Foreshots / Heads / Middle Run (Hearts) / Tails

We're not talking about flipping coins here. These are terms of art for various stages of the distillate as it
comes off the still. Note that these terms apply mainly to distillate made in pot stills. Operators of
column stills usually use fractionalization to remove unwanted elements from booze.

The foreshots, as you might guess, are the first parts of the distillate. They're high in such poisonous
stuff as methanol and acetone, plus esters and aldehydes that make for untasty hooch. These are
discarded.

Heads are the next parts of the distillate, and can be kept or discarded, depending on the distiller.
They're high in ethanol, but also in the congeners that give a spirit flavor, aroma, and character.

The middle run, or hearts, consist of all the distillate you keep and (sometimes) age before bottling. The
balance of alcohol and congeners is pretty much in keeping with how booze should taste.

Tails are the last bits out of the still. They're low in ethanol and high in congeners, and although they're
not harmful, they don't taste like anything you'd want to drink.

What other distillation terms are you curious about? We'll follow up in more detail soon...

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