Will Re-Distilling Bad, Old Whiskey To Save It Work?

Get 20% OFF + Free Shipping + 2 free gifts @manscaped with promo
code STLLIT at manscaped.com!
This spirit was so bad I completely discounted it when blending my Peated Irish Whiskey. But can we reuse it by distilling it again? What's going to happen? Will it taste like fresh newmake again? Still just a bad just concentrated? Let's find out together.
----------------------------------------------------------------
New CTC Rocks Glasses
chasethecraft.com/shop
Try Adventures In Home Brewing For Your Next Supplies Purchase (Free Shipping In The Lower 48 over $50):
www.homebrewing.org/CTC
Chase The Craft Calculators:
chasethecraft.com/mash-fermen...
----------------------------------------------------------------
Chase The Craft Shop (including new coins):
www.chasethecraft.com/shop
----------------------------------------------------------------
Still Its Patreon Page:
/ stillit
----------------------------------------------------------------
Listen To The Chase The Craft Podcast On The Website:
chasethecraft.com/podcast
Apple Podcast:
podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast...
Spotify:
open.spotify.com/show/39ItzOa...
Stitcher:
www.stitcher.com/podcast/chas...
-----------------------------------------------------
Sign Up To The Still It Mailing List Here:
www.chasethecraft.com
----------------------------------------------------------------
Still It Tee Shirts:
teespring.com/stores/stillit
Some Cool Distilling Stuff On Amazon:
www.amazon.com/shop/influence...
Subscribe To The Channel Here:
kzbin.info_c...
----------------------------------------------------------------
Just in case you didn’t realize I often include affiliate links in my videos and descriptions.
This will not change the price for you at all, But the seller will buy me a cup of coffee if you purchase from one of the links. Choice eh?
#sponsored #manscaped

[@kjdevault]

I bought an air still about a year ago thanks to you. It’s so handy to just throw on the counter and not use any more space than a coffee pot. My big still takes half the kitchen from the stove to the end of the counter. It’s definitely smaller and more care necessary for cuts, but I can run it while I fix dinner or just hang out with friends. I love it. It definitely has its place. Along with your meme spirits, it’s great just for test trials. Thanks for all you do!

[@richardepps8500]

I love this guy's laugh. In my mind, he is the liquor fairy that "Bearded and bored" refers to.

[@jamesmetoudi8979]

This guy’s laugh reminds me of Ron Swanson’s laugh, a character from a show called Parks and Rec.😂

[@dedkeny]

You are so right!

[@kennethw.puckett8988]

That was so freaking funny with the lambs .

[@scottclay4253]

What a learning experience. Recovered you loss and made a “no name” spirit to keep you wondering. Thanks Jesse!

[@Xerxis1988h]

Nice that you tried my idea

[@reggiemartin4505]

I love that you're not afraid to try new things in your craft. I think this will end up a possibly smoother white dog unless some of the less desirable flavors carry over in the distillation.

[@miguelquiroga4]

Jesse, thanks for showing me the art of destillation, I am now making a peated whiskey. Cheers

[@twistedwrench1]

This video couldn't have come out at a better time, thanks Jessie!

[@jasontongue5685]

Loved the evolution of the issue bro. Currently sitting by my still contemplating the ideas. Didn’t know Bacardi was barrel aged and then redistilled to a white spirit. Great fact to know. I was wondering what happened with this weeks vid and there it was. Thanks for the content to help along the 13 hours I have been running the still today. Just hit my hearts on my spirit run and hours to go. Legend

[@xWastedxGevorkx]

This is seriously the only channel I actually sit and wait for a new video to come out. Your the best on KZbin, and we appreciate you.

[@ironmck9826]

Very interesting. So it gets the benefit of barrel aging on the New make jaggyness without the barrel flavour. Interesting! Great to know it is worth not dumping even the worst stuff! Great video as always Jesse!

[@ardnfast]

5:40 "keeps my head out of my arse" 😆🤣🤣🤣

[@TheGrainBench]

Based on your flavor description being so close to the aged version you could potentially do a sudo Solara process with multiple aging jars or even a few smaller barrels where your final aged version is what you take from for bottling. Or hold it back to tone down the aged version if it starts to get too oaky.

