Hey, it works for me! Only thing is... I only use black powder for my "entertainment shooting." You know, having a little fun with a .45 Kentucky Rifle, or a .50 Hawken. For the serious stuff I use Alliant Powders of one recipe or another - it depends upon what I caliber I am working on and the purpose of the round.
Now, as far as the other half of the lyrics... Well... You get a burlap sack and fill it with 10 pounds of good seed corn. Then you wet it down, keeping it just damp enough to let the corn "sprout." Once the corn has "sprouted" to about a quarter of an inch, you take it out and put it in the water to rinse. Once rinsed, you rub it to take off the sprouts. Throw the sprouts and roots away and transfer the corn into your primary fermenter. With a clean stick you mash the corn, making sure all kernels are cracked. Next, you add 5 gallons of boiling water. When the mash cools add 1 cup of yeast. Seal the whole batch in your fermenter bucket and vent it with a water sealed vent. The fermentation will take 7-10 days. When the fermentation is done, you pour the mash into your still, filtering it through a clean pillow case to remove all solids. Now it's time... You turn the heat on low and watch the thermometer. Keep the temperature between 173 and 200 degrees Fahrenheit. The object of distilling is to boil off the alcohol and leave the water in the pot. Alcohol boils at 173 and water boils at 212 degrees. You throw the first ounce or so of liquid that comes from the output tube away. This is called the "foreshots" and it is impure. (In other words, the "foreshots" taste like... well, you know.) The "reflux" still allows for a more pure alcohol than does the old traditional "Pot and Condenser Coil" that is ofter seen in photographs. It does so because the alcohol makes several passes up the "reflux column", leaving the impurities behind. It is the impurities in the alcohol that give people hangovers at best, and can kill them at worst. With a nice "reflux" still, you can make quality "corn whiskey" on par with the big distilleries - if you work at it and want to age it in an charred oak barrel to get the pretty color and additional flavor.
Thus concludes today's lesson on home manufacturing of alcohol... :-)
Regards,
Raven6
BTW: My dad was an agent for the State of Tennessee's Alcoholic Beverage Commission back in the 1960's, so I know this process well. Though long since passed away (1993), he still holds the state record (along with his partner) for the largest still ever busted... Hold on to your hats for this one: 2,400 gallons! Fired by propane and set back into the side of a hill over in West Tennessee. Couldn't see it from the air, and it made no smoke because it was propane fired. They discovered it by accident while out scouting for other stills! Talk about being in the right place at the right time!
Thanks! That’s how I’d make mash, too, if it were legal of course and it’s nothing I’d try personally. I would not use a ten liter two neck Pyrex flask with a ceramic saddle packed fractioning column with Claisen head. Even if it had a pressure equalized addition port, yano?
Leslie chose “veggie trash” because it’s something you can usually get. She imagined times so tough you can’t do it “right”. She envisioned natural yeast, too.
As for BP, BATF is considering harshly regulating potassium nitrate, so a word to the wise...