How Are Pot Stills Heated?
BusinessPot Stills Heated
Pot stills, also known as alembic stills, are stills that can distill different types of spirits. Different stills operate at different temperatures. The choice of heating method can influence the character of a new make spirit. Some distilleries still use direct fire, while others use indirect steam. However, most of the stills in large facilities are computer-controlled and monitored.
There are several different types of Pot Stills, including alembic, bourbon, brandy, cognac, and schnapps. Although each type of still can be used to produce different spirits, they all process the same raw materials.
A basic pot still operation involves heating the raw fermented materials in two stages, one to distill the head fraction and another to distill the heart fraction. This produces a low wine that is pumped into a second pot still to finish the run. For example, Glenfiddich’s stills are located in two still houses.
How Are Pot Stills Heated?
Pot stills have many features that give them an edge over column stills. These include a short tower, the ability to retain the raw ingredients and a chemical advantage. Other features are water jacketed heads, dephlegmators, purifiers, and Pistorius lenses for forced rectification.
Pot stills can distill a variety of spirits, but the main goal is to retain the flavor and characteristics of the original raw materials. To accomplish this, the still is heated with indirect steam or infrared. In some cases, the vapor from the pot still condenses, capturing the taste and scent of the alcohol.
A pot still has a vapor catcher, called a swans neck, which carries the vapors to the condenser. Steam is then carried upwards to the top of the still. When the vapors meet the rising steam, they rise through a bubble plate, which traps the wash. Depending on the size of the still, a variety of different condensers can make a difference.
Pot stills are generally very slow to run. They can only distill a portion of the capacity of the boiler pot in a single run. Stills vary greatly in their size, shape, angle, and heating source. As such, the still is a crucial component of the distillery. Most stills are designed to maintain a specific temperature, but other factors, such as barometric pressure and moon phases, can change this.
Column stills, on the other hand, function like a series of interlinked pot stills. Vapor from the top of the still rises through a set of partitions, called plates. It then leaves behind heavier compounds, such as cogeners, which have a higher boiling point. This vapor leaves the pot and combines with other vapors, thereby forming the resulting distillate.
Pot stills are also inefficient users of energy. However, they can be managed with intuition and a refined sense of what’s happening. While they may seem like a complicated, finnicky instrument, they can be run by an experienced distiller. Also, a good distiller can improve the purity of their spirit by running it again.
With all of the varying options available for heating, it is important to choose the right method. Different methods require different skills, and different challenges.