George I just I watch your videos all the time and they're very informational you're very knowledgeable and i wanted to thank you !!!!!!!!for sharing your in this hobby
Well, I too am a corn liker, also a corn likker liker. This gave me a lot of help and enthusiasm about my own and how to get it right. Keep up the good work Sir! I'll keep timing in!
I love your videos. I also really appreciate the respectful way you respond to disrespectful people. One comment here: as you point out, sweet corn is younger and high in simple sugars/low in starch. Dent corn/field corn is matured, and thus has the starch that a germinating corn seed could convert for a good start in life. Since it is older, it has had more time to accrue more sugar, which it converts and stores as starch (as you said). Moonshiners typically use dent corn (mature, starchy) so the malted barley or enzyme does have an effect. I would propose another identical experiment substituting mature corn (whole, flaked, or cracked) instead of sweet corn. As a (maybe) interesting tidbit, while sweet corn and field corn are the same species, the different varieties have been bred to have very different traits. While yes, sweet corn varieties will eventually yield a dry, hard, starchy kernel, it won't be as good as a variety bred to be harvested at a mature stage. The opposite is true as well--field corn can be harvested as sweet corn, but you'd be better off planting a variety specifically for that purpose. It's very similar to dog breeds--a Chihuahua and a Weimaraner are the exact same species, but I wouldn't want to show up to a bear hunt with a Chihuahua.
Like your comparison test. Gives us some food for thought. Yum, frozen sweet corn. The ABV calculations are always good to review. I think what you are saying is; that if we can measure and record ingredients and the record data-points they express then we know the how and why. From that, we can re-create the recipe, or tweak it. Thanks for sharing the experience.
Hello George, please excuse my bad english. I am from germany. I really love your videos, i have learned so much from you, so i just want to thank you for your great work! Please keep up this good work so i can learn even more from you! By the way, my still is running just in this moment ;-) Thank you and greetings from Dortmund/Germany Frank
also got to keep in mind back in the day,most the farmers would mash in crops overstock to keep it from rotting in the barn,and to generate cash at the same time.it was often a way to not waste surplus crops.if it wound up tasting good that was just a happy added bonus lol.now days,we use spicific grains for the flavor profiles alone.diferent times,different mentalities.
Your enthusiasm is wonderful. You have this great ability to explain 5th grade math and make it sound technical and exciting all at the same time. I do like your videos and I have learned a lot, especially when it comes to inclusive salesmanship. That by the way is said in the highest of regards.
Fantastic George just put amylase in to a Nutri Grain (Kellogg’s) boil and ended up with a 1.006 reading. Starch converted. Add sugar 4kg and see how I go. Will let you know Greg
Popcorn spelled it "Likker." Years ago I stopped at a junk store in Western NC. On a scrap of plywood someone had painted, "Popcorn ain't got no likker." I wondered all around and in the back I found a 250 gallon copper pot Popcorn was working on. Great videos BTW George, I think you ought to put them into DVD collections.
Forgot to add that, that is when the government got wise to what farmers were doing, it imposed a tax on alcohol and to this day the government has been trying to control the production of alcohol with laws and taxes. Who needed money when you could sell or barter alcohol under the table.
Hi George, thanks for your videos. They are great! About using corn in a wash or a beer. Your test did in fact accomplish results that are measurable. 1 gallon water, 1 pound corn and 1/3tsp amylase in test A. Cooking the corn at 158f and above causes that starches to gelatinize. That process took place in both A. and B. in your test. In A. you had amylase that converted the starches into fermentable sugars. Test B. was gelatinized which means unfermentable sugar was available. Therefore the gravity of test B. showed the same gravity. If both were fermented test B. would have finished fermenting 6 points higher because the starches would not have fermented until amylase is added. I hope this makes sense. Just my 5 cents! - JEFF
Hi George. been watchin yer videos for a quiet some time now. Kept me from makin some mistakes over the years. So thank you !! I know this is an older vid, but I was looking thru the videos to find just this question. In this video I was surprised to see that the amylase did not get a higher percentage than the corn without. In fact they both came out the same. I have been using malted barley on my corn mash and now wonder if I am wasting time and money on buying the malted barley and then doing an extra step to the mashing processes. I do like the smell of the mash with the barley but I end up adding sugar anyway to raise the ABV and by the time I distill I dont taste the barley anyway. I was under the thinking that I was getting more out of the corn starch after cooking it. thank you buddy. and keep um coming.
