AOC BREWING VIDEOS

Note: When cleaning the plastic beer/wine fermenter, just use boiling water or the cleaning kit, do not use a scourer (plastic or steel wool pad) this will leave tiny scratches on the inside which will let bacteria go into them to spoil your brew. Even with your airlock in place, there is always impurities in your brew due to what is in the air and/or water. It is best to use cooled down boiled water (sterile) in your air-lock.

If your airlock starts to turn brown with the water, you need to change it – rinse it out thoroughly – you can have both positive airflow rising out of the airlock, which keeps the bacteria way – but once the CO2 bubbles have stopped, you will start to get ‘negative’ airflow through, which is actually sucking bacteria into your brew – you don’t want this!

Check all rubber seals for splits or cracks which will let air in: top grommet, the lid seal, make sure the bottom tap fits on tightly. Make sure there is no splits in the fermenter, including the bottom.

Note: Only spirits are made in a distilling vat, both beer and wines are made in a fermenter (not heated up externally). However what is known as a ‘fortified wine’ (eg: brandy) is made from a ‘base wine’ using fermentation, then distilling.

For example, Brandy is distilled from what’s known as ‘base wine’ in 2 phases.

Base wine is made from early grapes to achieve higher acid concentration and lower sugar levels.

Base wine generally contains smaller amounts of sulphur than regular wines.

The yeast sediment produced during the fermentation may or may not be kept in the wine, depending on the brandy style.

First phase, a large part of water and solids is removed from the base, obtaining so-called “low wine”, a concentrated wine with 28–30% ABV.

Second phase, low wine is distilled into brandy.

The liquid exits the pot still in 3 phases, referred to as the “heads”, “heart”, and “tails”, respectively.

The first part, the “head,” has an alcohol concentration of about 83% and an unpleasant odor.

The weak portion on the end, the “tail”, is discarded along with the head, and they are generally mixed with another batch of low wine, thereby entering the distillation cycle again.

The middle heart fraction, the richest in aromas and flavors, is preserved for later maturation.

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We forgot to add : make sure you tip in 4L of boiling water at this point.

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Notes: These notes are based on a 30L fermenter. Always best to do this outside because if something goes wrong – for eg: tap pops out under pressure, or a split appears, then this very rich brew will be most difficult to remove from carpet or inside the home. Max. brew level is 27L. Do not go over this. After the yeast has fed on the fermentable sugars, you will end up with 23L of brew.

Some brewers say do not add the ‘finishing hops’ until the brew has been producing CO2 for several days, however we added the finishing hops before sprinkling the yeast on the top, with no issues.

Always leave about 3L of air at the top of your 30L fermenter, if you fill it to the very  top, then when it expands due to the yeast CO2, it could build up pressure and splash brew all over the ceiling.

You may get one bag of yeast with the malt/flavor can (eg. Coopers Real Ale) and one with the rest of your brew kit. Only put in 1 bag to make  your 23L of brew and keep the other as a spare (you may need to use it if the 1st yeast do not ‘activate’ for some reason – you will tell because no CO2 is produced as bubbles in the air-lock and the brew does not ‘rise’).

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Notes:  The stick on thermometer is not actually inside the brew giving a true correct reading. It is only stuck to the outside of the plastic, so the real reading can be off by several degrees. If the air outside is at 25 degrees, then the actual brew is probably at 20 degrees. Or in a cold climate, if the outside temperature is 15 degrees, your brew may be 20 degrees, because it is insulated from the outside air.

To really know, take off the airlock and the grommet, and stick a glass thermometer down into the brew. Or use the liquid catcher to take out enough brew and then test it once in the test-tube.

The 3 color stick-on thermometer is meant to light up brown for rising temperature, blue for falling temperature, or if all 3 colors light up (brown, green, blue) then green is the temperature of the air. If the 2 colors of brown and blue light up, (eg. brown 24/blue 22) then your temperature is in between that range.

If green and blue light up, your temperature is the green band, but it is falling. If brown and green light up, your temperature is the green band, but it is rising.

Never take the lid off (or loosen it) once you have sprinkled the yeast on and sealed it. The only thing you will remove is the air-lock and the grommet so you can put the ‘liquid catcher’ in to extract some brew for hydrometer testing.

