A little background: On September 27, 1903, Southern Railway train #97 derailed in Danville, Virginia, on Stillhouse Trestle. Engineer Steve Broady and 10 other people died in the wreck, and it became the inspiration for a popular folk/country song.
If you care to know more, this would be as good a place as any to start reading. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wreck_of_the_Old_97
The wreck is interesting to me for several reasons, and is the inspiration for the name I use here. That, plus the name of the trestle inspired the name for this, my first serious attempt at a good bourbon recipe.
I make no claims to great wisdom or insight or skill in creating a recipe. This is a direct result of a recent visit to a homebrew store where I bought a few things that seemed interesting to me, including buying him out of all the locally produced 2 row malt that he had in stock. I’ll attempt to explain my thoughts for everything as I go. The first section (to use some railroad terminology):
50 lbs of cracked corn
16 lbs of 2 row barley malt
5 lbs of Breiss 120L caramel malt
5 lbs of flaked rye
5 lbs of toasted rolled oats
45 gallons of water
All of the above divided into 10 equal portions, to fit into my 6 gallon fermentation buckets. On all but the first batch, replace 1/2 gallon of water with backset from a previous run. Standard mashing procedure, bring the water to 190 F, add the corn and high temperature enzymes and hold. Bring down to 150 F and add the rest of the grain, along with some extra liquid enzymes and beta glucanase to help break down the rye and oats. When cool enough, pitch yeast (I have Lallemand Distillamax XP, which is what I’ll likely use. Also have DADY and Red Star baker’s yeast, which are options).
Hopefully all the ingredients are pretty common, in case anyone else is interested in trying the recipe, and to prevent me from being locked into a single supplier if this turns out good enough that I want to keep making it.
The corn is obviously there because it’s bourbon, and because corn is cheap and readily available.
The barley is also standard, for both flavor and enzymes. Carolina Malt House claims to have won awards with their Carolina Gold 2 row, so hopefully I have a decent product.
The caramel malt is supposed to give sweetness and fruity, raisin notes. I’m hoping that will provide balance and complexity to the finished spirit.
The rye is there for a little spice and complexity, and just because I like rye.
The toasted oatmeal will hopefully give some nice oatmeal cookie notes and improve the mouthfeel of the spirit.
Ferment on the grain, and either steam strip or squeeze and then strip off the grain. Collect the low wines and run through a pot still, making fairly wide cuts for aging. Save the heads for a neutral, recycle the tails into the next spirit run. Blend and age on new charred and toasted oak. The second section:
Reserve 1/2 gallon of backset from the stripping run, to go into the next mash. If necessary, add calcium carbonate to raise the pH, though I’ve read that it’s generally not needed for the second generation. Add 8 lbs of white sugar to the rest of the backset and the grain (if you stripped off the grain, put it back in). Add a tablespoon of yeast nutrient, half a teaspoon of DSP, and a pinch of Epsom salt. 2-3 tablespoon of oyster shells can’t hurt, though I’m not sure if they’re needed with all the spent grain still present. Add water to get back to the original volume.
When cool, pitch more yeast and ferment again.
There’s more sugar than in the original AG recipe, to make up for the fact that you’re going to make narrower cuts and treat this more like moonshine than bourbon. I’ve done some research and found a few references to success using 100% of the backset in a sugar head, so it’s all in there in order to get the most flavor. With a little luck, this stuff might age well and at least be competitive with some of the more average bourbons on the market, but I see it more as something to sip on right away, or blend into flavored moonshine concoctions.
Distill same as before, including recycling the tails. Make narrower cuts, since the sugar head is probably better suited to drinking white.Steve, you’re way behind time. This is not 38, but it’s old 97. You must put her into Spencer on time.
Interesting write up. I figured Steve Broady was actually your name and you just had balls to put it out for everyone to see.
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Looks to be a good recipe.
I'm curious about the 150 temp and the gluco addition.
Is that not too hot for it?
I'm still trying to figure out the whole enzyme thing. I just did a mash tonight and added mine at 125. I read it denatures at 130 or higher. Are we talking about the same enzyme? Here is something I dug up from the archives which helped me out alot.
The old post reads:
Sorry to correct you loneswinger but gluco amylase, beta amylase and alpha amylase are 3 different enzymes that do 3 different things. The common enzymes sold for mashing unmalted grains are alpha amylase and gluco amylase poor ol' beta isn't usually included because it's just not necessary especially if you are using the gluco amylase because it basically does the same thing and more.
Alpha amylase converts starch to oligosaccarides, (complex sugars or sugars made up of multiple glucose units configured in long and branched chains) Gluco amylase cleans up after alpha breaking the chains into small individual glucose units which are most easily absorbed by yeast cells.
Here is a decent summary of the three and what they do, where they come from etc... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amylase
Thanks for the reality check on the gluco. I’ve got notes on appropriate temperature, and I’ll double check that before I put it in. I don’t know if it would be necessary with such a low percentage of the grain bill, but I have it and I figure it can’t hurt.Steve, you’re way behind time. This is not 38, but it’s old 97. You must put her into Spencer on time.
I like it Steve Broady. The backstory and intent means a lot and will add perhaps a dark complexity to the likker.
Cheers!
