Category: Distillery

By: Kris Bohm: Owner of Distillery Now Consulting LLC.

If you have a drink of bourbon from a well-known whiskey brand, chances are that whiskey was distilled on a continuous column still. When it comes to making whiskey and selecting the equipment for distilling it is wise to look to industry leaders and their choices can help guide your decisions. Distilleries that are selling millions of cases of bourbon and rye whiskey annually in countries all around the globe use continuous distillation equipment to make their whiskey and that type of still might be the best choice for you.

  Most of the established distilleries in the southern United States made the decision decades or in some cases centuries ago to distill their whiskey on stills that are very different from the pot stills. While distillation of whiskey has its history firmly rooted in small batch distillation pot stills, the modern production of bourbon is a very different business from where it began centuries ago. The vast majority of whiskies you will find behind your local bar today were all distilled on continuous column stills. Whether it is bourbon, rye whiskey, Canadian or Irish whiskies there is a good chance that most of the bottles you’ll find were all made on a continuous column still. Together let’s explore a bit of history, operational theory and the economics of continuous stills. My goal with this article is to help you more carefully consider if a continuous column still is the right choice to make your whiskey.

  The science of distillation is an ancient technology, with history pointing to the discovery of distilling occurring sometime in the first century AD. As knowledge of distillation and technology improved there are records of spirits being distilled for beverage in the 12th century by Latins. Up until the 1800s all distilling was done in batches on what was a known as simple pot still. The concept of continuous distillation first recorded in Europe in the early 1800s. Many variations of the design of continuous still were created during the 1800s. The first well documented continuous still was named the Coffey still after its inventor Aeneas Coffey. This still was reported to have been patented and built in 1830 and was made from wood, iron and copper. The Coffey Continuous still was found to be far more efficient than the traditional batch or pot still. The reason this still design was more efficient was that it uses less energy and labor to produce spirits. A big benefit of the Coffey still was that it could produce much larger quantities of spirits per hour than pot stills in a much smaller footprint. The Coffey still was recognized by distillers as a better choice of equipment to produce distilled spirits on an industrial scale. As continuous distillation grew in popularity through the 1800s many refinements were made to the original Coffey design, which set the continuous column still to be the equipment of choice for distilleries that needed to make large quantities of spirits.

  Lets jump in and talk about the specifics of how continuous distillation works and how it differs from batch distillation. If you understanding of theory on batch distillation science, it is important to approach continuous distillation open minded as the operation and distillation theory is starkly different. The critically important concept one must accept when seeking to understand continuous distillation is the following.

Continuous Column Stills are NOT Pot Stills

  The principles and physics that allow a continuous still to function and separate heads, hearts and tails are completely different from batch distillation.

Below is a breakdown of the steps from start to finish and the operating principles of a modern continuous column still. We will trace the 10 steps that occur in a continuous still which will take fermented distillers beer and turn it into spirits.

1)           Beer is pumped from a tank called a beer well into the still and injected into the column above the stripping plates at a consistent and continuous flow rate.

2)           As the beer is pumped through pipes to the still the beer first passes through a heat exchanger that preheats the liquid before it enters the column.

3)           The preheated beer enters the column on the stripping plates and meets rising steam in the still which flash evaporates the alcohol out of the beer. The steam is directly injected into the base of the still.

4)           The spirits that are extracted out of the beer are carried as hot vapor into the upper portion of the still. In the rectification portion of the still the spirit it is continuously rectified till it meets that target proof that is controlled by the still operator.

5)           As the spirits are rectified in the still the proof increases which separates the tails and fusels with their higher boiling point that are left behind and concentrated on lower plates.

6)           The spirits that the distiller wants to collect moves as hot vapor onto the condensers which continuously separates the heads from the hearts.

7)           The heads and methanol which have a lower boiling point do not condense and remain vapor which is then is vented off the still at multiple condenser points.

8)           The spirits (hearts) is condensed in the condensers, where it passes through the spirit safe and is then pumped to a spirit holding tank.

9)           Thanks to gravity the water and solids of the beer slowly move down the stripping plates of the column to the bottom of the still.

10)        By the time the beer exits the bottom of the column it has less than .05 percent alcohol remaining in it.

  This summary of how a continuous still works is brief and bit simplified. There are pumps, processes and control valves that control cooling and flow to maintain equilibrium and balance in the operation of a continuous column still.

  While continuous columns still are efficient and cost effective to operate, this does not mean they are inexpensive to operate. Let’s breakdown the inputs and outputs in the operation of a continuous still to consider the large scale at which they operate.

  An 18” diameter continuous column still will distill on average 9 gallons per minute of beer. From a production perspective you can distill over 50,000 gallons of beer in a work week if the still is run 24 hours a day. In distilleries running continuous stills of this size they will often run a single shift per day and not 24/7. In that case a continuous column still being run for 8 hours a day 4 days a week will be distilling upwards of 16,000 gallons of beer per week. When this quantity of beer is distilled it can produce upwards of 45 full size barrels of whiskey per week. We will avoid the discussion here of exact cost as the price of the grains and barrels to produce these spirits can vary widely. Suffice to say the quantities of grain needed to make this much whiskey and the barrels to put it all in adds up to a sizable budget. When it comes to considering efficiency of labor my approach is to look how many labor hours it takes to make a barrel of whiskey. In my experience of operating a continuous still versus a pot still I have found it takes nearly 3 times as many labor hours to produce a barrel of whiskey on a pot still versus a continuous column still. When consideration of the difference in labor cost and energy efficiency is looked at it becomes obvious that a continuous column still is a smarter way to make large quantities of whiskey.