I’m going to try this using my Omega 900 slow auger type juicer....... I would propose doing a small wash and putting it in a thumper to max the flavor, while distilling a sugar wash
I did my own experiment using frozen supersweet sweetcorn and my hydrometer reading was 1.000 So there wasn't any additional sugar in it! Just ran it through my still and the abv was 70% :-)
Yes Sir I 100% agree. I put fruit in over my corn mash. Bannana, raspberry, apple what ever is in the woods at the time per season. Just subscribed 2nite. Lookin forward to checking out all your content here.
I’m looking for a recipe for moonshine. I just bought a 2 gallon Chinese still and now waiting for it to be delivered. I ran across your video. Very informative. I thought you just had to have cracked corn , water ,sugar and yeast ?
George I just want to say I like your videos. They are very informational. Have you ever tried a mash using no yeast ? I think it's more smoother and no harsh taste. That's how the old Volks use to do it here in N.C. Popcorn sutton talks about this method in his book.
Yes. It is not with "no" yeast but rather with wild yeast. Without yeast it would never ferment. We could use wild yeast since the world has an abundant supply of wild yeast. The problem is that it is not predictable or reliable. So when you say the old folks used no yeast; what they actually did was capture wild yeast floating in the air (they didn't add yeast as we do now) and crossed their fingers and let it ferment. In most cases everything works out fine. Hope this answers your question. George
+Barley and Hops Brewing LLC. Yes that makes a lot of sense I tried this method 2 times I guess I got lucky. I will stick with pitching yeast in to be on the safe side. Thanks
You should have put one pound in pot be also just for the hell of it to make sure there was no difference because there might be a difference in the long run who knows unless you try it
If I were to make a mash with this recipe would you recommend boiling the corn first letting it cool and putting it in a fermenter or tossing sweet corn straight into the fermenter thawed obviously
If you are using frozen corn there is no need to boil it. It has already been converted as well so thaw, blend a little ad some extra sugar if you like and ferment.
@@Merlinemryys I agree. Still some people will try almost anything. It won't kill them so saying it is not possible is not an option. They should not use aluminum.
I think you may be talking about Glucoamylase which you can add at the same time as you pitch your yeast. Glucoamylase does a similar job to beta-amylase but at a much lower temp. Alpha-amylase cuts up complex carbohydrates at the junctions and beta-amylase tends to break up those smaller broken down chains into sugars. (That's a simplification but about the size of it.) They are the enzymes found in malted grains. Beta amylase and Alpha amylase operate at much higher temperatures (than Glucoamylase) - alpha amylase at around 67degC, Beta amylase only slightly less. Thats why George is talking about holding the higher temp for 90mins after adding his "amylase".
Not at all. There was obviously no starches to convert to sugars. I learned quite a bit myself from this test and was glad to do it. Tells me that we need to start doing many more to validate claims and verify results. George
Normally a table spoon is plenty. I use one full table spoon as a routine. The thing to remember is that you can't really over pitch yeast - too much will only result in the excess falling out. Under pitching yeast can be problematic - if you don't pitch enough you may never develop a strong colony of yeast or it may take several weeks to get done. Yeast can go through budding and the limit of that budding is near 28-30 times. That's how you arrive with billions of yeast cells through the aerobic phase. Sorry I got a little deep there. In short ; over pitching is safe whereas under pitching is not. Hope this helps George
George, if a 5 gallon wash has an potential abv of 20 and that equals one gallon of distillate then does 6 gallons with an abv of 16.7 equal to the same one point two gallon of distillate ? Is that correct ?
I apologize it may be my wording..... so if a 5 gallon wash at 20% potential ABV equals one gallon of distillate... What percent of potential ABV would I need to have if I was doing a 6 gallon wash to achieve one gallon of distillate ? 5 gallons X 20% = 100 (which is one gallon) so would 6 gallons x 16.7% = 100.2 (which is basically one gallon of distillate ) am I correct in saying that ? lol thanks for your time as always !
Man, I would love to talk to you but am afraid to call and bother you. I happened upon some sweet potato nectar and was thinking about trying that for a batch. 70 years old and just getting into brewing.
Great video George. This is my second time watching it and wanted to ask, if the amalyse doesn't change the starting gravity of the corn mash, is there another grain or product where it does? I was thinking of ordering alpha amalyse online but if it didn't help raise the starting gravity and had to add sugar anyway, maybe there's no point in getting some unless it was more useful in another recipe. Anyway, greatly appreciate the videos and look forward to more.
