Distillation (20)
What liquid/fuel do I put in the wick lamp?
Posted: jul 7, 2021
in
Distillation
It's best to use Benzene or any type of burning alcohol.
How can I maintain the water in the condenser at an appropriate temperature without overflowing?
Posted: jul 7, 2021
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Distillation
Water doesn't have to be cold in the condenser; it just needs to be between 18 and 22 degrees. You can use a regular hose or fish tank hose for this purpose, opening the water flow as you see fit and there doesn't need to be a constant flow in the condenser. If the temperature is getting too cold, stop the water flow and this should regulate the levels and the temperature of the water.
What type / amounts of results will I achieve from a distillation?
Posted: jul 7, 2021
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Distillation
The results will vary depending on what you are distilling and what methods you are using but generally you will achieve between 8 – 22 % of the alembics capacity of essential oil and around 38 – 42% of alcohol.
Do you sell separate parts of the alembic like the condenser, column or just the pot?
Posted: jul 7, 2021
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Distillation
All our alembics are custom made and no two are exactly alike. Each part of the set is built in proportion to the rest of the equipment. For this reason we cannot manufacture or sell separate parts or risk the parts not fitting perfectly together. This is why we only sell full sets.
Can I use the same alembic for making alcohol and essential oils?
Posted: jul 7, 2021
in
Distillation
We do not recommend the use of the same equipment for both making alcoholic beverages and extraction of essential oils. If you have used an alembic for essential oils, no matter how well the unit is cleaned afterwards, the oils always leave behind residue that can be harmful and prejudicial to humans. For this reason, we recommend the use of two different equipments, one for alcohol, and one for essential oils.
When do I know the good distillate is coming out and when I should stop collecting the results?
Posted: jul 7, 2021
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Distillation
The distillation process is divided into three parts: Heads, Hearts and Tails. You can learn more about the Distillation Process through Basic Distillation Rules.
How much water should I fill the pot with when beginning distillation?
Posted: jul 7, 2021
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Distillation
There are no half distillations, just a simple run. So we recommend the alembic to be filled around 75% on all distillations, either using water on essential oil distillations or wash on alcoholic distillations.
Which alembic is suited to distil spirits such as whiskey, rum or gin?
Posted: jul 7, 2021
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Distillation
The most versatile model is the Soldered Alembic Still, this alembic can be used to most alcoholic distillations without any trouble. We do have Whiskey Alembic Stills, which combine the traditional whiskey lid, as well as refining lentils to raise the ABV in a single run, commonly used on the rum distillation. Gin can be distilled with soldered models, column models or a combination of the two, read more about gin distillation here.
What is the purpose of distillation?
Posted: jul 7, 2021
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Distillation
Alcohol is the by-product of the fermentation of natural sugars present in fruit such as fructose and glucose. Distillation is the means of separating the alcohol from the fermented mass which may also contain methanol, amyl alcohol, furfurals and other undesirable components which may only be separated through distillation. For more information please consult Basic Distillation Rules and Accurate Temperature Reading.
May I dilute an alcoholic distillate?
Posted: jul 7, 2021
in
Distillation
Yes. In fact most well known alcoholic drinks are distilled to a high alcoholic volume and diluted with distilled water prior to bottling. Often these drinks must be diluted because they have to be commercialised at a standard alcoholic volume. The opposite may also be true when the alcoholic distillate does not attain the required alcoholic volume necessary for its commercialisation. In this case more alcohol may be added for example vinic alcohol.
What may I do with sour wine?
Posted: jul 7, 2021
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Distillation
No need to despair if your wine went sour which often happens with the more traditional wines, there is a solution. You have lost your wine but you can distil it to obtain an excellent eau-de-vie. One of the advantages of copper is that it purifies your distillate from some of the impurities present. For more information on the properties of copper and suggestions for distilling your own eau-de-vie please consult Why use copper and Distilling Suggestions.
How may I know the alcoholic percentage or volume of a distillate?
Posted: jul 7, 2021
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Distillation
You may use an alcoholmeter to measure the alcoholic volume of your distillate. The higher your alcoholic volume the less dense your distillate will be and the lower your alcoholmeter will float in the distillate, allowing for a reading at the surface of the liquid. For more information please consult Using an alcoholmeter & method and Accurate Temperature Reading.
Is distilling legal?
Posted: jul 7, 2021
in
Distillation
In some countries yes others not. Different countries may have different laws and some may allow the home-distiller to distil small quantities or require a commercial licence. It is the client's responsibility to be informed of the laws that apply in their own countries. Our company does not hold itself responsible for the improper use of our alembics. For more information please consult Terms and Conditions.
Is distilling dangerous?
Posted: jul 7, 2021
in
Distillation
All our alembics are manufactured in accordance with safety and security measures. The enticing art of distillation however may involve some risks which may be minimised by paying careful attention to the process and following basic distillation laws. The greatest risk is the danger of fire due to the proximity of flammable liquids to the heat source. Also if there is an obstruction in the tubing of the alembic there may be some pressure build-up. Don't overlook all these factors. For more information please consult Basic Distillation Rules and Safety Precautions.
What kind of materials may I distil?
Posted: jul 7, 2021
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Distillation
There is an endless list of materials that may be distilled. You may distil excellent beverages from fruits, cereals or other botanicals. Essential oils and hydrosols may be obtained from flowers, leaves and the stems from aromatic plants. For more information please consult Distilling Suggestions.
Are the distilling suggestions for alcoholic beverages and essential oils presented on your site easy to follow?
Posted: jul 7, 2021
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Distillation
Some suggestions are fairly straight forward and presented step by step as in a recipe. Other suggestions are merely introductory guidelines for distilling any number of alcoholic beverages and may require some time and patience to perfect. For some easy to follow suggestions please consult Lavender Oil, Soaps, Hydrolats, Orange Liqueur, Apricot Brandy.
Do your Alembics come with a guarantee?
Posted: jul 7, 2021
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Distillation
All our products come with a guarantee. Generally the guarantee period is for two years. The guarantee for our professional systems is from 10 to 20 years. Our guarantee does not cover improper use of the alembics or systems that have been modified. For more information please consult Terms and Conditions.
Are your Alembics and Alquitars made of 100% copper?
Posted: jul 7, 2021
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Distillation
With the exception of our welded joints which may be of copper, brass, tin or silver all our handcrafted units are made of 100% copper of the highest quality. For more information please consult Solderings.
What is an Alquitar?
Posted: jul 7, 2021
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Distillation
As opposed to the alembic which has 3 parts (pot, swan neck lid and condensing unit) the alquitar has 2 parts, the pot and lid which incorporates a vapour chamber and condensing unit. The lid has a concave interior to collect rising vapours and is bowl shaped on top to hold cold water. As the rising vapours come into contact with the cold bowl shaped surface of the condensing unit on top they condense and are drawn off. Due to its characteristic construction less space is needed for distillation than with an ordinary alembic. This unit may also be used for extracting essential oils. For more information please consult Alquitars.
What is an Alembic?
Posted: jul 7, 2021
in
Distillation
An alembic is a distilling apparatus of Arabic origin which may be used to distill a great variety of alcoholic beverages and essential oils. It is made up of 3 parts, the alembic pot, the swan neck lid and the condensing unit. Other models may include a pre-heater such as the Charentais model or column such as in the rotating column alembics often used for extracting essential oils. The reflux alembic incorporates the traditional alembic pot with the more modern reflux column. For more information please consult Product Info.