Distillation Process of Alcoholic beverages.

• What is distillation process?

- Distillation is a method of separating mixture based on difference in their volatilities in a boiling liquid mixture.

- Distillation is a unit operation or a physical separation process and not a chemical reaction. 

• What is Volatility? 

- In chemistry and physics, It is the tendency of a substance to vaporize.

• Principle of Distillation :- 

The principle of distillation is based on the different boiling point of different liquids.

Ethyl Alcohol vaporize at a lower temperature than water.

- water vaporize @ 100°C (212°F)

- Ethyl alcohol vaporize @ 78°C ( 172°F)

• Alcoholic wash:- 

Alcoholic wash or wash is the finished product of fermentation destined to be distilled for the first time.

•Congeners :- 

In the alcoholicbeverages industry congeners are substances, other than the desired type of alcohol, ethanol, produced during fermentation. 

                                       Congeners are responsible for most of the taste and aroma of distilled alcoholic beverages.

•What is still?

- The still is an apparatus that allows the separation of liquids from a mixture, like separation of ethyl Alcohol and water which commonly known as distillation.

- Usually stills are made of copper since it removes sulfur based compounds from the alcohol that would make it unpleasant to drink.

- Modern stills are made of stainless steel with copper innards. 

• Type of still:- 

There are mainly two types of still that are used for making distilled beverage.

    - Pot still

    - Patent still 

1. Pot still:-  A pot still is a type of Still generally used in distilling Spirits such as whisky or Brandy. Heat is applied directly to the pot containing the wash or wine.

- the pot still is associated with separate, slow low temperature distillation.

> parts of pot still :- 

1. A copper still:- These are the large copper kettle which have narrow necks ( called Lyne arm and lyne pipe) that curve and enter the condenser.

2. Spiral Worm Condenser :- traditionally the condenser was a coiled pipe of decreasing diameter immersed in a tub of cold water known as the 'worm'.

• Patent still :-

Patent still also know as:- 

- Coffey still :-  Invented by Irishman named Aeneas Coffey in 1831.

- Column still:- it consists of two columns known as Analyzer and Rectifier

- Continuous still :- unlike Pot still , patent still distillation doesn't happen in bataches. It is the continous process, happen automatically.

> Parts of patent still :- 

A patent still has two columns 

1. Analyzer :- the first column steam rising and the wash descending through several levels.

2. Rectifier :-  the second column ( called the Rectifier ) carried the alcohol from the wash where it circulate until it can condense at the required strength.