CRAFT by Under My Host® Issue No. 15 Classics | Page 147

becomes pliable, where they are then sent
out to be pressed into the dome shape by
a separate company. The smaller heads, on-
ions, elbows and lyne arms are also done in-
house, heating the pieces until they get to
the right temperature and then hammering
them by hand to the shape using leather
mallets and iron forms.
The history of continuous column stills isn’t
as lengthy as pot stills and, in my opinion,
not nearly as inspiring. The original Woulfe
Bottle, used to improve chemical rectifica-
tion, was refined and patented by Edouard
Adam in 1801. Even though it was horizontal
and used several chambers, this “column”
still was the first to produce alcohol in one
operation. There were several alterations
to this rudimentary column still by Nicole
Fournier to create the first truly continuous
still. Pistorius patented his continuous still as
the first to be vertical, but it was just several
pots connected to each other. Robert Stein
patented his to use two columns, the first be-
ing the Analyser with wash descending from
the top and steam being introduced from
the bottom. The second was called the Rec-
tifier. It recirculated the alcohol taken from
the wash and condensed it at the proof the
distiller wanted. The one that is considered
the standard today, however, was patented
in 1833 by Aeneas Coffey. Coffey was a Tax
collector and began managing two distiller-
ies after retiring. His patent introduced the
use of perforated plates at various levels of
the column for creating the reflux and pipes
for taking away the oils created during dis-
tilling. There were various new designs over
the years for rectifying plates, but the one
that was the best and is still being utilized
the most is the Bubble Cap Plate. At each
level of a column still the wash that is intro-
duced at the top filters downward towards
the heat until evaporation begins. As the va-
por rises back up through the trays it leaves
the heavier compounds behind while letting
the lighter ones progress to the next level.
The continuous column stills made by Ven-
dome come in a variety of sizes, ranging
from a very small diameter of 12 to 14 inches
for craft distillers to extra-large ones of 5 to
6 feet in diameter for the bigger producers
like Four Roses and Wild Turkey. As you can
imagine, the larger columns can reach 40 to
50 feet tall. The whole column starts as in-
dividual sections when the flat sheets are
rolled to the diameter needed and the seams
welded. The sight glass and coupling/ferrule
holes are laid out and cut smaller than need-
ed, so the edge can be bumped outward to
form a perpendicular lip for welding and the
shell won’t fall in afterwards. Sight ports are
welded in after the flanges on each end are
put on. Whatever trays are being used in
that column are then inserted in at the cor-
rect levels. For instance, trays that are flat
with holes are called sieve trays. These are
further up in the column so the thicker mash
doesn’t clog the system. Bubble trays can
either have round helmets (American) or rec-
tangular covers (UK).
Both pot stills and column stills can make the
same spirit, but they are inherently different
in their application and production. Pot stills
are “batch” systems. You make a batch, clean
the still, make another batch. Distilleries who
use pot stills don’t make a lot at once and
they don’t make it fast. There are some whis-
key rules that say you must make it in a pot
still, like Single Malt Scotch, Pot Still Irish
Whiskeys and Cognac. Some of these are
distilled twice while others are three times.
Bourbon isn’t classified as being required to
be made in pot stills, although there are sev-
eral bourbon brands that do. To me, pot stills
are simply magnificent pieces of equipment.
I mean, they’re just truly beautiful. That’s
why they usually have women’s names. Fla-
vor profile is one thing but, to be honest, you
really want one because of how they look.
Continuous column stills are used because
they can distill as fast and as long as you
© Hundred-to-One LLC 2017. All rights reserved.