Search This Blog

Saturday, July 14, 2018

* DRINK BOOK OF THE MONTH: Tabletop Distilling

 
 
1.TABLETOP DISTILLING (Schiffer Publishing, 2018, 176 pages, ISBN 978-0-7643-5511-0 $34.99 USD hardbound) is by Kai Moller, who wrote it for the German market in 2016. This is the English translation. In Germany, private distilleries are prohibited, and this applies to all systems between 0.5 and 5 litres boiler volume. So the book is useful for the 500 mL capacity "nano"-distilleries. Table-top distilling at its best! Given the nature of the setup and the lack of aging potential, it might be more useful to just make essences and essential oils, perhaps the odd infusion or two. If so, then this is the book for you. In this detailed book Moller applies the tools and techniques and procedures to safely distill raw materials. He covers the step-by-step nature of mashing, fermenting, distilling, and refining spirits. It's a lot of work for basic vodka or moonshine, but it is an extremely useful book for essential oils (which cost an arm and a leg on the open market). Preparations have their ingredients listed in metric measurements, but there is no table of equivalents.
Audience and level of use: those looking to widen their scope of alcohol experiences, and make their own essential oils.
Some interesting or unusual recipes/facts: "Distill whenever you feel like it. It always works...I have heated a still without a condenser and steamed water with orange peel and cloves in the chamber....This is not any more complicated than putting a tea light under a fragrance lamp."
The downside to this book: no index
The upside to this book: good for making small lots of medicinal herbs and oils.
Quality/Price Rating: 88.
 
Chimo! www.deantudor.com

No comments: