Alcohol Determination Test Kit
Another MoreManual!
Provided by MoreWine!
A MoreFlavor Inc. Brand
www.MoreWinemaking.com
1-800-600-0033
Congratulations!
Your MoreWine! Alcohol Determination Test Kit is an accurate alternative to the more expensive Ebouillometer
and very complicated Dichromate methods, and is IRS and TTB approved for commercial producers. Please take a
moment to review the contents of your package to ensure that all the parts listed below are present and intact, and please
let us know right away at the phone number above if not.
Included in Kit:
1) Support Stand
2) 3-Prong Clamps
3) 500mL Distillation Pot
4) Carryover Piece w/ AntiFoaming Trap
5) Condenser
6) Plastic Keck Clamps
7) 250 mL Volumetric Flask
8) Alcohol Lamp Stand
9) Alcohol Lamp
10) Proof Hydrometer
11) 500mL Hydrometer Jar
12) Amber Pigtails w/ Plastic
Quick Disconnects (x2)
13) Sink Faucet Adapter
14) Tubing Adapter
15) Boiling chips
You’ll also need to purchase a bottle
of de-natured alcohol as fuel for the
alcohol lamp.
MoreWine!
www.MoreWineMaking.com
Alcohol Determination
MoreWine! MoreManuals are trademarks of MoreFlavor! Inc. March 2006. This document is copywritten by MoreFlavor, Inc. March 2006.
Assembling the Apparatus:
Once you’ve established that all the pieces are present and in good shape it is time to assemble the apparatus.
Following the steps outlined below, assemble the whole system so that it matches the photograph on page 1. Parts will be
referenced by the same numbers as in the photo. Please be sure to handle the glass components carefully and to not force
anything to fit together. Remember to purchase a bottle of de-natured alcohol from the hardware store as fuel for the
alcohol lamp
• Affix the long steel rod for the Support Stand to the porcelain base through the center hole in the porcelain base. Be sure
to tighten the nut on the underside of the base with a wrench or it will come loose over time (1).
• Orient the stand so that the base’s long side is facing you. Next you’ll want to attach the two Three-Pronged Clamps (2)
to the bar for the support stand. In order for the system to all fit on the stand, the clamps will need to be aligned at almost
a 180° angle from one another, and may need to be extended slightly. To extend the clamps, hold tightly onto the base and
unscrew the whole jaw assembly, then re-set the wingnut back against the base of the clamp to hold it in place.
• When you are placing the glass pieces into the clamps, use one clamp for the 500mL Distillation Pot (3) and the other
clamp to hold the Condenser (5). The Carryover Piece (4) which will deliver the vapors of alcohol and water to the condenser is not clamped to the stand, but instead supported by the other two glass pieces. This piece is put into the system
so that the Anti-Foaming Trap (big bulb with an inlet and an outlet) is just above the distillation pot. You will likely need
to fiddle with the positions of the Pot and the Condenser so that everything will fit together tightly. One good approach
is to set the Anti-Foaming Trap into the top of the Pot and clamp it in place with one of the blue Keck Clamps (6). In
this configuration it can support its own weight. Then bring the Condenser up to seat well with the Carryover Tube and
tighten the clamp which holds the condenser in place. Finally, when all is connected and in place, you can affix the second
blue Keck clamp between the Carryover Tube and the Condenser. *Note: When disassembling the system to add your wine
sample, unclip the Carryover Piece from the Condenser and the Distillation Pot and completely remove it. This eliminates the
risk of breaking it while adding the sample. *
• Next, attach the two 1ft lengths of amber tubing to the two side ports on the condenser (5). Take one of your plastic,
push together Quick Disconnect (QD) assemblies and connect the male side of the QD to the top tube and the female side
of the QD to the bottom tube. Now it is time to set up the lines that will run to and from the sink using the rest of your
amber tubing. To the line that will feed water from your sink into the Condenser, attach the Tubing Adapter (14) to one
end and the male half of the remaining QD set to the other end. This piece of tubing will Quick Disconnect to the pigtail
on the bottom of the condenser. For the return line, install the other half of the remaining QD. This line will connect to
the top of the Condenser and simply sit in the drain of your sink while the distillation is running. Again, the water for the
Condenser is fed in through the bottom and returns to the drain out of the top. Use the CE20 Sink Faucet Adapter (13) to
thread the Tubing Adapter (14) from the feed line onto your sink.