[@itatane]

It's similar to what Big Clive discovered with the grocery store whiskey run through the water still. It stripped a lot out but left that oily mouthfeel, buttered shortbread and fruitiness.

[@jiriwichern]

I was thinking exactly the same thing ;) Go see Big Clive's video here on making his version of 'the olde Manx's spirit': kzbin.info/www/bejne/sJetm5yZhtCMqbc and then immediately head for Ralfy review 874 Extras where Ralphy reviews his little brother's distillate and the dregs 're-alcoholized' with the use of some cheap vodka: kzbin.info/www/bejne/an_bi52ojKdmra8 .

[@monto313]

Nice job. Call it “Reincarnated Batch Whiskey”, and thanks for explaining the jar seals/angel share.

[@sheldoniusRex]

Perhaps you could try making bitters or an extract with the rerun spirits. Or even a liqueur like amaretto or maraschino.

[@WillieStrokum]

I just did this with two all feints runs! One large bottle collection and one mix of small bottles of feints all collected over the course of the last year. Ended up with two very distinct and different spirits both of which are super interesting and drinkable! Totally agree that "aged developed" esters came across into the distillate. They are both when compared to any new make I've previously created abundantly layered and complex much to my surprise and delight. Very stoked over the one with the more complex output that starts with a subtle mint in the nose and a lot of sweet on the tongue, gets a little licorice that shifts to pear and brown sugar, without molasses, and then moves smoothly into the great shortbread area. Now I'm speculating on which previous runs the feints came from to end up with this alchemic gold.

[@ffwast]

It's always kind of funny when I see people describing whiskey like this but taste it myself and get table leg,dirt,and paint thinner.

[@vidard9863]

@@ffwast you should probably stop chewing on table legs, licking dirt, and drinking paint thinner, it isn't good for your taste buds! 😉 seriously though consider putting the glass to your closed lips to wet them, put the glass back down and lick your lips, or thin it down with about double the water. the flavor should open up for you, and once you get used to it you can start telling the flavors apart even at cask strength. in all honesty i knew a guy who put a table spoon or two of whiskey in a glass of water.

[@TVDHaas]

Always interested in how you use your air still. I use the hell outta mine but good to know some other tricks. (The copper) great channel pal. Cheers.

[@mattmeyer3208]

Hi Jesse, you gave me the advice to use ptfe tape last year when kmart was sold out of my usual jars Thank you, I have now compared those jars with my cork top k mart jars, and found that the cork top jars produce nicer tasting whiskey. After a year there is no noticeable drop in volume from the k mart cork tops, and they have less shinyness than the ptfe jars. I guess the cork allows the volatiles out better? Thanks for all your work, you are a great inspiration!

[@StillDrew982]

It's yet another tool for making for making exceptional consistent blends. I do this with good aged spirits, and add a percentage to the next gen to age. Kind of a Solera alternative ☺️

[@michaelstevenbric]

Well, now I am gonna go rerun my gallon of bad whiskey. Wish me luck!

[@darencuthbert11]

Awesome work, reckon i have so much bad stuff from early on I can re-run it and maybe see what I can make of it

[@TheInfinityzeN]

I want to know what a blend of his nice mix and the re-distilled stuff taste like.

[@CoryGunterSmith]

I use the same still for my final run. I have a different air still that works faster, for stripping. I toss the first 100ml and quit collecting when it drops below 80 proof. All tails (down to 40 proof) are recycled in the next run. Final product is mostly neutral with just a hint of caramel on the nose.

[@cobusgrobler8488]

Very interesting test I myself has done something similar before and it kinda safed what was unusable prior to that and a big shout out all the wat from South Africa love you channel brother keep it up

[@andyarmstrong81]

Interesting theory about over oxidizing. Now thinking about my leaky gaskets in the all-grain whiskey which has been force aged then sat for 2-months. I keep sampling and it has improved but knowing when to call it quits is a tough call before it goes too far. It has also gone down from 60% ABV to 56% ABV, experimenting with what happens by proofing down, seems to change the taste experience a lot. So many variables and knowing when to stop and bottle is a tricky one.

[@HodgyE5]

cool experiment, Mr Distiller is such a great tool.