I was also surprised about this. Since then I learned much more and tested much more. Amylase is absolutely necessary for crack, crushed, or fresh corn that has not sprouted but does little in corn meal. You could use a couple pounds of malted barley but I am not confident that it would result is much more than the amylase. George
Barley and Hops Brewing That is surprising. Well, I'm glad you did the legwork as they say and saved us the trouble. Also just watched your recent fruit brandy video and look forward to it's follow up. I like to distill wine kits and age the brandy in oak chips and I'm curious to see how your multi-fruit recipe works out. Thanks again George!
you are mashing too warm.... read up on alpha and beta amylase. You would be better off about 3 deg lower, better still starting around 148, holding there, and gradually stepping up.... This has to do with branching of starches, and where the two amyases can break it down. There is a great deal of material on this that is easily found on the net.
It is hard enough to get people to understand the importance of temperature and conversion in the first place. Although there is some data that supports your comment about dropping 3 degrees there is not enough data to prove this absolutely. This could do more to confuse than to educate the community. George
Barley and Hops Brewing I’ve brewed over a hundred beers over the years, as well as a great deal of wine. This is not a matter of opinion, or questionable evidence. Sugar and fermentable sugar are not necessarily the same. Mashing high.... as you are will show complete conversion of starch to sugar... which will take place very rapidly..... but final gravity will be higher, and abv lower than if you mash lower. My own experiments show about 1% lower abv from a 165 mash tha 160-162. I get my best fermentability starting around 145, and ramping up to165 at about 1/2 deg per min, hovering around 162 before continuing up to 165.
Please explain why you are making people think that there is no use for copper in a still, and that enzymes are not needed to convert starch from corn? Id suggest you stick to making videos about beer. Copper removes sulfides, and you need quite a bit. And you used immature corn, not mature corn in a bag. On top of that you used brewers enzymes. Try the distillers enzymes. Anyone wants them, or to learn correct info on distilling.... join moonshine distillers group on Facebook.
Jason, You obviously have a few anger issues. What you accuse me of is in direct opposition to what I say in the videos; I offer both points of view on copper and always say that enzymes are necessary for starch conversion. You are entitled to your opinion and I respect that but I would caution you about bashing someone else's opinion. I invite you to watch the entire video and several of them. If not - continue to do what you do and I won't bother you about it. George
Classy reply George. That FB group is all over the place when it comes to distillation and every one is an expert and master distiller, if you don't believe me just ask them, LOL. I have been doing this for over 50 yrs now and as you may guess kind of set in my ways and recipes, but I'm always open to new ideas but 99% on the net are full of crap. I'm going to try this recipe on a short run and if it comes out ok, I will hate you for not telling me 50 yrs ago and letting me do it the hard way.
Thanks Sam. I don'e ever want o come off as a "know it all" and realize that what I do know I owe to many people and a lot of experiments. I learn every day about this process and realize more and more that I know very little compared to what is possible. I do try hard to present several sides, especially when I can't pin down a firm opinion. I'll keep at it and wish you all the best. George
I'm from KY. My mamma's kin are from the eastern side (the hills) and my daddy's are from the west (tobacco country). My father was the first generation in the western side that did NOT cook whiskey for a living. My granddaddy ran lik'er and my great grandddaddy ran lik'er before him. They always told me that the biggest reason they made corn alcohol was because that was the best way to make money on small patches of land without having to pay taxes. Small farmers didn't have enough acreage to make tobacco a go, so they grew corn. The only way to sell corn was through the mills and the taxman watched their books. IF you turned your corn into liquor, then you could sell direct and avoid the taxes. (See Whiskey Rebellion). Revenuers weren't alcohol cops, they were taxmen (AKA Internal Revenue Service - Revenuers). Making whiskey was never illegal (except prohibition - Pappa made enough to buy the farm I grew up on during prohibition - wink wink), making NON-TAXED liquor was the problem.
Before anyone asks, no I don't have their mash recipe, and I have been looking all my adult life for it. Pure grain. Slightly yellow. Tasted of butter and sweet corn. Went down smooth like mothers milk and kicked like a mule when it hit your belly. Anyone who would know is gone now. I never thought to ask. Shame.
Your videos are wonderful because you explain things so well. I am seriously considering getting started into making wine and spirits at home. You have certainly made it look interesting!
Fantastic video as usual, too bad you weren’t my high school teacher because I would have learned so much more. Another thing with why early farmers (1700 & 1800s) started making alcohol was because if they couldn’t find a market for their or good price for their grain they would convert into alcohol and maintain their investment. Alcohol stores much better than grain which must be guarded against environmental elements and rodents which can quickly contaminate the grain. I know that because my uncle used to store corn in an old trailer to feed hogs. One could stand next to the trailer at any time and could hear the mice squirming around the inside of the pile. Shinning a flashlight on the corn pile at night was always neat to see all the little eyes on top of the corn. As always thanks, alg
This is super interesting, watching this I would guess that when making a basic corn mash using granulated sugar and not using malt or enzyme that using frozen sweet corn would probably give the distillate a better flavor. There is at least some natural corn sugar already in the baby sweet corn as apposed to using say maize or cracked corn etc for just flavor and not as a sugar source. I'm going to try that with my next basic wash.
