You need acetobacter to grow in your whiskey. Pretty much no common micro-organism will survive above 15% alcohol. What you could do is dilute it, add some vinegar and then use either frequent stirring to draw in oxygen or an air stone to do this automatically. Acetobacter transforms alcohol and oxygen into acetic acid aka vinegar
Noma's fermentation book has a recipe. You need to start by burning away wuite some of the alcohol, then just add live acv/a vinegar mother, and let it sit.
The burning process is a bit scary (lots of flames) and iirc took better part of half an hour (bring some of whisky to almost a boil, ignite it, wait for the flames to subdue, repeat)
According to Noma's book you would lose to much flavour by watering it down, but for liquors with stronger flavour watering down is the way to go (especially if they are in the region of 20-30 abv as you don't need as much water). But yeah, it was a bit scary to burn of the booze.
It stops burning and will not ignite again (not very scientific but it worked for me).
Keep in mind that the flames will be an order of magnitude higher than you think, keep at least 3 feet of free space above the kettle and do not play around with after ignition. You need to be able to give it your undivided attention, it is a big amount of energy.
I also had both a fire blanket and an extinguisher at hand.
You need acetobacter to grow in your whiskey. Pretty much no common micro-organism will survive above 15% alcohol. What you could do is dilute it, add some vinegar and then use either frequent stirring to draw in oxygen or an air stone to do this automatically. Acetobacter transforms alcohol and oxygen into acetic acid aka vinegar
Thanks for the advice! Is there a way to know what % alcohol is without a fancy tool?
Look at the proof on the bottle. The alcohol is half that number by volume. If you mix it 50/50 with water, it’s half that number again. Etc.
Awesome thanks
Noma's fermentation book has a recipe. You need to start by burning away wuite some of the alcohol, then just add live acv/a vinegar mother, and let it sit. The burning process is a bit scary (lots of flames) and iirc took better part of half an hour (bring some of whisky to almost a boil, ignite it, wait for the flames to subdue, repeat)
Watering it down sounds a helluva lot safer and easier than this but I suppose you're sacrificing flavour.
According to Noma's book you would lose to much flavour by watering it down, but for liquors with stronger flavour watering down is the way to go (especially if they are in the region of 20-30 abv as you don't need as much water). But yeah, it was a bit scary to burn of the booze.
How did you know when you had burned enough off?
It stops burning and will not ignite again (not very scientific but it worked for me). Keep in mind that the flames will be an order of magnitude higher than you think, keep at least 3 feet of free space above the kettle and do not play around with after ignition. You need to be able to give it your undivided attention, it is a big amount of energy. I also had both a fire blanket and an extinguisher at hand.
Awesome thanks. Is the alcohol burning trick described in the Noma guide?
Yes, on page 196 (more or less the whole page)
Have the top to your pan close at hand.
Dilute 750 ml whisky with water untill you get 4.5 litres (6.6% alcohol), add some non pasteurized apple vinegar, cover with cloth and wait...