[@MagicMaGGoT]

My dude... LOL - your add was actually quite entertaining.. I usually skip past this part, but good on you for making it fin.. :D :D

[@ledzep331]

I made a Marmite wine because, why not. I didn't expect it to ferment because of the high salt content but it did. When finished it wasn't terrible (would have been ok for cooking but not drinking). It went in to the pot still after a year ageing (I didn't have a clue what to do with it) and I have a Marmite spirit. I'm no cocktail expert but if you want to add umami then this would do the trick.

[@python27au]

I’ve been making vodka/neutral for a while now. I tend to either drink it as is or mix some scotch/rum/gin flavouring into it. I have experimented with oak chips but I’m kinda lost in the process. My procedure normally is: 1 distill the spirit 2 proof it down 3 filter 4 add flavours 5 wait as long as possible 6 enjoy If after filtering i add oak what do i do then? 1 drink it as is 2 add flavour to the oaked spirit 3 add a little oaked spirit at step 4 above.

[@fatrabbitphoto]

Another viewer "There is no bad whisky. Just mix it with coke and drink it" Me "Ah hah, a fellow Canadian!"

[@juliankirby9880]

My 68 year old dad, drinks canadian hunter. One must be as rugged as the man on the bottle to drink it straight.

[@chrisjohnson9645]

The comment you made about Bicardi was interesting in that the filtration could capture coloration. It seems to me that if it does that it should also change the taste profile. Have you thought about testing filtration and/or types of filtration as a means to clean up some aspects of taste?

[@michaelmirowski8907]

It didn't occur to me until halfway through the video that you meant "oaking" instead of "aging". I'm not trying to be pedantic, but I kept scratching my head over why it would be bad to age it for too long. Food for thought. Keep up the good work.

[@edwinbrooks9042]

I have the temp controlled ver of that still. Love it and great if cramped on time.

[@nilsmanuelgut131]

I think it's going to be similar to the unaged but not exactly because some aging process stuff will be carried over. (after watching:) I think it could be interesting to do this multiple times (aging, then redistilling, not necessarily over aging) to see if we can accumulate the 'flavour of distilled age'.

[@justinduma9091]

Great video, iStill posted a gin-making video using a soxhlet extractor to extract orange/fruit flavor for a gin in parallel to distilling a normal gin. I am curious how effective this method is in extracting certain flavors for spirits. I would be interested in a video I trust a non-sellers perspective. Cheers man.

[@yakc130]

I figured it would be totally neutral with almost all flavors distilled off. I made the turbo vodka wash and would run it through the air still. Filtered through charcoal from water filters. Would come out pretty neutral with only a slight sugary flavor. Poured it into a 3 liter glass jug with some Jack Daniel's BBQ smoking chips and let it sit for a month. It was about 120 proof so it tasted hot and spicy, but it sure had the JD flavors.

[@ArmyGray]

Lol, I was sitting here wondering how he was going to redistill such a small amount, and then the air still came into frame. Good show 'ol boy

[@roeberdt-bT.1021]

...thank you, this answered my question perfectly,...

[@Da_Shark]

Thanks to you I now plan to make black strap rum And everything not used in run.... will always go back in the still for the next batch I figure things will get deep dark and funky and just get more and more unique as time goes on Same as I will get better at making good booze

[@thorhammerheadfortnite1799]

Jesse I missed or can't find d what the name of that little coffee pot still is called and where I might could find one at. Love your videos and all you do relly helps me be a better distiller and for that thanks. And could you do a video on how to add the most flavor when distilling and after it ran

[@thejoshman4883]

Another way you might be able to experiment is using cheap or whiskey with known profiles to see how it react to being redistilled ?

[@TheDrinkJournal]

you could buy some cork to make gaskets? That would allow for slightly more air exchange

[@philkraynik4887]

Very helpful Thank you

[@heymulen1840]

Hey, and keep on chasing the ... lambs 🤣 just loved it 🐑 And great video on the spirit too ! . Bye the way, does anyone know what master George is doing ? Just miss seeing him around here !

[@dopstjom701]

Was thinking the same thing the other day. Bit worried we haven't heard from George lately. Hopefully he is doing well.