Hey George. Thanks so much for all the great videos. I have one question, what would you suggest the starting specific gravity before you start fermenting be?
I have always done 50 lbs grain 50 gallons water 50 lbs sugar. I wondered why I didn't get what I expected. Your math helped me understand my mistake. Thanks for the help.
The best videos ever. Thank you so much very helpful and actually teach you something.. please keep them coming. Also can you please do some videos on making straight moonshine. I guess we just corn? Or explain a little bit more of it in another video.? What is the best recipe to make actual moonshine that I can turn into whiskey. I don't know if it's just corn and sugar? Or should I use barley or some other ingredient.. Rye I don't know?
Doesn't matter what you use. The initial product is considered moonshine. No matter what your base grains are this is a borrowed term that describes the spirits after distillation and before aging. Yes, everything is moonshine until you do something to it.
hello George thanks for making this video .have to say its the best thought out and presented explanation ive seen on here about the subject .all i have to do is change the weights and measurements to what is used here and im rock n rollin.. just one question on another subject. as ive just changed from kit and extract beer to making all grain beer with the grainfather. do you have a video on how to work out how much water to use in mashing and sparging.. as its new to me. thanks paul
Paul, great point. In fact I also carry the grain father and was planning a video on that soon. I will make sure i include all the measures for mashing and sparging as well as add conversions to metric. How's that? George
just bought my first still. its a lightly used mile hi 8 gallon reflux. Thank you for all you do. i have watched for years and would not have gotten into this hopefully great hobby without your tutorials. thanks from vancouver island. Norm
What stainless steel pot are you using on your NuWave George? Mine looks similar but takes forever to boil, an hour longer than my glass stove top on 220 volts. Thank you.
George I just I watch your videos all the time and they're very informational you're very knowledgeable and i wanted to thank you !!!!!!!!for sharing your in this hobby
Every time I watch one of your videos I learn something new, Keep up the good work!
My favorite science teacher online!
Well, I too am a corn liker, also a corn likker liker. This gave me a lot of help and enthusiasm about my own and how to get it right. Keep up the good work Sir! I'll keep timing in!
Just watched again for the third time George it's all about solid fundamentals thanks for sharing your knowledge.
I love your videos. I also really appreciate the respectful way you respond to disrespectful people.
One comment here: as you point out, sweet corn is younger and high in simple sugars/low in starch. Dent corn/field corn is matured, and thus has the starch that a germinating corn seed could convert for a good start in life. Since it is older, it has had more time to accrue more sugar, which it converts and stores as starch (as you said). Moonshiners typically use dent corn (mature, starchy) so the malted barley or enzyme does have an effect. I would propose another identical experiment substituting mature corn (whole, flaked, or cracked) instead of sweet corn.
As a (maybe) interesting tidbit, while sweet corn and field corn are the same species, the different varieties have been bred to have very different traits. While yes, sweet corn varieties will eventually yield a dry, hard, starchy kernel, it won't be as good as a variety bred to be harvested at a mature stage. The opposite is true as well--field corn can be harvested as sweet corn, but you'd be better off planting a variety specifically for that purpose. It's very similar to dog breeds--a Chihuahua and a Weimaraner are the exact same species, but I wouldn't want to show up to a bear hunt with a Chihuahua.
Like your comparison test. Gives us some food for thought. Yum, frozen sweet corn. The ABV calculations are always good to review. I think what you are saying is; that if we can measure and record ingredients and the record data-points they express then we know the how and why. From that, we can re-create the recipe, or tweak it. Thanks for sharing the experience.
if we had math teachers like u back In school ide have payed attention. i can't wait to make mash now. thanks for the awesome help and understanding.
Well, wait for George to start multiplying and dividing fractions and you can start daydreaming again.
Very interesting I learned something valuable. Thanks for sharing your time an talent. Hope you have a great memorial day weekend yourself!
Hello George, please excuse my bad english. I am from germany.
I really love your videos, i have learned so much from you, so i just want to thank you for your great work!
Please keep up this good work so i can learn even more from you!
By the way, my still is running just in this moment ;-)
Thank you and greetings from Dortmund/Germany
Frank
I really enjoy your content. Now it's time to get supplies. Thanks for all the clear and concise info
Another great video, George! Very helpful. Thanks for posting it. Brum
also got to keep in mind back in the day,most the farmers would mash in crops overstock to keep it from rotting in the barn,and to generate cash at the same time.it was often a way to not waste surplus crops.if it wound up tasting good that was just a happy added bonus lol.now days,we use spicific grains for the flavor profiles alone.diferent times,different mentalities.
