How a Column Still Works...The Art of Distilling

Okay, it sounds much more complicated than it is, but basically a column fractioning still is kind of like the tall towers you see at oil refineries. The taller the tower, the greater the purity of the distillate product. In a refinery, the higher the distillate can be driven up the tower, the purer the product. In a column still, as opposed to a pot still, the tall copper column allows the alcohol to rise and fall (depending on how much cooling water is running over the column plates) until it reaches a point where it is of such purity that it simply will not fall back into the pot. At that point it rises out of the column and moves into the secondary condenser where cooling water causes the vapor to condense. It is then gathered in the parrot and dispensed into jars or a catch tub...cheers!

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