[@puddingwar5110]

I has a gin maceration that went too long and was bad, so I threw it in with some neutral for a spirit run and turned the whole run into a burnt orange vodka. It ended up being a pretty good base to build a new gin from. Glad yours turned into something better then it started.

[@vidard9863]

i keep hearing about neutral, do you make it? if so how?

[@puddingwar5110]

@@vidard9863 neutral is like vodka very little flavor to it. If you're interested do a search for home distillater, there are forms out there that can help you learn safely.

[@vidard9863]

@@puddingwar5110 excellent, thanks for the info!

[@wich1]

Jesse, could you do anything with the syrup (gunk) left over in the still after letting the still run for a long time? For example would it all be suitable to reblend with your newly distilled hearts?

[@UnknownUser-ng7je]

7:41 there's no gas exchange. It's an isolated system that's outletted with no room for intake due to the jar's pressure build up from gas production, and therefore not exchanging but simply releasing.

[@adammitchell3462]

I hit the pause button,just as you suggested and I'm gonna say now ,that the whiskey will be great. I've did this myself and have saved lots of "bad whiskey" and I think you'll be very satisfied with it

[@wealthfinder192]

I aged some spirits with wood chips and it was about 4 liters. I left it for 2 weeks instead of the 7 to 10 days and when I tried it, it tasted like I was sucking on a tree branch. So I decided to redistill it. Left it sitting on the shelf until I had enough feints. I think I left it for about 2 to 3 months. Just before I poured it into the still I tried it. The sucking-on-a-stick taste was gone. It was actually pretty good. I poured it out into bottles and drank it over the next few weeks. It was pretty good. Point is, if it's not right, give it more time. I understand Jessie is saying he left his whiskey too long but mine was a bourbon and no idea how his tasted but I know how mine tasted. Also I watched another video about the air still and apparently it took the guy all night to distill a quart however much that is. 12 hrs is a long time to boil a jug. I would rather stick it in my still and top up with water and boil it for a couple hours t oget the same result without the risk of my house catching on fire.

[@scottmcneill6333]

Hey Jesse. Another great video and some good insight. BTW Got my CTC glasses and I'm super happy !! Thanks for everything you did to get them expedited to me. Well worth the wait.

[@rebeccakatana820]

Hi I use the air still to do all rework (mistakes ) and found it to save. 4 out. 5 runs

[@bardownsnipe]

I was really hoping you were going to do this!

[@yoguimasterof69]

I usually have more problems in been able to keep my stuff for long periods than over aging it... I just drink it pretty fast! 😩 Anyway, good experiment. Just make me think on how to avoid this to happen, and maybe that is why bottling after aging is a good option to reduce the surface in contact with air and avoid significant changes in odor/flavor.

[@jkh4q]

I believe this will turn out like a nicer version of the bad stuff. I believe it'll be kinda like whitedog, but with a little bit of the wood flavor.

[@ryannewland5572]

thats pretty cool that you were able to at least salvage the whiskey

[@phillipehaineault5608]

Really interesting ending here! Idea for you, what happens when you use a really high variety of grains in one same mash to create a whiskey? Using corn, wheat, barley (malted or not), rye, and rice in one!

[@jasonmackintosh1253]

could use a variety of unmalted grains in the mash bill to see what impact they may have on the finished product too, e.g. *50% malted barley, 50% unmalted rye. *25% malted rye, 25% unmalted wheat, 25% malted barley, 25% corn, etc

[@longslhonglogan2959]

I have no idea what even happens in these vids but I like it

[@the_whiskeyshaman]

I had a ujssm that got over Oaked and I hypothetically redistilled it. And it had a similar note. Almost like a brandy. But then I oaked it and it was different but not the original spirit. It was more fruity that woody. Idk it’s crazy. Good work bro.

[@jordanblades9575]

How long do you oak your ujssm out of interest

[@the_whiskeyshaman]

@@jordanblades9575 well I had a 1/2 gallon that had 1 barrel char stave in it. And then I put 2 already used staves. For like 1.5 years.

[@andrewbuchanan6524]

Iv got aload of failed ageing iv made with teas and diffrent oaks, mainly by buying the bbq smoker type woods. Redistilling is id try maybe with a sugar wash to give it a better chance again.

[@brakman01]

What about redistilling using a high reflux column still? Can you turn a failed whisky into a neutral vodka?

