What is poitín and how was it made?
Poitín is a strong colourless, un-matured whiskey distilled from Barley or similar grain, and has been described as 'Irish as a drunken funeral on a rainy summer day'. Poitín is illegal because those in power have never been able to tax it.
Scientific definition
Distillation is defined as the separation of one liquid from another by a process of heating, evaporation and condensation. Although there are three main types of distillation, the one that involves the creation of alcoholic spirits is called ‘Fractional distillation’.
Every liquid has a different boiling point, and as the initial mixture is heated the liquid with the lowest boiling point will begin to evaporate. This vapour rises as steam and is funnelled to a condensing tube. This condensing tube is a hollow pipe coiled into a spiral and submerged in cold water. As the hot vapour travels down this cold pipe it condenses back into liquid form and produces a liquid called the ‘distillate’.
A poitín still is an apparatus used to distil or separate alcohol from a mixture known as ‘the mash’. Because alcohol has a lower boiling point than water, when heated the alcohol turns into vapour and rises to the top of the still. It then is caught in the connecting tube and directed into the worm. The worm is a copper pipe coiled into a spiral shape and submerged in cold water, so when the hot vapour inside the worm reaches the section submerged in the cold water it condenses back into liquid form. This distillate is then caught in containers at the end of the worm which protrudes from the condensing barrel.
In the past the poitín still was usually made to order by travelling tinkers who would stay with the poitín maker until the still was made. The worm and other parts of the still were made by the poitín maker himself; traditionally the worm was made by heating very fine sea-sand and pouring it into a copper pipe. The hot sand now made the copper more pliable and to create the spiral, the pipe was just wrapped around a cylinder. The sand was then released and the worm was complete. The main components of a poitín still are sketched the image above, they are the main still body, the cap, connecting arm, and condensing barrel.
No doubt the skill was taken across the Atlantic, and is still practiced in places such as the Appellation mountains in USA, as thousands of Irish men and women sought a better way of life far from their native land. Producing poitín was a source of income for some, while for others it was produced for cheap alcoholic drinking. Poitín was popular at weddings and wakes and a large supply was at hand. Farmers often used it (and still do) as a cure for sick calves and other farm animals as well as a method of curing muscle cramp/problems. While not as widely used now, poitín is still available. It was common for communities to leave poitín distilling to widows to grant them a source of income.
Poitín is very entrenched in Irish culture, so much so that the first fully Irish-language feature film, made in 1978 was called Poitín. The story involved an illegal distiller, and is set in the remote wilds of Connemara. In fact so important is poitín to Irish culture, that in 1997, the Irish Revenue Commissioners withdrew their opposition to poitín being sold under license in the Republic of Ireland (poitín remains illegal in Northern Ireland). In 2008, Irish Poitín was accorded (GI) Geographical Indicative Status by the EU Council and Parliament.
Poitín is still made in many parts of Ireland in more or less the same fashion as it was a hundred years ago. The only big difference is that bottled gas has replaced the turf fire, and this has made detection by the police (Gardaí) much more difficult.The quality of poitín was highly variable, depending on the skill of the distiller and the quality of his equipment. If poorly produced, it can contain dangerous amounts of methanol and can blind or kill.
On 7 March 1997, the Irish Revenue Commissioners withdrew their opposition to poitín being sold under license in the Republic of Ireland. Production for export has been allowed since 1989. Poitín remains illegal in Northern Ireland however.
As my research into poitín continues,
I will be looking into the so called fishing houses, that were connected to Monastic sites, and their possible use as distilleries.
The use of the 'Fulacht Fiadh' as a micro-brewery.
The relationship between brewing and witchcraft.
For more on how poitín was made
Poitín is a strong colourless, un-matured whiskey distilled from Barley or similar grain, and has been described as 'Irish as a drunken funeral on a rainy summer day'. Poitín is illegal because those in power have never been able to tax it.
Scientific definition
Distillation is defined as the separation of one liquid from another by a process of heating, evaporation and condensation. Although there are three main types of distillation, the one that involves the creation of alcoholic spirits is called ‘Fractional distillation’.
Every liquid has a different boiling point, and as the initial mixture is heated the liquid with the lowest boiling point will begin to evaporate. This vapour rises as steam and is funnelled to a condensing tube. This condensing tube is a hollow pipe coiled into a spiral and submerged in cold water. As the hot vapour travels down this cold pipe it condenses back into liquid form and produces a liquid called the ‘distillate’.
A poitín still is an apparatus used to distil or separate alcohol from a mixture known as ‘the mash’. Because alcohol has a lower boiling point than water, when heated the alcohol turns into vapour and rises to the top of the still. It then is caught in the connecting tube and directed into the worm. The worm is a copper pipe coiled into a spiral shape and submerged in cold water, so when the hot vapour inside the worm reaches the section submerged in the cold water it condenses back into liquid form. This distillate is then caught in containers at the end of the worm which protrudes from the condensing barrel.
In the past the poitín still was usually made to order by travelling tinkers who would stay with the poitín maker until the still was made. The worm and other parts of the still were made by the poitín maker himself; traditionally the worm was made by heating very fine sea-sand and pouring it into a copper pipe. The hot sand now made the copper more pliable and to create the spiral, the pipe was just wrapped around a cylinder. The sand was then released and the worm was complete. The main components of a poitín still are sketched the image above, they are the main still body, the cap, connecting arm, and condensing barrel.
No doubt the skill was taken across the Atlantic, and is still practiced in places such as the Appellation mountains in USA, as thousands of Irish men and women sought a better way of life far from their native land. Producing poitín was a source of income for some, while for others it was produced for cheap alcoholic drinking. Poitín was popular at weddings and wakes and a large supply was at hand. Farmers often used it (and still do) as a cure for sick calves and other farm animals as well as a method of curing muscle cramp/problems. While not as widely used now, poitín is still available. It was common for communities to leave poitín distilling to widows to grant them a source of income.
Poitín is very entrenched in Irish culture, so much so that the first fully Irish-language feature film, made in 1978 was called Poitín. The story involved an illegal distiller, and is set in the remote wilds of Connemara. In fact so important is poitín to Irish culture, that in 1997, the Irish Revenue Commissioners withdrew their opposition to poitín being sold under license in the Republic of Ireland (poitín remains illegal in Northern Ireland). In 2008, Irish Poitín was accorded (GI) Geographical Indicative Status by the EU Council and Parliament.
Poitín is still made in many parts of Ireland in more or less the same fashion as it was a hundred years ago. The only big difference is that bottled gas has replaced the turf fire, and this has made detection by the police (Gardaí) much more difficult.The quality of poitín was highly variable, depending on the skill of the distiller and the quality of his equipment. If poorly produced, it can contain dangerous amounts of methanol and can blind or kill.
On 7 March 1997, the Irish Revenue Commissioners withdrew their opposition to poitín being sold under license in the Republic of Ireland. Production for export has been allowed since 1989. Poitín remains illegal in Northern Ireland however.
As my research into poitín continues,
I will be looking into the so called fishing houses, that were connected to Monastic sites, and their possible use as distilleries.
The use of the 'Fulacht Fiadh' as a micro-brewery.
The relationship between brewing and witchcraft.
For more on how poitín was made