Est. MCMXXIV · Craft Distiller's Companion

Home Distilling Calculator

Chapter III

The Spirit Run

Refine the charge, add charge water if needed, and plan the cuts.

Spirit Run Parameters

Charge volume and ABV stay fixed; added water raises charge volume and lowers charge ABV.

Run Charge

4.00L

Run ABV

95.00%

Pure Alcohol

3.80L

Concentration

0.42×

Yield

237.5%

Suggested Cuts

Guidance only — the nose and the tongue are the final judges.

Foreshots · discard

57 mL

Rule of thumb: ~10 mL for this charge.

Heads

304 mL

Solvent-like, sharp. Save as feints.

Hearts · keep

2470 mL

The clean centre — sweet, round, true spirit.

Tails

969 mL

Wet cardboard, oily. Save as feints.

Distribution based on pure-alcohol volume: ~1.5% foreshots · 8% heads · 65% hearts · balance tails.

Dilution Calculator

Add water to bring a high-strength spirit down to bottling strength. Always add spirit to water, not water to spirit.

Add Water

1.750L

Final Volume

3.750L

Water needed = Volume × (Current ABV ÷ Target ABV − 1). All values in litres and % ABV.