Your enthusiasm is wonderful. You have this great ability to explain 5th grade math and make it sound technical and exciting all at the same time.
I do like your videos and I have learned a lot, especially when it comes to inclusive salesmanship. That by the way is said in the highest of regards.
Fantastic George just put amylase in to a Nutri Grain (Kellogg’s) boil and ended up with a 1.006 reading. Starch converted. Add sugar 4kg and see how I go. Will let you know Greg
Good stuff!
Popcorn spelled it "Likker." Years ago I stopped at a junk store in Western NC. On a scrap of plywood someone had painted, "Popcorn ain't got no likker." I wondered all around and in the back I found a 250 gallon copper pot Popcorn was working on. Great videos BTW George, I think you ought to put them into DVD collections.
Sailor John Boy or a book
Another amazing video George keep up the great work you can't beat free information like that thanks again
Forgot to add that, that is when the government got wise to what farmers were doing, it imposed a tax on alcohol and to this day the government has been trying to control the production of alcohol with laws and taxes. Who needed money when you could sell or barter alcohol under the table.
Hi George, thanks for your videos. They are great! About using corn in a wash or a beer. Your test did in fact accomplish results that are measurable. 1 gallon water, 1 pound corn and 1/3tsp amylase in test A. Cooking the corn at 158f and above causes that starches to gelatinize. That process took place in both A. and B. in your test. In A. you had amylase that converted the starches into fermentable sugars. Test B. was gelatinized which means unfermentable sugar was available. Therefore the gravity of test B. showed the same gravity. If both were fermented test B. would have finished fermenting 6 points higher because the starches would not have fermented until amylase is added. I hope this makes sense. Just my 5 cents! - JEFF
Thanks a bunch
George
Thanks George!
Enjoy the videos and how you break things down, as I'm just getting started and it helps out alot
Thank you for all that you do George. Happy distilling!
Thanks for the video George! I've been watching your classes for a long time now. I really like them!:)
You have been a joy as always
Howdy George .. love your videos lots and lots of interesting information in them
I love your "GI math" term! We had a similar one. "P" equals "plenty" lol!
Hi George. been watchin yer videos for a quiet some time now. Kept me from makin some mistakes over the years. So thank you !! I know this is an older vid, but I was looking thru the videos to find just this question. In this video I was surprised to see that the amylase did not get a higher percentage than the corn without. In fact they both came out the same. I have been using malted barley on my corn mash and now wonder if I am wasting time and money on buying the malted barley and then doing an extra step to the mashing processes. I do like the smell of the mash with the barley but I end up adding sugar anyway to raise the ABV and by the time I distill I dont taste the barley anyway. I was under the thinking that I was getting more out of the corn starch after cooking it. thank you buddy. and keep um coming.
great video! A true educator. :)
Absolutely wonderful and very very informative information George. I couldn't have said it any better myself ..... Lol 😂
I’m going to try this using my Omega 900 slow auger type juicer....... I would propose doing a small wash and putting it in a thumper to max the flavor, while distilling a sugar wash
That's great. thanks will be looking forward to it.
Cheers George
You've motivated me to move the taping schedule up.........cheers back at ya
George
Great videos, Thanks
Thanks great info
Excellent information. TY
awesome video
Hey George were Can I buy that amylase enzyme?
I did my own experiment using frozen supersweet sweetcorn and my hydrometer reading was 1.000 So there wasn't any additional sugar in it! Just ran it through my still and the abv was 70% :-)
thanks George
What does corn taste like
After 15 minutes You gave me a headache Mister , or it could have just have been my toothache
Yes Sir I 100% agree. I put fruit in over my corn mash. Bannana, raspberry, apple what ever is in the woods at the time per season.
Just subscribed 2nite. Lookin forward to checking out all your content here.
how do distillers select their grains be it barley, corn, rice or other grains to ensure maximum amount of alcohol produced?
I’m looking for a recipe for moonshine. I just bought a 2 gallon Chinese still and now waiting for it to be delivered. I ran across your video. Very informative. I thought you just had to have cracked corn , water ,sugar and yeast ?
George I just want to say I like your videos. They are very informational. Have you ever tried a mash using no yeast ? I think it's more smoother and no harsh taste. That's how the old Volks use to do it here in N.C. Popcorn sutton talks about this method in his book.
Yes. It is not with "no" yeast but rather with wild yeast. Without yeast it would never ferment. We could use wild yeast since the world has an abundant supply of wild yeast. The problem is that it is not predictable or reliable.