  Pot stills are excellent for distilling small batches of spirits and also for distilleries that do not have the budget to produce spirits on an industrial level. On the other hand pot stills are not effective to produce spirits that are comparable in cost to produce as spirits made on a continuous still. One of the biggest hurdle young distilleries face as their sales increase is having the capacity to grow production to keep up with demand. A pot still is difficult to scale up. A continuous still is very easy to scale up production. If you are thinking about starting a distillery, we urge you to consider a continuous column still to make your spirits. The economics are too strong to ignore and the reduction in cost of production is critical to sustain your business as it grows.

  Kris Bohm is the owner of Distillery Now Consulting. When Kris is not helping folks with continuous still he can be found pursuing adventures on two wheels and defending his beer mile record.

By: Gerald Dlubala

Brothers Ryan and Garrett Burchett had no experience in the distilling industry when they decided that making whiskey for a living sounded pretty cool. Both had successful careers, but after two years of research and training, they opened the Mississippi River Distilling Company in Le Claire, Iowa, in 2010.

  “We had no experience in the industry but saw it as a way to get in on the ground floor of something pretty cool,” said Ryan Burchett. “We spent a couple of years looking for opportunities for research and training and came up with a business plan. Our thinking was that the worst thing that could happen was that we learned a lot about whiskey, which is pretty cool, too. But after that, we felt we were in a good place to start. From there, our plan just kind of snowballed, and the next thing we knew, banks were offering us the money we needed to make the distillery happen. We both left our day jobs to make booze for a living, opening the Mississippi River Distilling Company in 2010.”

  Burchett said that the name gives them a sense of place and references their history, located right on the banks of the Mississippi River. The distillery is located on North Cody Road, just a short distance from where Buffalo Bill Cody, American frontiersman and legend, was born. To honor that heritage as well, Mississippi River Distilling Company’s flagship line of bourbons and whiskeys all carry the Cody Road name.

With Legal Hurdles Lifted, Mississippi River Distilling Company Takes Flight

  “Iowa is one of the top alcohol beverage producers in the U.S. that no one talks about because of all the grain-neutral spirits produced here,” said Burchett. “But when we started, Iowa was still a regulated state. We could certainly distill here, but we were very limited in what we could do regarding sales at the distillery.

  “When we first started, visitors could tour and get two ¼ ounce samples of our product,” he said. “If they liked it enough to buy it, they could buy two bottles per person, per day. We worked really hard over the years to get changes made to level the playing field between distilleries and neighboring breweries and wineries. We wanted to give visitors the experiences they’ve become accustomed to when visiting those establishments. When that change happened, we could now sell cocktails, drinks by the glass, beer and wine from our neighbors, and increase our bottle sales. Deregulation with increased types and opportunities for sales and the allowance of tasting rooms led to us buying the property next door and turning it into an event center so we can host weddings and other special or community events.”

  “Then, a couple of years ago, we looked at a distillery in Davenport that never really got on its feet,” said Burchett. “We were able to take it over in a relatively easy transaction. It was nice from an administrative standpoint, but this location gave us the room we needed for a bottling and packaging line that would’ve taken up all of our warehouse space in Le Claire. Davenport turned out to be a perfect fit and an opportunity for us to expand. There was a huge warehouse in the back of the property with a loading dock and plenty of space for a tasting room up front. So now, we still manufacture and process everything in Le Claire, but bottling and packaging are in Davenport.”

Using Local Ingredients and Remaining Authentic Are Core Principles

  “We only use the finest local ingredients,” said Burchett. “We know the names of every farmer that grows our wheat, barley and corn. You know, when we started here in Le Claire, we were geared towards tourism, as is the whole town. I mean, American Pickers are just down the street and pull visitors in as well. There are 40-50 thousand tourists that travel through here annually, so authenticity is critical to our success. We noticed relatively quickly that using 50-pound bags of milled corn could get pricey compared to buying bulk corn, so we decided to get a mill and found a local farmer who was willing to provide the corn.

  He continued, “After that, we went down the line of our needs and thought, if we can do that locally, why not do the same with other things? Authenticity has been essential to us from the beginning and continues to be one of our core principles because we’re pulling the curtain and letting visitors come right in and see what we do and how we do it. There were only a few hundred distilleries when we started, and now that number is pushing 3,000 across the country.”

