Distillation
Once again toying with the idea of distillation. It's time. Bergamot orange is on the top of the list. And then some other citrus, as they are the most prevalent in the markets right now. No flowers that can be distilled have bloomed yet. I think I want to make more hydrosols this year. I used to make them all of the time, 10 or so a year, but in the past five years, I haven't done a lot of distilling. The last time was that beautiful sandalwood (santalum album) wood chip distillation in 2020, and before that was a rose geranium in 2019. I used to make beautiful hydrosols in my 2L copper unit. Small enough to fit on the kitchen stove and easy to monitor. Except for those two times distilling frankincense when I literally blew the top off the unit and got hot resin all over the ceiling and cabinets. Despite the explosions, those two hydrosols ended up being really great. I first started distilling back in the early 2000s (I can't remember the exact year). I was really intimidated by the process, but just like everything else I become obsessed with, once I got the basics down, I was distilling just about anything I could get my hands on. Citrus of every kind, including kumquats, pine needles, tree bark, frankincense -- it all had a sauna bath in the wee copper unit. Some were perfection, others complete failures, but all of it was fun and educational, even the blow-ups.
Mmmm, yes! I really need to invest in a still. One of these days... :)
ReplyDeleteNot sure what your budget looks like, but there are a lot of wee distillation units perfect for starting out. Cher at EOApothecare just shared her traveling distillation unit, and it looks pretty interesting. www.letimestill.com -- go check them out. My very first still was a gift from a copper distillation company, way back in 2009. It's banged up and bashed but still gets some run-time once in a while. I use all of my stills interchangeably, so they are well worth the investment. But take a class first! If you find someone local who teaches, go take a class. Videos and talk-throughs are nice, but there is nothing like getting your eyeballs on the work first-hand. Distillation classes are fun.
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