🥃 Pot still distillation

Pot still distillation is a batch method of distillation: fermented liquid is heated in a closed copper pot, the vapour is led away into a condenser and the condensate is collected. One cycle gives one batch. This method keeps more aromatic compounds in the distillate than column distillation, so the flavour is fuller.

Construction. The pot still is a heating vessel with a wide base, a long neck and a condenser. The Oxford Companion calls it the oldest and simplest device for separating and concentrating alcohol from fermented liquids. It separates ethanol less efficiently than a column, and this is exactly what keeps the character of the raw material.

The cycle. Scotch is usually distilled twice: the first still gives a weak spirit, and in the second it is divided into heads, heart and tails. Only the heart goes into the cask; heads and tails return to the next batch. The page on double distillation describes this in more detail.

Where it is used. Pot stills are used for single malt whisky, cognac, Irish single pot still whiskey, mezcal and many brandies. Under the Scotch Whisky Regulations 2009, single malt Scotch must come from pot stills. A column works continuously and gives a lighter spirit, which is why that method is called rectification.

Why this matters to you. The words “pot still” on a label describe the method, not the quality: it is a craft, not a guarantee. A pot still does not make a drink safer, and the first fractions are toxic, which is why they are separated out. The WHO reminds us that there is no safe level of alcohol consumption.