still

An apparatus used to distill alcohol from a fermented grain-based mixture, often known as mash or wash. Folk traditions locate these devices in a variety of configurations throughout the world, but they consist of the same basic parts and accomplish the same basic task. In its simplest form, a still consists of a single covered pot or container that is heated until its contents boil. The steam produced is vented into a separate vessel, and as it cools it condenses into a liquid that contains alcohol. Depending upon the type of alchoholic beverage being produced, additional stages of heating and condensation can be added, resulting in an increasingly refined, and therefore higher quality, alchohol.