Always twist your lid on very tightly to avoid air getting in through it.

Important! : As soon as the CO2 bubbles stop happening, you must start to bottle your brew straight away! If you don’t, the air-lock will start to go in a negative cycle and pull bacteria into your brew, and spoil all that you have done to prevent bacteria from getting in.

Once you think your brew is ready for bottling, ie no more CO2 bubbles being made, test it with your beer hydrometer – it must be stable reading of 3-5 per cent alcohol for 2 consecutive days to be sure.

Most brews need 7-10 days to be ready to be bottled, but it can take up to 20 days depending on various factors.

Some brewers add a clarifier (milk-based liquid) to the fermenter at the end to make the beer nice and clear before you bottle it. You may not be sent the clarifier with your basic brew kit.

When you put your brew in the bottles, there will always be some sediment on the bottom, this is because when you bottle, not all the yeast has finished, some will be alive for a while, then sink to the bottom once the job is done.

When bottling: do not use twist off bottle caps – the cap will not go on right. Only use bottles which have a cap that needs to be knocked off, not twisted.

Some brewers use Grolsch bottles with a ceramic cap (easier, no need to crimp on metal caps).

No matter which capping method you use, the bottle can blow apart if too much pressure builds up inside it.

If your small bottle is 330ml not 375ml – try using a little less than 1 whole carbonization sugar cube per bottle. The reason more CO2 is produced in bottling is that not all the yeast are exhausted once they stop bubbling CO2 in the fermenter.

The ones that still can will feed on the sugar cube producing a pressure build up in the bottle.

Some home brewers do use plastic bottles with a screw on cap, but nothing holds fresh beer like glass.

To avoid the bottle foaming up badly, you need a tube (25cm) which goes from inside the fermenter bottom tap to the bottom of the bottle. Or just drip in the brew slowly into the bottles. Long neck bottles are generally easier to handle.

Or some brewers buy a keg, and don’t put in carbonization cubes, but then they will need a beer dispenser device which carbonates the beer as it comes out. You will also need a fridge large enough to put the keg in, also.

 

Outtake 1

Outtake 2

 

AOC DISTILLING VIDEOS

Just like beer and wine – all spirits start off being made in a fermenter. Let’s have a look at making a basic Scotch whiskey.

 

INGREDIENTS FOR A SIMPLE WHISKEY:

Barley                              Corn                       Turbo Yeast       Sugar 4kg

STEPS

• The ingredients shown are for a basic Scotch Whisky mash of about 25L in the fermenter – but if you were making a Bourbon Whisky you would have more corn and some rye, and less barley (grain).
• Put the corn in boiling water, close lid on it, overnight.
• Next day, mix the corn & barley together in your pot still, and heat up to 67 degrees celsius – close lid and leave for one hour. This process is breaking it down so the yeast can feed on it well.
• Pour mash into your fermenter, pour in warm water to bring the level of the mash up to 25L. Add the turbo yeast (or other yeast) and seal the fermenter.
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• You could pour the mash into a fine mesh bag so when fermentation is done you can remove all the grain particles before you pour the mash into your pot still.
• Keep in a cool area. The same as fermenting beer or wine.
• After 7 – 10 days fermenting, pour the mash into the pot still for the distilling process, which is separating the ethanol from the methanol and other things in the liquid. Make sure you strain out the grains and particles – you just want the liquid in your pot still.
• Heat up the pot still to  at least 78.5 degrees celsius to separate the ethanol from the mash.
• Many distillers heat up to more than this. Because in a home still the temperature will vary a little i.e. it is difficult to control precisely 78.5C because of changes in external environment eg. water temp, flame temp etc. unlike in a commercial or industrial process which is very precisely controlled usually by electronic temperature controllers.
• So it helps to have a little buffer above the required temp because if it drops a little you won’t get the ethanol and if it drops too much you could go back to distilling methanol. And you don’t want that!
• The main reason for distilling at a slightly higher temperature is to speed up the distillation process however distillation quality will suffer if temperature is too high!
• And you never want to let the mash boil!
  Don’t heat up more than 82 degrees celsius, to be on the safe side.
• For instance, if you boil your wash

  at temperatures reaching say 90°C to 95°C, you’d be collecting a product that isn’t safe to drink due to impurities made at those higher temperatures.

