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Fundamentals

Fermentation Matters to the Flavor of Your Spirits

From methods to ensure healthy fermentation to fementor choices to cleaning procedures, yeast selection, and time, the decision tree that a distiller follows when designing a fermentation regimen has tremendous impact on the character of the final product.

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High-Quality Proofing Water Is Essential to Great Spirits

As a distiller, you need to ensure that the water you’re using for dilution is helping, not harming, your products. Here’s what to know.

S&D Podcast 29: Devon Trevathan of Liba Spirits and Trovador Rum Distills Spirits with Stories

Whether she’s distilling in far-flung locales, blending beautiful spirits, or writing about others’ processes, Devon Trevathan crafts stories in both words and flavors.

Water: It’s More than Just Hs and Os

Water is an essential component to producing high-quality spirits. Knowing how it affects your mash is what can take your products from good to great.

Fun with Fungi: Distillers Make Magic with Mushrooms

Mushrooms offer a range of characteristics that may appeal to consumers, whether they’re seeking flavor in spirits or function in NA beverages.

Fundamentals

Rollers, Hammers, Mashers, and Cookers: The Gear to Know, from Milling through Cooking

A distillery’s goals tend to influence its choice of equipment, as different spirits call for different ways to process grain or other fermentables. Here’s a primer.

S&D Podcast Episode 28: Brett Steigerwaldt of Lyon Rum is Crafting Contemporary Expressions with Timeless Methods

Rum with distinctive character and refined expression is key for this Maryland distillery, and head distiller Brett Steigerwaldt doesn’t leave flavor up to fate.

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When It Comes to Barrel Entry Proof, Consider Your Budget and the Science

The available data around flavor impacts is unclear—even contradictory—but this much we know: Distilling a range of strengths for the barrels will give you a broader range of blending options.

Four Trailblazing Women Who Shaped Drinking Culture

For Women’s History Month, we mix up some cocktails in honor of those who pushed for a seat at the table and a place behind the bar.

Fundamentals

Unlocking the Goodness Locked Up in Grain

Understanding the fundamentals of proper mashing or cooking can be essential to producing good spirits.