[@kevinhoban4416]

What is the name of the steel that you are using their and where can you get something that small

[@wealthfinder192]

4:50 what will it taste like? It should taste like a pure spirit with no flavours because it is boiling off the spirits at a specific temp leaving everything else in the pot. Although I guess the flavour could come out of the liquid and the steam could pick some flavour up on its way out the spout. But that is only if the flavour is picked up in the steam you are trying to capture.

[@belo2999]

Glad to see that you've been won over by the air still. I feel a bit sorry for your old flour covered Chinese pot it must be lonely now.

[@TheBaconWizard]

I am very curious about adding american oak into mash and seeing what I get out of the end after distilling.

[@vidard9863]

how did it go?

[@SyBernot]

My comment at the pause is IDK what will happen. I would have done it differently like dump the bad into a fresh batch of wash on it's first run. I'm curious to see what just a straight up distillation of bad spirits yields.

[@genegracey4755]

I have a batch which may be bad but I am afraid to try it. 50% rye + 50% malted rye. The distillate has a light smoky grey cast to it that won't go away with filtering. Do you have any idea what causes this? Will re-running it solve the problem?

[@somerandomguy32]

Your video isnt showing up right away ...but here in the states were dealing with censorship ..btw ...great add ..loved the lamb chase

[@dbadtoken4013]

Hey bro.. if i wanted to do some oaking but dont make my own whiskey.... what shop bought whiskeys would you say are ok to use for oaking? im in australia if that helps

[@bryankline1181]

Why did he add copper mesh to the still? What is that supposed to have done?

[@brandtearles4785]

You really should get the air still with the adjustable temperature much better control on the redistilling

[@joshherbers7203]

Just so you know, PTFE is not air tight and allows some gas exchange. It's why you're not supposed to use regular teflon tape when dealing with pipes that have gasses.

[@brucekrisko4364]

Hey Jesse, maybe you should make a t shirt that says..."JUST PUT SOME WOOD IN IT! That will fix everything.

[@chriswalport2979]

Could you do that with a commercially Made cheap alcohol and make it better??

[@chupamelamas]

Thanks for the videos! Great new world opened to me. This is my 3rd video of yours, and I have no clue how I got to this new interesting hobbie idea! 😅 Now, simple idea for you and a question too. Idea; have you made or tried strong mint alcohol? I find one here that its so pleasant to make straight shots. Question. So, if I buy this gadget, and I put in it some "cheep" vodka and fruits or other spices, would this gadget make my shitty cheap vodka in a possible "great mint vodka"? And does it come stronger in %? f.e 40%-60% or higher without me going blind? 😅 Best regards; newbie amigo 🙏🏻☺️

[@dopstjom701]

Have redistilled a bad gin run before hoping to get it back to the neutral. Wasn't the original neutral, nor was it a gin. Was just different... Still trying to figure out what to do with it.

[@CelticReeperOutdoors]

Where can I get the distillation unit you are using

[@jameshaulenbeek5931]

I'd like to see what you think of it mixed into a Manhattan or other similar drink.

[@dlakavac2644]

In my country (Serbia), we make fruit alcohol and it's called "rakija", think it's brandy in your world. There are two tipes of rakija, "meka" (mild, soft, one time distilled) and "prepecenica" (strong, double distilled from the first one). If first one (meka) is bad, acidic, you can't improve it by redistilling, acid taste will remain. If it's only weak you'l get good rakija prepecenica, but much smaller amount. Also we don't make cuts in jars like you, but mesure amount of alcohol in the beginning of distilling process and keep it running until it start to fade to almost water. When middle amount of alcohol is around 11-12 grades of something, it is that "meka" (soft) rakija, and when you redistill it, you leave it around 21-23 grades of that same something, and it is "prepecenica" (means literary double distilled). I think 21-23 grades is something like 40-45 grades of this other grade units.

[@robmullins]

So interesting!

[@rvmorgan47]

have you ever tryed to run it thru a zero water water filter that does wonders for vodka.

[@kenjoned2083]

I had some old whiskey given to me @5gallons 80 proof. To run it safely in my pot still can I run it at 40percent.. 80 proof or do I need to lower it?