• Important! You need to stay with your still during the distilling process, because if you leave it, the temperature could drop back to the level where you start making methanol again – so in effect you may have double the volume of methanol to dispose of. You need to know that the temperature to make ethanol is being held at a constant.

• Dispose of the 1st 100 – 150 ml to remove the methanol which is made first at a lower temperature – about 14 degrees lower than the ethanol boiling point. You don’t want methanol in your spirits!

• Distillation time for ethanol in whiskey production depends on several factors and cannot be determined solely based on the temperature (78.5 degrees celsius) of the ethanol-water mixture.

  Here’s why:

  • Mash composition: The presence of grains, their proportions (barley and corn in our case), and their pre-processing all affect distillation efficiency.
  • Distillation apparatus: The type of still (pot still, reflux still) and its size influence how quickly ethanol is separated from the mash.
  • Desired product: Also – are you aiming for high-proof ethanol or a specific whiskey flavor profile? This impacts how much needs to be collected and how long distillation continues.

  Note:

  1. Heating the mash: The initial heating process drives off lighter components like methanol and other volatile compounds. This doesn’t take very long.
  2. Ethanol collection: Once the temperature reaches 78.5°C, ethanol starts vaporizing and can be collected. However, some water vapor comes along as well.
  3. Separation: As stated, reflux stills are better at concentrating ethanol, allowing for shorter distillation times compared to pot stills. But we are working with a pot still for our example.

• TIME: Distillation time can vary from several hours to a full day or even longer depending on the factors mentioned above.

• METHANOL

• While it’s true methanol has a lower boiling point (64.7°C) than ethanol (the desired alcohol in whiskey at 78.5°C), relying solely on boiling point in a whiskey wash isn’t an accurate way to separate methanol. Here’s why:

  • Distillation deals with mixtures: The wash is a mixture of water, alcohol, and other compounds, not pure methanol. This creates a different boiling point behavior.
  • Fractional Distillation: Even at lower temperatures during distillation, a small amount of methanol can come over with the ethanol due to a process called fractional distillation.

• Therefore, you can’t pinpoint a specific boiling point in the wash where only methanol appears. However, home distillers often collect and discard the initial distillate, called “foreshots,” because they tend to be high in methanol concentration. This practice is done out of caution, not because all the distillate at that temperature is purely methanol.

 

STRIPPING RUN/ETHANOL DISTIL ‘CUTS’:

After your 1st or final distil (some distillers run the wash through a 2nd or even 3rd time to increase the purity level of the ethanol) -Obtain about 20 x 450ml bottles – to put the various ethanol ‘cuts’ in. As long as the bottles are close to 500ml that will do fine.

Number the bottles 1 – 20. Test each 450ml ‘cut’ with hydrometer to see what ethanol level is in it – the level will vary per ‘cut’.

The 1st few bottles of ethanol is known as the’ head’, followed by the ‘heart’, followed by the’ tail’.

In the diagram above, the dark blue is the ‘heads’ the aqua is the ‘heart’ and the green is the tails. The white is the water that will come out along with the ethanol. You see here the main ‘hearts’ is in bottles 6 to 14.  The alcohol content changes per ‘cut’. The first ‘heads’ will be about 80% ABV, while the last ‘tails’ will have gone down to 20% ABV.

ABV stands for Alcohol By Volume – a standard measure used worldwide to quantify the amount of alcohol (ethanol) in an alcoholic beverage. In simple terms, it tells you how strong a drink is. For instance, a whiskey with 40% ABV means that 40% of the liquid is pure alcohol.

Proof, on the other hand, is a related term that also measures alcohol content. In the United States, proof is exactly twice the ABV. So, a drink that is 40% ABV would be 80 proof.

The history of the “proof” system dates back to England in the 16th century and was a method to tax higher alcohol content beverages more heavily.

Remember, mastering the cuts is a key skill in creating high-quality whiskey!