So when you say the old folks used no yeast; what they actually did was capture wild yeast floating in the air (they didn't add yeast as we do now) and crossed their fingers and let it ferment. In most cases everything works out fine.
Hope this answers your question.
George
+Barley and Hops Brewing LLC. Yes that makes a lot of sense I tried this method 2 times I guess I got lucky. I will stick with pitching yeast in to be on the safe side. Thanks
You should have put one pound in pot be also just for the hell of it to make sure there was no difference because there might be a difference in the long run who knows unless you try it
Just started work on. I just got 1.075
Wondering about canned sweet corn? Will it work?
You mean, let's get down to copper tax.
Hi George, great vid. I'm an Aussie and would like to support your work, any idea when your website will be ready for Internet sales?
If I were to make a mash with this recipe would you recommend boiling the corn first letting it cool and putting it in a fermenter or tossing sweet corn straight into the fermenter thawed obviously
If you are using frozen corn there is no need to boil it. It has already been converted as well so thaw, blend a little ad some extra sugar if you like and ferment.
George, please test and prove aluminum as a still boiler.
I think there's a lot of unfounded old wives tales.
I'll get on that one. I have had many questions about this.
Time to put it to rest.
@@BarleyandHopsBrewing Aluminum may be a problem when you acidify the water. I would be concerned with aluminum salts entering my production.
@@Merlinemryys I agree. Still some people will try almost anything. It won't kill them so saying it is not possible is not an option. They should not use aluminum.
How the best way to clean your still
So correct me if I'm wrong. The Amylase made no difference. 1.006 in each pot after steeping for 90 minutes.
True
Would it not better to use Amylase enzyme at 30 deg C? Amylase is ineffective at high temperature?
I think you may be talking about Glucoamylase which you can add at the same time as you pitch your yeast.
Glucoamylase does a similar job to beta-amylase but at a much lower temp.
Alpha-amylase cuts up complex carbohydrates at the junctions and beta-amylase tends to break up those smaller broken down chains into sugars. (That's a simplification but about the size of it.)
They are the enzymes found in malted grains.
Beta amylase and Alpha amylase operate at much higher temperatures (than Glucoamylase) - alpha amylase at around 67degC, Beta amylase only slightly less.
Thats why George is talking about holding the higher temp for 90mins after adding his "amylase".
Good video George, but just one question. Did the amylase not inrease the natural suger in the bucket it was added to?
Not at all. There was obviously no starches to convert to sugars. I learned quite a bit myself from this test and was glad to do it. Tells me that we need to start doing many more to validate claims and verify results.
George
At first I was like wtf then by the end I got it
George, thanks for the videos, great stuff.. How do you work out how much Yeast is needed based on the explained given? Please and Thank You Kindly.
Normally a table spoon is plenty. I use one full table spoon as a routine. The thing to remember is that you can't really over pitch yeast - too much will only result in the excess falling out. Under pitching yeast can be problematic - if you don't pitch enough you may never develop a strong colony of yeast or it may take several weeks to get done. Yeast can go through budding and the limit of that budding is near 28-30 times. That's how you arrive with billions of yeast cells through the aerobic phase.
Sorry I got a little deep there.
In short ; over pitching is safe whereas under pitching is not.
Hope this helps
George
@@BarleyandHopsBrewing makes sense, thanks allot for your reply.. Much appreciated
The deeper you go the better I like it.
George, if a 5 gallon wash has an potential abv of 20 and that equals one gallon of distillate then does 6 gallons with an abv of 16.7 equal to the same one point two gallon of distillate ? Is that correct ?
Not sure I understand
I apologize it may be my wording..... so if a 5 gallon wash at 20% potential ABV equals one gallon of distillate... What percent of potential ABV would I need to have if I was doing a 6 gallon wash to achieve one gallon of distillate ? 5 gallons X 20% = 100 (which is one gallon) so would 6 gallons x 16.7% = 100.2 (which is basically one gallon of distillate ) am I correct in saying that ? lol thanks for your time as always !
Sounds good to me.
I have a question for you George when you use that corn do you break it down into a powder substance or do you leave it a whole kernel
It needs to be cracked or ground but not finely ground. Course is good.
Man, I would love to talk to you but am afraid to call and bother you. I happened upon some sweet potato nectar and was thinking about trying that for a batch. 70 years old and just getting into brewing.
math dont lie, do your math!
Great video George. This is my second time watching it and wanted to ask, if the amalyse doesn't change the starting gravity of the corn mash, is there another grain or product where it does? I was thinking of ordering alpha amalyse online but if it didn't help raise the starting gravity and had to add sugar anyway, maybe there's no point in getting some unless it was more useful in another recipe. Anyway, greatly appreciate the videos and look forward to more.
