STOP! Back up - RUM?

[reddeath]

Right lads and lassies its like this - I Like rum and have done since before i joined the navy way back when - im only beginning to get into the foraging side of bushcraft recently and still struggle with basic tree identification..but im getting there
now im reading threads about home made rum, call me naive / innocent/ slow or whatever but this is obviously something I need to learn about as a matter of importance ( please take this a bit tongue in cheek im obviously not THAT desperate)

could somebody please explain?

[KAE1]

I might be off the mark here but are you refering to 'home made' rum or fruit infused/flavoured rum? Lots of people put blackberrys, raspberrys etc in spirit and leave to infuse for a couple on months before straining off. Theres loads of recipes on google or just experiment with a sloe gin recipe and exchange the gin with rum and the sloes with whatever you fancy.

[Lostdreamer]

Also, don't forget that 40% spirits work nicely for keeping drinking water fresh. Add a 'splash' to your water carrier and it tastes of booze, rather than brackish water. Doesn't go furry anywhere near so quickly either.

[Mikey P]

Also, don't forget that 40% spirits work nicely for keeping drinking water fresh. Add a 'splash' to your water carrier and it tastes of booze, rather than brackish water. Doesn't go furry anywhere near so quickly either.

I like that! It sounds like a Viz 'Top Tip'.

[xylaria]

Jug-of -rum is reciepe where you take a bottle of rum and fill it with differant fruits through out the season. Mearly put a handful of soft fruit in and then some sugar, and then add some more fruit and sugar when they come to season. My has bilberries, blackberries, cherry-plums, yellow plums and Elderberries.

[demographic]

I have a book kicking around somewhere about making wines, beers and spirits which has a recipie for making rum.

Problem is that I can't find it
The quantities were a bit industrial also, if I remember right it was to make up a hundred gallons

One other thing about it that struck me as weird was the fact that the recipie involved the adition of something like a gallon of sulphuric acid

The book covers making all kinds of homemade wines, distilation using a condenser and also using the freezer to distill spirits by freezing them and the alchahol thaws first (well after the fusil oils that you don't want).

Still can't find it though.

[commandocal]

I will be a tester if you would like :P

[reddeath]

Ah, the mist begins to clear........ so is it good adding fruit n sugar? what sort of ratio are we talking??? getting excited at the thought lol

[Raptordog]

[quote]The quantities were a bit industrial also, if I remember right it was to make up a hundred gallons:eek[/QUOTE}

And where's the problem there then ?..........

[clcuckow]

Don't forget that it is a big no, no to distill (either by condensation or by freezing) alcohol without a license in the UK, not sure about the ROI.

[Tourist]

I might be off the mark here but are you refering to 'home made' rum or fruit infused/flavoured rum? Lots of people put blackberrys, raspberrys etc in spirit and leave to infuse for a couple on months before straining off. Theres loads of recipes on google or just experiment with a sloe gin recipe and exchange the gin with rum and the sloes with whatever you fancy.

The Germans have something they call RUMTOPF - basically RUM POT.

It needs a ceramic pot about a gallon or so, a supply of rum and some sugar.

You pick fruit as it comes into season and place a layer into the pot*, sprinkle on some sugar and then pour in rum until it covers the layer. If you like a particular fruit you natch put a bit more of it in.

Around xmas time the rumtopf is nice and ready to have either on its own or with ice cream or something else.

NOTES: * Not chunky layers, that is not whole apples or pears, large fruits can be sliced and placed in.

A rumtopf becomes a prized posession after a couple of years as it gradually becomes infused with the flavour and aroma.

[sallyinwales]

You can legally run a still as long as the end result is under something like 0.1% alcohol, so a bit pointless really. (I checked with the C&E people a few years ago when I needed to use a still for some research). So stick to making fruit liquers using bought spirits and you have no problem. Blackberry whisky is a great one for a first go, just fill a jar with blackberrys, a sprinkle of sugar and whisky (or rum) leave for a couple of weeks and straining out.

[clcuckow]

You can legally run a still as long as the end result is under something like 0.1% alcohol, so a bit pointless really. (I checked with the C&E people a few years ago when I needed to use a still for some research). So stick to making fruit liquers using bought spirits and you have no problem. Blackberry whisky is a great one for a first go, just fill a jar with blackberrys, a sprinkle of sugar and whisky (or rum) leave for a couple of weeks and straining out.

Yes I have got some rasberry whisky and some backberry whisky on the go at the moment. The longer you leave it the better, try to keep it for a year but as oftern as not I don't

[gregorach]

Well, actually... According to my local homebrew shop, C&E no longer care much about home distilling for personal use - some EU legislation or such... They keep trying to sell me a desktop reflux still - very nice little bit of kit, can produce up to 60% pure alcohol.

[sallyinwales]

Well, actually... According to my local homebrew shop, C&E no longer care much about home distilling for personal use - some EU legislation or such... They keep trying to sell me a desktop reflux still - very nice little bit of kit, can produce up to 60% pure alcohol.

Technically that may be true, and as I gather nobody has been 'done' for having astill in recent memory, at worst they confiscate the booze and make you pay duty on it, but thats not really the point here is it. I'm sure nobody on this forum would advocate actually breaking a current law no matter how interesting and delicious the subject matter

There is also the rather more academic issue of needing to know what you are doing in order not to poison yourself with moonshine. Again, easy enough to research and learn, sadly still illegal in teh UK (but not in New Zealand apparently, I did briefly consider emigrating when I found that out)

[gregorach]

I'm not at all sure that it is illegal any more. As I understand it, because of EU rules harmonisation, you have the right to distil your own hooch. I'm assured that the still manufacturers did their legal homework and that it's all above board.

[sallyinwales]

I havent heard of any actual law change, owning a still is fine, using it for water etc is fine, using it for alcohol isnt to the best of my knowledge. Shouldnt be too hard to check up on though, its been a couple of years since I spoke to C&E about distilling but there are loads of homebrew forums that might be more up to date

[dave k]

hmmmm...


I've been known to make dodgy country wines. How about oak-leaf schnapps?


I would be really interested in this - esp. making fruit liquers (sp!). Distilling the country-wine castoff's would be quite cool I think..

[gregorach]

I'm not sure how well the still in question would handle that... It's designed for raw alcohol, produced from sugar, water, and Turbo yeast, which you then flavour after distillation. I suppose it would work, but I don't know how well.