The number of times you run your wash through a pot still depends on the level of purity you desire – and the character of the final product.

Here’s a breakdown:

• One Distillation (Stripping Run): This is a common approach for whiskey or other spirits. You’ll get a high-alcohol product (around 60-80% ABV) but with more congeners (flavor compounds) that contribute to the taste. This is ideal if you want to retain strong whisky flavours.

• Two Distillations (Stripping Run + Spirit Run): This is for a cleaner spirit. First you do a preliminary run (stripping run) to collect all the alcohol, then redistill that product (spirit run) to separate the desirable “heart” with high ethanol content from the unwanted “heads” and “tails” fractions. This results in a purer ethanol product – with less intense whiskey flavors.

Remember:

• Pot stills are not ideal for achieving super high purity like reflux stills are.
• The choice depends on the style of whiskey you’re aiming for. Some whiskeys have a lighter or a richer taste.

The cuts are crucial for creating a smooth and flavorful final product. Here’s the breakdown of the 3 cuts:

FORESHOTS :

This is the first lot to come out of the still. Discard it.

HEADS:

This is the next part of the distillate to come out. It contains high and undesirable alcohols, aldehydes, methanol and other compounds that can cause a bad taste and smell, and are toxic/harmful to drink. Discard this.

HEARTS:

The next ethanol to come out is the ‘hearts’. This is the sweet spot! The hearts contain the desirable ethanol (alcohol) levels along with the best flavors that come from the grain and corn used. This is what you keep for your whiskey.

TAILS:

As the distillation progresses, the alcohol content starts to drop, and the tails come through. These contain lighter alcohols and has compounds that taste unpleasant, often described as oily or metallic. To be discarded.

• When distilling, always discard the ‘heads’ and ‘tails’, as the flavour is not good – and keep only the ‘hearts’ for your whiskey.

Identifying the exact cut points between heads, hearts, and tails can be tricky. Distillers often rely on a combination of factors like alcohol content (measured by a hydrometer shown above), but also the smell and taste.

• • There’s some overlap between the cuts, for example a bit of heads might end up in the hearts and vice versa. Erring on the side of caution and discarding more heads is better than including them in your final product.
  • Experienced distillers might even make additional cuts within the hearts to isolate specific flavor profiles.

The pink jar on the far left is the foreshots.

It is hard to know exact milliliter amounts for the cuts (head, heart, and tail) based on the starting volume and alcohol level of your mash because:

• Distillation is a process, not a single extraction. The alcohol content and composition of the distillate change throughout the distilling run.
• Separating the cuts relies on factors like observing changes in alcohol content (proof), aroma, and taste during distillation, which aren’t present in the initial mash details.

VOLUMES:

Total Distillate Volume:

Assuming no loss during distillation, you could potentially get around 25,000 milliliters (mL) of distillate (25 liters x 1000 mL/liter).

Head & Tail Cuts:

These generally represent a smaller portion of the total distillate. Distillers might discard 5-10%  for each, depending on their preferences and the specific mash.

Potential Hearts:

70-80% of the 25,000 mL (17,500 mL to 20,000 mL) is a ballpark range for the hearts, containing the desirable alcohol and flavors.

NOTE: These are just estimates. The actual amount of each cut will depend on your distillation process and how you identify the cut points.

Turbo yeast:

This yeast has enzymes mixed in with the yeast. While turbo yeast can achieve a very high alcohol tolerance, it can also give some off-flavors to your whiskey. For better flavor results, consider using a special whiskey yeast strain. And buy a packet of enzymes as well.

Sugar contribution:

Sugar is readily fermentable by yeast and will contribute to the final alcohol content. In your recipe, the 4kg of sugar translates to roughly 0.4kg of fermentable sugars (sucrose). You can use raw sugar, but refined white sugar is easier for the yeast to feed on.

Grain contribution:

Corn and barley require malting to convert their starches into fermentable sugars. Un-malted grains have little fermentable sugar.

Distillation Concentration:

Distillation concentrates the alcohol present in the mash (wort). Note it doesn’t create more alcohol. Only the fermenting process creates the alcohol.