  Part of that authenticity is being true to their brand; the Burchett brothers are certainly that. By not trying to push imitations or less-than-authentic processes, the production process used to make Cody Road Whiskey is an open book. It starts at the mash tank, where the grain is milled into fine flour and cooked in preparation for fermentation. After a week of fermentation, it’s into the still to concentrate the alcohol through distillation. Burchett takes only a narrow cut of each distillate, ensuring only the sweetest and smoothest spirits make their way into the bottle. The spirits are put into the barrel and then into the barrel room. Each barrel is filled and stored on-site, containing only their whiskey before being deemed worthy of the Cody Road label. Each bottle is hand-numbered with its identifying batch and bottle number so drinkers can go to the website and learn the names of the farmers who provided the grain and what went into the whiskey in their glass.

  Burchett told Beverage Master Magazine that he used to distribute across almost half of the United States but has since decided to pull back, focusing on distribution to the Midwest states within sensible driving distances.

  “We want to concentrate our growth efforts on local opportunities,” he said. “We want folks to come into our locations, get to know us and then try and buy our products to share with others. We do have full-time sales reps in Chicago and here in Iowa, but in our 14 years in business, I can put my finger on two distinct spots in the timeline and see two different businesses as we’ve continued to grow and then change from that growth. All of our processes are performed on-site, from bringing in the raw grain to the final bottling and labeling. We are family-owned and operated, and we believe strongly in taking ownership of and being good stewards of our land, raw materials and water supplies.”

It’s All About Rosie

  The Mississippi River Distillery Company overlooks the Mississippi River, but in this case, the river may not be the thing that demands the visitor’s attention. The star of this show is the distillery’s still, affectionately named Rosie, in true “River Rose” fashion with her mesmerizing, eye-catching curves. The building layout was planned around Rosie, so whether you are inside having a drink in the grand tasting room or simply passing by on your way somewhere else, Rosie is always in view.

  “Our still was handmade in Germany specifically for us,” said Burchett. “We chose to go with a German-made still because, at the time, there just weren’t many options for this caliber of small stills stateside. It’s gotten better, but the equipment being marketed at the time was being made

for ethanol production or for major, large-scale distillers. In Germany, it’s legal to preserve your grain by distilling it, and there were three main producers in southern Germany that were already making this equipment for farmers. We hooked up with one of them and went to Germany while our still was being built.”

  “Rosie is a hybrid still consisting of a German boiling pot and two tall rectification columns that house distillation plates that can produce the purest vodka, up to 95 percent alcohol,” he said. “We can turn off some or all of the plates to make anything from a traditional whiskey in the traditional pot still fashion up to whatever pops into the distiller’s head. And honestly, if you can make it from grain, we’ve probably tried it at least once. The still gives us the flexibility to be creative and have a little fun along the way. You know, we’ll make a small batch, and we’ll put it out and try it. Sometimes they’re great, and we’ll bring them back; sometimes, they’re a big pain in the butt to make, and we swear we’ll never do that again. But to keep local interest, having something different like a special release or seasonal spirit on the menu is always nice.”

Finding Success Through Innovation and Adaptability

  “You know, from getting into the bar business to making sanitizer through COVID through branching out into the event center business, we’ve never been afraid to do whatever it takes and pivot as things have come our way,” said Burchett. “With all the things that have come along and popped up, we’ve gotten pretty good at tap dancing around and creating new opportunities for success, including our willingness to try new, trending flavors and spirits. The advantage of being a small business is knowing your strengths and when it’s okay to jump in and try something different. Yeah, we’ve done a lot of that and continue to do so.”

  The flagship Cody Road Bourbon is the Mississippi River Distilling Company’s best-seller. But over the past year, Burchett says that their Iowish Salted Caramel Cream Liqueur has been giving their bourbon a race as their most popular item. Additionally, Burchett makes a batched Old Fashioned ready-to-drink that consumers can’t get enough of.

  “The Old-Fashioned started as a drink we came up in our bar,” said Burchett. “It became so popular that we started bottling it for a ready-to-drink option, and it’s gone on to be Iowa’s top-selling ready-to-drink cocktail. We mix bitters, bourbon and sugar, put the mix back in oak barrels and let it soak for a month or two. Then, we filter and bottle it as a ready-to-drink old-fashioned cocktail. It’s just one way we look for the opportunities that present themselves”.

Pride in Your Business, Pride in Your Employees

  “Our employees that started with us from the very beginning are still here, and there’s something to be said about that,” said Burchett. “It’s something to be grateful for and we do take pride in that fact. It speaks a lot about the positive family culture we continue to have and promote here. The only other advice I would give someone going into this business is to figure out your budget as far as what you think your money needs are and just go ahead and double that amount upfront. Save yourself some headaches, settle in and be ready to grow and pivot from your original vision.”

  Mississippi River Distilling Company produces about 15,000 cases a year while adhering to its core principle of sourcing all grain from within 25 miles of the distillery. The distillery is located about halfway between Chicago and Des Moines, two miles north of I-80 on the Illinois/Iowa border. Mississippi River Distilling Company offers locations for private events, opportunities for charitable giving and a private, customizable whiskey program to create and distill your own whiskey.

  For additional information, check out their website or contact them at:

Mississippi River Distilling Company

303 North Cody Road

P.O. Box 801

Le Claire, IA 52753

www.mrdistilling.com

563-484-4342

info@mrdistilling.com