[@leapy99]

Did you filter the distillate before tasting?

[@mattpeacock5208]

It depends on which flavor/color compounds boil at or below the temp that alcohol boils. Probably will remove some shittiness.

[@aaronbentley9876]

Where did you get the gin basket?

[@Mick675-i8e]

Can you get heads after you've already removed them the first time around? I have some whisky I was thinking of re doing exactly like what happened to yours

[@martinvanwyk9692]

Hey mate, how much heads do you throw out. The manufacturer says it so little that you can keep it as part of the hearts. What is your take that?

[@oldschoolprepper2273]

I’ve heard more than one Distiller talk about their old barreled product losing 75% to evaporation and their whiskey doesn’t go stale being in the barrel with that much air

[@byronmoon3339]

There is a white whiskey the whiskey channel did a review on it it's called moonshine aged whiskey I think ?

[@MisplacedAmerican]

There isn't a lot there but I'm curious what happens when you add a few aged planks to it

[@mike5147]

Hey, do you take tst 25ml after every run? or just the initial run?

[@derrickjohnston7181]

Had some I burned like ran 130 and no water ...Turned out good after mixed with new run I thought still had a burned flavor...Friends said lickerish they lived it asked for more.

[@lucasdallagnol]

Crazy idea but hear me out, bigclive does this thing of distilling whisky or whatever, at the end he gets this caramel at the bottom of the air still. If you still have it, you could distill off all of the weird stuff and introduce back the caramely end.

[@ironmck9826]

Playing along paused at 5 min mark here. I'm very interested in this cause I f*@! Up stuff all the time. Soo.. my guess is you will create a new miracle of stillery. I'm thinking some of the wood flavour has to come through but I bet it cleans up the oxidation. Very interesting anyway.

[@fabbricaitalianaautomobili5859]

What was the name again of that distiller thinghy?

[@340wbymag]

Several years ago, I became infatuated with the idea of distilling spirits to make whisky. I wasn't aiming to become a bootlegger. I just wanted to understand how it was done, so I purchased a small copper pot still, a small oak aging barrel, and began my education. I won't go into all the details but will say that I made some of the finest whisky I have ever tasted. I also made some that wasn't good, and somewhere in the process my good whisky was mixed with the not-good whisky. As you'd expect, the bad flavors in the not-good whisky ruined it all, leaving me with a bunch of whisky that was just terrible. It was a horrible accident. I just set that nasty stuff aside and wrote the experience off. I am not a big drinker, so it wasn't a great loss, and I did learn a great deal. That was to me a qualified success. It finally came time to do something with that whisky. I couldn't drink it and couldn't bear to throw it away, so I decided I would just distill it again to recover as much of the alcohol as possible so I could make a second attempt at making fine whisky. I ran my pot still slowly and took special care to make the cuts, eliminating all of the foul tastes and saving the finest essences of the finished distillate. The end result of this distillation was better than I even imagined possible. I was able to recover an acceptable amount of clear, high-proof, and neutral flavored alcohol. That alone made me happy, but I was also able to recover separately toward the end of distillation run alcohol carrying all of the wonderful taste and aroma of the oak barrel it was aged in. The fragrance is rich with vanilla and oak, and it also possesses the magnificent flavors you'd expect from well-aged whisky. I will have the opportunity to blend some of that wonderful essence back into the neutral flavored distillate later if I choose to, or I may just keep it separate because it is so exceptional. I'll make that decision later. It is truly rare to turn such a terrible mistake into something so good. This has been an exceptional learning experience. This whisky will be without doubt better than anything I have ever produced, and my story gets better because I still have more of the old crappy whisky to distill again. I could not be happier with the way this turned out.

[@kylerayner1103]

Where can I get a still like that?

[@jek__]

Maybe you should upload you demoing the trimmer on another website ;)

[@jeffreyschutt7451]

must get a air still so i can do shit like that with my Rum to see what i get and those poor lambs that crack me up LOL Keep them comming Jesse

[@fdean22]

maybe the barrel which you aged the bad one in was contaminated and you just destilled out the impurities?

[@deanwilson6988]

Might be an idea to proof down your bad stuff to about 18 percent abv and air still 4 LTRs, Should give you 42 percent end product.