• Finally, position the stainless Alcohol Lamp Stand (8) and the Alcohol Lamp (9) on the porcelain base so that the lamp
sits directly under the Distillation Pot (3). The whole apparatus should be positioned so that there is about ½” between the
wick of the Lamp and the bottom of the Pot. Now we’re ready for the test.
MoreWine!
www.MoreWineMaking.com
Alcohol Determination
MoreWine! MoreManuals are trademarks of MoreFlavor! Inc. March 2006. This document is copywritten by MoreFlavor, Inc. March 2006.
Performing the Test:
1) Begin by filling your 250mL Volumetric Flask (7) almost all the way to the line with your wine sample. Leave this to sit out
for 30-60 minutes if the wine was not already at the same temperature as the testing facility (ie: it came out of a tank that is
cold stabilizing or out of a cooled barrel room). This will give the wine a chance to expand or contract in volume as it reaches
the same temperature as its surroundings. You will then need to adjust the volume of the flask so that the wine sample is
exactly 250mL. As always, read the liquid level from the lowest point on the concave meniscus.
2) Now transfer the wine from your volumetric flask into the Distillation Pot (3), having completely removed the Carryover
Piece (4) beforehand. Be sure to rinse the flask into the pot thoroughly with two 15mL portions of distilled water to make
sure that you get the entire wine sample into the pot. Add 3-5 boiling chips to the pot. *Note: Failure to add the boiling
chips will result in a very violent boil, which could shake the whole system so hard that pieces may crack or shatter, putting you
in danger. If you realize that you forgot the boiling chips; please extinguish the lamp and wait for the whole system to cool to
prevent the loss of alcohol vapors to the environment and to eliminate any risk of burning yourself, then open the distillation pot
and add them in before re-starting the test.*
3) Re-insert the Carryover Piece (4) and clamp in place.
4) Slowly turn on the flow from the sink. You do not want a river of water passing through the condenser, but you do want
enough of a flow so that the condenser is full up above the upper outlet.
5) Position the 250mL Volumetric Flask (7) under the outlet from the Condenser (5) and light the Alcohol Lamp (9).
6) The wine sample will take about 5 minutes to reach a boil, and about 5 minutes after that you should see the first drop of
distillate form at the top of the Condenser and run down the spiral tubing (Now you’re doing chemistry!!). The whole distillation will take 35-50 minutes depending on your ambient temperature.
7) Continue collecting distillate until the liquid level in the receiving flask (7) has hit the shoulder between the bell and the
stovepipe section. Extinguish the flame at this point and allow any remaining vapors to condense and run into the flask.
8) Remove the Flask from underneath the Condenser. Do not be concerned if there is still liquid left in the Distillation Pot.
Because alcohol boils at a lower temperature than water, it will come out of the wine completely before the water does. Also
remember that your wine is about 85% water, so there should be some water left over along with color compounds and tannins. The key is that you got all the alcohol. Allow the flask and its contents to reach room temperature, chich should take
15 minutes or so.
9) Now transfer the distillate from the Volumetric Flask (7) into your 500mL Hydrometer Jar (11). Rinse the 250mL receiving Flask into the Hydrometer Jar thoroughly with two 25mL portions of distilled water.
10) Continue filling the Hydrometer Jar with distilled water until you reach the 500mL mark. Be careful not to go over
500mL.
MoreWine!
www.MoreWineMaking.com
Alcohol Determination
MoreWine! MoreManuals are trademarks of MoreFlavor! Inc. March 2006. This document is copywritten by MoreFlavor, Inc. March 2006.
11) Now place the Proof Hydrometer (10) into the Hydrometer Jar and allow it to come to a rest. The number that you read
off the Hydrometer is the alcohol content of your wine!
*Take a moment to think about this. Proof, as a unit of measure, corresponds to double the concentration of alcohol. For
example, an 80 proof liquor is 40%v/v alcohol; and a wine that is 12%v/v alcohol would be 24 proof. Why, then, can we read
directly off of the hydrometer to determine the alcohol in our case? Remember that we started with a 250mL sample, and
we only collected the alcohol from this one sample in the receiving flask. By diluting the distillate by half, we’ve taken care
of the division already! So a wine that reads 14 proof on the Hydrometer at the end of the test is really 14%v/v alcohol – not
7%v/v.
MoreWine!
www.MoreWineMaking.com
Alcohol Determination
MoreWine! MoreManuals are trademarks of MoreFlavor! Inc. March 2006. This document is copywritten by MoreFlavor, Inc. March 2006.