Yield:

There’s a practical limit on how much alcohol you can recover during distillation. Well-designed stills recover around 75% of the available alcohol.

NOTE: This is just an estimate though – Factors like still design, technique, and collection practices can affect the final yield.

PROOF

The average proof of Scotch whisky will range from 80 proof (40% ABV) to 92 proof (46% ABV).

Here’s a breakdown:

Standard bottling proof:

Most Scotch whiskies, particularly single malts, are bottled at 40% to 43% ABV, which translates to 80 to 86 proof. This is considered a good balance between the flavors of the whisky and the alcohol content.

Cask strength:

Some Scotch whiskies are bottled at “cask strength,” meaning they are not diluted after distillation. This can result in a higher proof, sometimes exceeding 60% ABV (120 proof). Cask strength bottlings are popular with connoisseurs who appreciate the full, unadulterated flavor of the whisky.

Regional variations:

There can be slight variations depending on the region in Scotland where the whisky is produced. Some distilleries may have a standard bottling proof that falls outside the typical range.

Proof vs. ABV:

• Proof is double the alcohol by volume (ABV).
• ABV is the standard way to measure alcohol content and is used almost everywhere else in the world, including on most Scotch whisky bottles.

OTHER SPIRITS:

And proof works the same way for most other spirits like rum, vodka, bourbon whiskey, tequila, and gin.

Proof is simply double the alcohol by volume (ABV).

Here’s the breakdown:

• Proof = ABV x 2

So, for example:

Vodka

A bottle of vodka labelled as 80 proof would be 40% ABV (80 proof / 2 = 40% ABV)

Rum

A bottle of rum labelled as 90 proof would be 45% ABV (90 proof / 2 = 45% ABV)

Bourbon Whiskey

A bottle of bourbon listed at 100 proof would be 50% ABV (100 proof / 2 = 50% ABV)

Important to Note:

• While proof is used on labels in the US, most other countries, including the Europe use ABV exclusively.
• When looking at imported spirits or information from other regions, you’ll likely see the alcohol content listed as ABV.

Quick guide for common spirits ABV ranges:

Vodka:

35-50% ABV (70-100 proof)

Rum:

35-80% ABV (70-160 proof) *NB: Dark rum tends to be higher in ABV than light rum

Bourbon Whiskey:

40-50% ABV (80-100 proof) *By law, bourbon must be bottled at a minimum of 80 proof

Tequila:

35-55% ABV (70-110 proof)

Gin:

35-50% ABV (70-100 proof)

IMPORTANT NOTE:

Distilling alcohol can be dangerous if not done properly. It’s important to follow safe practices and also be aware of the legal regulations on home distilling in your area.

VIDEOS –

MAKING A ‘MASH’ TO FERMENT FOR WHISKEY &

USING A POT STILL TO SEPARATE THE ETHANOL FROM YOUR ‘MASH’:

VIDEO 0 (Ingredients for a basic whiskey mash)

 

VIDEO 1A

1B

Note: In the video above we said the hydrometers are calibrated to 20 per cent. However, it is 20 degrees temperature of the distilled ethanol.

Note: Only spirits are made in a distilling vat, both beer and wines are made in a fermenter (not heated up externally). However what is known as a ‘fortified wine’ (eg: brandy)  is a normal fermenter based wine with some spirits added to it.

If you are fermenting a beer (use 1kg of sugar – or dextrose (hops enhancer blend – fully dissolvable sugar)) – or for a spirit, use 1kg of sugar to give the yeast plenty of fermentable sugars to feed on and turn into alcohol.

Tip – If you are fermenting a wine, only use ‘half’ the 1kg of sugar you would use to make beer, as the crushed grapes you put in have a lot of natural sugars in them anyway.

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Note: We finished the final video talking about the hydrometers you get with a distil kit – we talk about these in detail in the Part B  intro video.

If your mash is to be made out of starchy materials (eg: fresh corn or potato) (for a bourbon or vodka flavored ethanol) you may add enzymes which will help break down the starch faster into fermentable sugars so your yeast can get to work more quickly.

 

Introduction to ‘student of arms’ meaning with Dr Todd Hutchison:

The story of Beretta with Dr Todd Hutchison: