I've had this basil soaking in 190 proof Everclear since last year.

I started trying to clean up the workshop and realized I needed some painkiller to make that happen. I also had some black cherry Kool-Aid.

I cannot recommend this as a taste about beverage. But I can say that the flavors are subtle and complex when mixed together. They're not unpleasant. I'm pretty sure I could make a stunning cocktail out of this with a bit more sugar.

Why am I cleaning the workshop? Because temperatures are getting warm enough where wood glue works again. And the workshop is a hot mess.

Everclear is stupid, and deadly.

Everclear is excellent for making tinctures and liqueurs. You're not supposed to drink it.

I feel attacked, posting pictures of my shop like that.

Maybe I should do some tidying today.

You’re not supposed to drink it.

You're not my parent, you can't tell me what to do! If I want to drink a thimble full of Satan's burning pee, by golly I will!

I am so lost with this post. The only thing I understood is the need for cleaning the shop

How to make flavored booze.

Is everclear just alcohol?

So is Kool-Aid

Extremely potent alcohol. Vodka is typically 40 to 47 percent ethanol and the rest is water. Everclear is upwards of 95% ethanol and just 5% water. It's a solvent. It's extremely flammable. You could run a vehicle off it. But it might break your hoses though. It's alcohol strong enough to do productive chemistry with.

I see. Why call it everclear and not just ethanol then? I can get 95% ethanol in pretty much any grocery store here. Is it a specific brand or something?

Americans talk like that. Brand names are part of their vocabulary.

It is a specific brand. If you send someone to the store to buy ethanol that could result in them buying vodka. Send them to buy Everclear and there is no risk of confusion.

Not as far as I know. Must be some kinda american thing. Ours is sold next to all the other alcoholic beverages and liqueurs. The most common one is literally made by a juice company.

The bottle says to mix at least 1:1 with water for drinking.

I guess. But if I send somwone to the store and they bring me vodka I will rightfully consider them dumb as bricks

Getting past 75% purity is not easy and getting to 100% on home equipment isn't really possible. Ethanol pulls water out of the air because it is sticky due to the molecular polarity of both molecules. You need speciality equipment just to get to the 151 point.

There is a reason you picked them to get out of the house instead of someone else.

Sounds like you’ve rediscovered Jägermeister!

I grew up on jager. My parents were both bar tenders in middle school. We didn't have NyQuil in the house. Jager was cheaper and more effective if you were sick. This was the 80s before jager really took off.

This would need some fennel or licorice to get even close to the flavor of jager.

Flavor Ade is worse.

There's no way to make certain things (like extracts) without it's high ethanol content.

That you don't know how to use it doesn't make the product stupid...

Only because they don't have a black cherry flavor. Otherwise they are identical.

Everclear is the brand name

I agree with you're not supposed to drink it.

I've seen too many deaths from Everclear overdoses to agree with this. Young students don't get it, and end up dead, every year, in US universities in any case.

We all talk like that. Not exclusive to America...

I haven't heard of that specifically, but sometimes I'll see a random video of some guy guzzling an entire bottle or two of whiskey, vodka or similar booze to impress... whoever. It seems like those types do indeed die with some regularity.

The supermarket booze around here is so crap that at some point I thought about making a little still. Later, I was dissuaded by the facts that: A) that's apparently illegal here, B) could probably break my lease, and C) IIRC it can actually be a fire hazard, or something.

As an alternative, for a while there I was using a Brita filter to improve my cheap booze. It actually works, I found, altho takes a lot of cycles, like at least seven or so to have a noticeable effect. Also uses up the filters really quick, and they're not cheap. If I ever try that again, I'll have to research what a cost effective alternative might be.

One other issue is that during warmer months, fruit flies inevitably get in the apparatus and quickly render it disgusting...

I used to make a lot of beer and wine but never messed with distilling.

Sick and piss drunk but at least asleep hahaha

You need to smoke a j then organise then have a drink afterwards as a treat.

My body is very j resistant and when it does work it usually results in sleep instead of productivity. I'm an ethanol powered meat suit.

Who exactly is "we" here?

People. From everywhere.

Only when served to a crowd.

whoooooooo shit

OK, so let's not sell anything dangerous then.

Like water.

I've seen stories of kids dying from drinking too much water.

Or any other alcohol. People die from drinking 40% alcohol a lot more often.

What another stupid take.