I was also surprised about this. Since then I learned much more and tested much more. Amylase is absolutely necessary for crack, crushed, or fresh corn that has not sprouted but does little in corn meal. You could use a couple pounds of malted barley but I am not confident that it would result is much more than the amylase.
George
Barley and Hops Brewing That is surprising. Well, I'm glad you did the legwork as they say and saved us the trouble. Also just watched your recent fruit brandy video and look forward to it's follow up. I like to distill wine kits and age the brandy in oak chips and I'm curious to see how your multi-fruit recipe works out. Thanks again George!
I'm still working on that one. Should see results soon.
George
Do you have a video on how to make tequila?
would love to chat with you do you call the UK
👍
George is king
want to do fig
Liquor,
you are mashing too warm.... read up on alpha and beta amylase. You would be better off about 3 deg lower, better still starting around 148, holding there, and gradually stepping up.... This has to do with branching of starches, and where the two amyases can break it down. There is a great deal of material on this that is easily found on the net.
It is hard enough to get people to understand the importance of temperature and conversion in the first place. Although there is some data that supports your comment about dropping 3 degrees there is not enough data to prove this absolutely.
This could do more to confuse than to educate the community.
George
Barley and Hops Brewing I’ve brewed over a hundred beers over the years, as well as a great deal of wine. This is not a matter of opinion, or questionable evidence. Sugar and fermentable sugar are not necessarily the same. Mashing high.... as you are will show complete conversion of starch to sugar... which will take place very rapidly..... but final gravity will be higher, and abv lower than if you mash lower. My own experiments show about 1% lower abv from a 165 mash tha 160-162. I get my best fermentability starting around 145, and ramping up to165 at about 1/2 deg per min, hovering around 162 before continuing up to 165.
Corn is cheap. End of analysis. But thanks for the history lesson.
It's spelled liquor. Liker is someone who likes things.
It is a play on words my friend. Kind of Appellation, country and a little hill billy.
George
Wow, you are brilliant mind there Harry
Hillbilly moonshiners call it likker... not liker.
I want to like your videos, but you overcomplicate the simple and repeat yourself constantly when you could spend more time showing.
too much math man
Please explain why you are making people think that there is no use for copper in a still, and that enzymes are not needed to convert starch from corn? Id suggest you stick to making videos about beer. Copper removes sulfides, and you need quite a bit. And you used immature corn, not mature corn in a bag. On top of that you used brewers enzymes. Try the distillers enzymes. Anyone wants them, or to learn correct info on distilling.... join moonshine distillers group on Facebook.
Jason, You obviously have a few anger issues. What you accuse me of is in direct opposition to what I say in the videos; I offer both points of view on copper and always say that enzymes are necessary for starch conversion.
You are entitled to your opinion and I respect that but I would caution you about bashing someone else's opinion. I invite you to watch the entire video and several of them. If not - continue to do what you do and I won't bother you about it.
George
Classy reply George. That FB group is all over the place when it comes to distillation and every one is an expert and master distiller, if you don't believe me just ask them, LOL. I have been doing this for over 50 yrs now and as you may guess kind of set in my ways and recipes, but I'm always open to new ideas but 99% on the net are full of crap. I'm going to try this recipe on a short run and if it comes out ok, I will hate you for not telling me 50 yrs ago and letting me do it the hard way.
Thanks Sam. I don'e ever want o come off as a "know it all" and realize that what I do know I owe to many people and a lot of experiments. I learn every day about this process and realize more and more that I know very little compared to what is possible. I do try hard to present several sides, especially when I can't pin down a firm opinion. I'll keep at it and wish you all the best.
George
Learned loads there George, thank you very much.....Excellent teacher.......well explained...
I'm from KY. My mamma's kin are from the eastern side (the hills) and my daddy's are from the west (tobacco country). My father was the first generation in the western side that did NOT cook whiskey for a living. My granddaddy ran lik'er and my great grandddaddy ran lik'er before him.
They always told me that the biggest reason they made corn alcohol was because that was the best way to make money on small patches of land without having to pay taxes. Small farmers didn't have enough acreage to make tobacco a go, so they grew corn. The only way to sell corn was through the mills and the taxman watched their books. IF you turned your corn into liquor, then you could sell direct and avoid the taxes. (See Whiskey Rebellion).
Revenuers weren't alcohol cops, they were taxmen (AKA Internal Revenue Service - Revenuers). Making whiskey was never illegal (except prohibition - Pappa made enough to buy the farm I grew up on during prohibition - wink wink), making NON-TAXED liquor was the problem.