-jonny————
i make stuff i break stuff
water into whiskey into water
just getting started in home distilling - been drinking for decades
16g copper pot still, 10l alembic, and a column or two
————
Steve,
That looks like a pretty tasty grain bill, but somewhat unconventional for a bourbon mash with malt at 20% and rye at 6%.
The vast majority of commercial bourbons contain more rye than malt (notable exceptions are Jack Daniels and Heaven Hill bourbons). I think with 20% malt you'll get a bit of a 'scotchy' character in it, which is not to say that is a bad thing. Caramel 120 won't generate any fermentable sugars (at least it doesn't in beer, but with Gluco added it might). At first it looked a bit heavy handed to me, but 5% is about the upper limit for a beer so it may be OK. It should add a ton of raisiny character and sweetness.
I've built a spreadsheet since I began stillin that helps me develop recipes and predict volumes. After 15+ batches of AG whiskeys & rums, tweaking my spreadsheet after each batch, I find that it is pretty accurate.
I've put this recipe into my spreadsheet, and using an efficiency setting of 75% it tells me I'd get about 38 gallons of beer at about 6.4% ABV, which would yield about 1.4 gallons of product after cuts. Of course, these are only estimates, but I find that my 'predictions' are pretty close, generally within about 10%.
I say go for it.higgins
25 yr AG beer brewer, newbie stiller
15 gal 5500w kettle pot still with 2" x 12" copper riser,
and a 3/4" over 1/2" by 24" liebig with a twist.
Also a 3 qt Gin pot still
I like unconventional! Ideally, I would like this to be something unique and special enough that I can share it and have people appreciate it for its own character. Realistically, I’ll be happy if it’s better than what I can buy for a reasonable price.
Good thing I like scotch. My thought with the rye is more as a background spice, rather than a dominant flavor. Kind of like the way I put salt and cayenne pepper into my cinnamon rolls. There’s not enough of either for you to notice them, but they give it a much more interesting and complexly flavor, enhancing the dominant flavors.
I was a little concerned that it was too little malt, to be honest. I know there’s not enough for a full conversion, which is why I’ll add enzymes as well.
I assume it’s still got starch in it, right? If so, it should provide some fermentable sugar after milling and mashing and adding enzymes. At least, that’s my hope. If all it adds is flavor, that’s good too.
I am hoping for a little more that that, of course, but my attitude is that I get what I get. Better to focus on quality, and just make more if I want more. I’m curious, does your spreadsheet have any allowance for recycling the feints, which should hopefully increase yield a little bit? Also, I’m hoping that slightly wider cuts with long aging in mind might mean slightly greater yield. But again, quality over quantity.Steve, you’re way behind time. This is not 38, but it’s old 97. You must put her into Spencer on time.
I would appreciate u letting me know for my own needs
My notes say that ViscoSEB L should be used between 45-60 C. So, you’re right. That’s 113-140 F. With that in mind, I’ll add it once the mash starts to cool down a little, but before pitching the yeast.Steve, you’re way behind time. This is not 38, but it’s old 97. You must put her into Spencer on time.
I would appreciate u letting me know for my own needs
My notes say that ViscoSEB L should be used between 45-60 C. So, you’re right. That’s 113-140 F. With that in mind, I’ll add it once the mash starts to cool down a little, but before pitching the yeast.Good to know SB. THANKS
Gluco is probably not necessary for what you are doing, adds complexity, it requires a step mash to be really effective and that's backwards from the temperature order you are working in. If you were using 30% rye it might be worth while, my house bourbon is 18% rye and I haven't seen a need. I would just ignore it and add some rice hulls in the future if it becomes a problem during sparge or squeeze.
I can't tell if your sacch temp is 150 or if you are using the grain to bring the temp down further. You should get a drier finish (better conversion) if your main sachh rest is around 145 and drops down a few degrees during the rest.
Looks like a good recipe, I like the darker caramel malts. Should be down home plate classic bourbon with a little extra malt character.:)
I assume it’s still got starch in it, right? If so, it should provide some fermentable sugar after milling and mashing and adding enzymes. At least, that’s my hope. If all it adds is flavor, that’s good too.I should have said that "caramel 120 won't generate very much fermentable sugar".
Crystal malts are made by adding a 'stewing' step between malting and drying. The malt is kept moist and held at saccharification temperatures before drying, which converts most of the starch to complex crystalized, caramelized sugars. There may be a small amount of starch remaining. Some of the caramelized sugars are fermentable, with one estimate of about 40% fermentable sugars in Crystal/Caramel 10, decreasing as the color increases. I don't know if our distillers enzymes will simplify those complex sugars.
It takes around 30 degrees Lintner (diastatic power) to convert a pound of grain. Your 81 lb grain bill should take about 2400 dL to convert. Your 16 lb of pale malt will contribute nearly 2000 dL (6 row would be over 2500 dL).
My spreadsheet does have the ability to use both feints and reserved wash in the estimation of low wines qty & abv.
ndeubntex0o.png
StrippingSection.png (13.1 KiB) Viewed 122 timesNOTE: I strip until low wines collection is 30%higgins
25 yr AG beer brewer, newbie stiller
15 gal 5500w kettle pot still with 2" x 12" copper riser,
and a 3/4" over 1/2" by 24" liebig with a twist.
Also a 3 qt Gin pot still
Post time 2022-12-4 03:44:50
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