English Spirit Distillery Recipe

Mill & Heat Strike Water

Crush the pale malted barley to a coarse grist. Heat 18 liters of spring water to 72°C (162°F) in your mash tun or large kettle. Pre-sanitize equipment surfaces with food-grade sanitizer.

Mash In

Add the crushed malted barley to the 72°C strike water, stirring to eliminate dry pockets. Target a mash temperature of 65°C (149°F). If temperature falls, apply gentle heat; if too high, add small amounts of cool water.

Saccharification Rest

Maintain the mash at 65°C for 60 minutes to allow enzymatic conversion of starches to fermentable sugars. Stir gently every 10–15 minutes and check temperature and pH (target mash pH 5.2–5.6). Add 2 ml phosphoric or lactic acid only if pH is above 5.8.

Adjunct Addition

At the last 10 minutes of the mash rest, stir in the flaked maize (or light sugar if using) to gelatinize and integrate additional starch/sugar into the mash.

Mash Out & Lauter

Raise mash temperature to 75°C (167°F) for 10 minutes to stop enzymatic activity (mash out). Transfer the mash to a lauter tun or use a fine strainer/colander to drain the wort into a kettle. Sparge the grains with about 7 liters of 75°C water to rinse remaining sugars, collecting a total wort volume around 25 liters.

Adjust Minerals & Cool Wort

Dissolve 3 g calcium chloride into a small amount of warm wort and add to the collected wort. Cool the wort quickly to yeast pitching temperature (20–24°C / 68–75°F) using an immersion chiller or ice bath to avoid contamination.

Pitch Yeast

Transfer cooled wort into a sanitized fermentation vessel. Add yeast nutrient (10 g) and sprinkle or pitch 20 g of distiller's yeast into the wort. Seal with an airlock. Keep fermentation temperature steady at 20–25°C (68–77°F).

Monitor Fermentation

Allow active fermentation for 3–7 days until bubbling slows. Maintain sanitation. Measure specific gravity; when SG stabilizes (typically around 1.000–1.010 depending on mash), primary fermentation is complete.

Conditioning

After active fermentation, allow the wash to rest 2–3 more days to let solids settle and improve clarity. Rack (siphon) the clear wash off gross lees into a sanitized holding container, leaving sediment behind.

pH & Final Prep

Check the wash pH (target 4.0–4.5). If needed, adjust with small additions of phosphoric or lactic acid. Cool wash to 18–22°C prior to distillation and ensure total volume available is appropriate for your still (do not over-fill).

Sanitize Still & Charge

Sanitize the still, condenser, and any fittings with the food-grade sanitizer and rinse thoroughly with spring water. Pour the clarified wash into the still, filling to the recommended level for your equipment.

Stripping Run (if using pot still)

If using a pot still, heat gently to perform a stripping run: bring wash to gentle boil and collect distillate until you have reduced the wash to a low volume (a rough guide: collect ~1/3 of original volume as low-proof distillate). For a continuous or reflux still, follow manufacturer's recommended run to produce a low-proof heart cut for polishing.

Spirit Run / Fractional Distillation

Perform the spirit run slowly to allow better separation. Discard the foreshots (first ~50–150 ml per 20 L of wash) to remove methanol and volatiles. Collect heads separately until the temperature and aroma indicate transition to hearts. Collect hearts (desired neutral alcohol) at the appropriate ABV range for your still (commonly 65–85% ABV for reflux stills). Stop collecting hearts when tails (oily, vegetative aromas; lower ABV) begin to appear.

Polishing (Optional Activated Carbon)

If a very neutral spirit is desired, dilute the hearts to approximately 20–30% ABV with spring water and pass the spirit through activated carbon (use a small filter column or soak with carbon for several hours) to remove congeners and color. Re-distill or filter again if necessary.

Proof Down & Rest

Dilute the final spirit with spring water to your target bottling strength (e.g., 40% ABV). Do this slowly, adding water in small increments while gently mixing and allowing the spirit to rest for at least 24 hours to re-equilibrate flavors and ensure clarity.

Clean Equipment

After each major stage (mash, fermentation, distillation), clean and sanitize all equipment. Use the food-grade sanitizer as directed (100 ml or per product instructions) and rinse thoroughly. Dispose of spent grains responsibly or use as animal feed/compost.