Before anyone asks, no I don't have their mash recipe, and I have been looking all my adult life for it. Pure grain. Slightly yellow. Tasted of butter and sweet corn. Went down smooth like mothers milk and kicked like a mule when it hit your belly. Anyone who would know is gone now. I never thought to ask. Shame.
Hallo Mr. George,,please axcuse my bed english,,I have one quesiton,,if we put emilase in to the corn mesh, we allso need sugar insided.?
Hi George have a question I'm looking to get a still can you recommend a good 1,on a retirement budget
Your videos are wonderful because you explain things so well. I am seriously considering getting started into making wine and spirits at home. You have certainly made it look interesting!
what about cow corn on the cob? do you think it would have lots of sugar(before the corn is mature)? thank you
Can i be proud to as a LATINO George?
Great video. The light bulb just came on. My problem has been regulating mash temp. Keeping yeast alive.
Hi George
I've learned a lot from your videos. My question is about the mash. How many times can I reuse it?
Thanks
The mash is useless after the first run unless you reserve a little to make a sour mash.
Fantastic video as usual, too bad you weren’t my high school teacher because I would have learned so much more. Another thing with why early farmers (1700 & 1800s) started making alcohol was because if they couldn’t find a market for their or good price for their grain they would convert into alcohol and maintain their investment. Alcohol stores much better than grain which must be guarded against environmental elements and rodents which can quickly contaminate the grain. I know that because my uncle used to store corn in an old trailer to feed hogs. One could stand next to the trailer at any time and could hear the mice squirming around the inside of the pile. Shinning a flashlight on the corn pile at night was always neat to see all the little eyes on top of the corn.
As always thanks,
alg
What would have happened if you'd boil the corn for ten minutes, cooled it down to 155 then added the amylase?
This is super interesting, watching this I would guess that when making a basic corn mash using granulated sugar and not using malt or enzyme that using frozen sweet corn would probably give the distillate a better flavor. There is at least some natural corn sugar already in the baby sweet corn as apposed to using say maize or cracked corn etc for just flavor and not as a sugar source. I'm going to try that with my next basic wash.
Easy peasy gravity point squeezy.. Lol Great video George, Thank you for your time..
Hey George. Thanks so much for all the great videos. I have one question, what would you suggest the starting specific gravity before you start fermenting be?
Hey George, just wanted to thank you for this video. Makes everything a lot easier to understand. Again thank you so much for this insight.
I have always done 50 lbs grain 50 gallons water 50 lbs sugar. I wondered why I didn't get what I expected. Your math helped me understand my mistake. Thanks for the help.
All the best. Glad it helped.
Happy distilling
George
The best videos ever. Thank you so much very helpful and actually teach you something.. please keep them coming. Also can you please do some videos on making straight moonshine. I guess we just corn? Or explain a little bit more of it in another video.? What is the best recipe to make actual moonshine that I can turn into whiskey. I don't know if it's just corn and sugar? Or should I use barley or some other ingredient.. Rye I don't know?
Doesn't matter what you use. The initial product is considered moonshine. No matter what your base grains are this is a borrowed term that describes the spirits after distillation and before aging.
Yes, everything is moonshine until you do something to it.
OK this was good but still trying to wrap my head around it!! lol.
Great meeting you guys yesterday!
Had a great time talking with you. Let us know when you are back in town.
George
Hi how the 52 gallon distill works?
hello George
thanks for making this video .have to say its the best thought out and presented explanation ive seen on here about the subject .all i have to do is change the weights and measurements to what is used here and im rock n rollin..
just one question on another subject. as ive just changed from kit and extract beer to making all grain beer with the grainfather. do you have a video on how to work out how much water to use in mashing and sparging.. as its new to me.
thanks paul
Paul, great point. In fact I also carry the grain father and was planning a video on that soon. I will make sure i include all the measures for mashing and sparging as well as add conversions to metric. How's that?
George
just bought my first still. its a lightly used mile hi 8 gallon reflux. Thank you for all you do. i have watched for years and would not have gotten into this hopefully great hobby without your tutorials. thanks from vancouver island. Norm
watching this at Gladstone's
Oh Georgey drinkin an a teaching 😉
What stainless steel pot are you using on your NuWave George? Mine looks similar but takes forever to boil, an hour longer than my glass stove top on 220 volts. Thank you.
The Nu wave results are all over the place. Some pots work well on them and other do not.
Try adding a magnet inside the pot.
great video
I was actually curious if I could use frozen corn
Yes. Frozen sweet corn works best.
George
Barley and Hops Brewing and cheers again for your help last night via Facebook the spirits turns out nice n sweet with a blueberry undertone