatically less energy., and also producers a notably more consistent product than pot stills. Of course the tails remain on lower plates, and are lost in the stillage. Heads are sometimes removed using additional plates above the product feed - this is not common Instead the product is often barreled with heads. The charred cask "charcoal"adsorbs some of these lighter congeners, and many escape the barrel during aging. Despite your misgivings, getting a continuous still to a stable regime when you control feed, product & heads rates is trivial, and takes under 1hr for a fairly large still and closer to half an hour! The continuous still in a stable regime offers much better selectivity than a pot still where the pot ABV is varying from 10% to
You don't. Instead of making 'time-domain' cuts, you make 'plate-domain' cuts based on the physics of the still design instead of the nose/tongue//whim of the pot-still operator.
Just below the ethanol boiling point! Pre-heating the wash to 70C-75C is a big advantage. See a McCabe/Theile diagram to see why. Using heat-exchanges and heating the wash from the condenser & stillage flow makes the contiuous design far more energy efficient.
I hope this gets seen, in this design the wash would pass through the dephlegmator and then through the product condenser to be heated and then into the still. Im assumeing that means the flow rate of dephlegmator and the condenser are controlled by the input rate of the wash with the valve but that would severely lack control over the condensing amd reflux of the still. I know i must be missing something here
Hi SnazzPatrol, You are absolutely correct with respect to this particular design example. In this case, an over sized product condenser that would not rely on flow rate of the cooling medium would work far more optimally. The intended purpose of this video was not necessarily to use the mock up in the video as a finished, turnkey apparatus. But rather to provoke a bit of thought on the part of the distiller that may already have identified how they would like to solve their own continuous design. We have since concluded for the sake of legitimate, commercial processing speeds that the finished product / distillate HX really should be independently fed with a dedicated cooling medium. You can search for "Stumpy's Continuous Rig" to find a far better example of an actual proven configuration of parts.
It is a carry over from when early distillers came to the USA from Europe. In Europe they were distilling actual beer made from barley. With the introduction of corn and other grains the fermented "mash, wash, wort" became "distillers beer" or beer for short. It is confusing because many terms are carry over from a long time ago.
Because that's essentially what it is prior to distillation. Post ferment, you're left with a product equivalent to beer. Once processed or stripped, higher concentrations or distillate is collected through the process of distillation.
This video is so accurate and informative with regards to distillation in general, let alone continuous. Thank you so much, excellent information. There is so much bad and even dangerous information about "makin' moonshine" that it's refreshing to see serious minded-distillers on here.
ХОРОШЕЕ ОБОРУДОВАНИЕ МНЕ БЫ ПРЕОБРЕСТИ ТАКОЕ 👍🏻🥃
Bravo
how do you make heads hearts and tails cuts when running a continous still?
Hi Peter,
Good question. The distilling column itself would have to be configured as a true fractional column with a take off port installed somewhere within the column's temp gradient,,, based upon the product that the distiller is trying to collect. So for example collecting a very pure/thin/insipid product like vodka,,the collection port would be located at a higher elevation on the column. For collecting a flavored spirit, the collection port would be located further down the column. The product being drawn off would depend entirely on vapor temperatures and the distiller would have to collect product very slowly in order not to disrupt the columns temp gradient. In my humble opinion,within the context of making good spirits,,continuous stills are best used as strippers and then using batch distillation for making cuts. Though I do understand that some of the big boys are using continuous rigs for finish product and having success doing so,,,they are also very likely using carbon filter technology to mask there inability to make a proper cut. I hope this helps?
@@smaug147 Not so much. Continuous production usually requires many extra plates as well as a separation plates for 'heads'. Also Vodka definitionally (in the US) may be treated with charcoal filtration. Aside from Tennessee whiskey, no US whiskey is regularly treated with charcoal. The continuous still uses dramatically less energy., and also producers a notably more consistent product than pot stills. Of course the tails remain on lower plates, and are lost in the stillage. Heads are sometimes removed using additional plates above the product feed - this is not common Instead the product is often barreled with heads. The charred cask "charcoal"adsorbs some of these lighter congeners, and many escape the barrel during aging.
Despite your misgivings, getting a continuous still to a stable regime when you control feed, product & heads rates is trivial, and takes under 1hr for a fairly large still and closer to half an hour! The continuous still in a stable regime offers much better selectivity than a pot still where the pot ABV is varying from 10% to
You don't. Instead of making 'time-domain' cuts, you make 'plate-domain' cuts based on the physics of the still design instead of the nose/tongue//whim of the pot-still operator.
What is the ideal tempature for the beer / wash to enter the column?
Just below the ethanol boiling point! Pre-heating the wash to 70C-75C is a big advantage. See a McCabe/Theile diagram to see why. Using heat-exchanges and heating the wash from the condenser & stillage flow makes the contiuous design far more energy efficient.
This video has acid visuals for some reason lol
Watching this thinking 'Man I gotta quit drinking... oh wait, I'm sober right now'.
This can't be unseen.
I hope this gets seen, in this design the wash would pass through the dephlegmator and then through the product condenser to be heated and then into the still. Im assumeing that means the flow rate of dephlegmator and the condenser are controlled by the input rate of the wash with the valve but that would severely lack control over the condensing amd reflux of the still.
I know i must be missing something here
Hi SnazzPatrol, You are absolutely correct with respect to this particular design example. In this case, an over sized product condenser that would not rely on flow rate of the cooling medium would work far more optimally. The intended purpose of this video was not necessarily to use the mock up in the video as a finished, turnkey apparatus. But rather to provoke a bit of thought on the part of the distiller that may already have identified how they would like to solve their own continuous design. We have since concluded for the sake of legitimate, commercial processing speeds that the finished product / distillate HX really should be independently fed with a dedicated cooling medium. You can search for "Stumpy's Continuous Rig" to find a far better example of an actual proven configuration of parts.
@@smaug147 thanks for the reply
are all your products maade in China?
Hi Mr. Lee, in order to keep costs low, we do our manufacturing in China. However, we do inspect all of our quality products in Florida.
Please excuse the stupid question, but why do you keep referring to the product being distilled as Beer?
Because whiskey is made from beer.
Moonshine culture calls it 'wash', but technically its beer.
It is a carry over from when early distillers came to the USA from Europe. In Europe they were distilling actual beer made from barley. With the introduction of corn and other grains the fermented "mash, wash, wort" became "distillers beer" or beer for short. It is confusing because many terms are carry over from a long time ago.
@@suburbandiyguy661 Scottish distillers call it "wash" too.
Because that's essentially what it is prior to distillation.
Post ferment, you're left with a product equivalent to beer. Once processed or stripped, higher concentrations or distillate is collected through the process of distillation.
why is everyone using beer for this? im so confused" there must be something im missing.
please help!
Beer is a generic word. There is beer for drinking and there is distiller's beer. What specifically is confusing to you?
@@smaug147 if theres different kinds of beer,im not.