Making Cuts Explained: Heads, Hearts, and Tails for Licensed Distillers

Making cuts is where running a still stops being a recipe and starts being an experiment. The copper, the heat, and the vapor all do their part. But at the spout, you decide what goes in the bottle and what doesn't. This guide walks you through that decision step by step. The goal is that you finish a run knowing why you made each call, not just that you made one.

One note before we start. Owning a still is legal in the US, but distilling alcohol requires federal (TTB) permits. This walkthrough is for permitted distillers and for people learning the process ahead of getting licensed. Always follow federal, state, and local law.

What a Cut Actually Is

A run doesn't come off the still as one uniform liquid. Different compounds boil and vaporize at different points, so what drips from your condenser changes over the course of the run. A cut is the moment you move your collection from one fraction to the next. Distillers split a run into three broad parts:

• Heads come off first. This fraction includes the foreshots, the very first liquid out. Heads carry lighter, more volatile compounds and usually smell sharp, solvent-like, or a little like nail polish remover.
• Hearts are the middle of the run. They're the clean, balanced part you actually want to keep.
• Tails come off last. They get heavier, oilier, and duller, with wet-cardboard or wet-dog notes, and the proof drops off.

No light comes on when one fraction turns into the next. Each one blends into the next, and that's why cutting is a skill and not a timer.

Before the Run: Set Up Your Lab

Treat your workspace like a bench experiment. Good cuts depend on good observation, and observation depends on preparation.

1. Line up your collection jars. Use plenty of small, clean glass jars instead of one big container. Small fractions give you room to change your mind later.
2. Number every jar. Label them in order so you always know where a sample came from in the run.
3. Keep a log. Write down your heat setting, the time, and observations for each jar. A notebook is one of the most useful tools in a distillery.
4. Have your measuring tools ready. A Hydrometer Set For Measuring the Alcohol Proof % lets you track how proof changes as the run goes on. A Copper Proofing Parrot sits at the spout so you can watch readings in real time as the distillate flows.
5. Make sure your still was cleaned and checked. A still that has already done a water run and has been kept clean gives you a cleaner baseline, so what you smell comes from the run and not from leftover residue.

The Walkthrough: Making Cuts Step by Step

Step 1: Bring It Up Gently

Heat slowly and evenly. If you rush the warm-up, the fractions blur together and your cuts get harder. Steady, controlled heat is the alchemist's first lever. Whether you run on propane or an electric element with a controller, aim for consistency, not speed.

Step 2: Set Aside the Foreshots

The first liquid out of the still is the foreshots. Permitted distillers set this portion aside and discard it. It is not for drinking or tasting. Collect it separately, label it clearly, and keep it away from everything else. Don't skip this step.

Step 3: Collect Heads in Small Jars

After the foreshots, keep collecting in small, numbered jars. Early heads smell harsh and solvent-like. As the run goes on, that sharpness fades. Log what you notice in each jar: aroma, clarity, and your hydrometer reading.

Step 4: Find the Transition to Hearts

This is the first real judgment call. You're watching for the point where the sharp edge drops away and the aroma turns cleaner, rounder, and more pleasant. Use more than one sense:

• Smell: Put a few drops on your palm, rub your hands together, and let it dry briefly. Then smell. Harsh solvent notes point to heads. Clean, characterful notes point to hearts.
• Proof: Watch your readings over time. In a well-run pot still, the trend shows where you are in the run better than any single number.
• Notes: Compare against your log from earlier runs on the same still. Your own data is the best reference you have.

Step 5: Ride the Hearts

Hearts are the reward, but stay alert. Keep changing jars at regular intervals, keep checking proof, and keep smelling. The hearts are the part of the run where you hold your heat steady and pay the closest attention.

Step 6: Catch the Turn into Tails

Toward the end, the character shifts again. Look for a heavier, oily feel, flat or musty aromas, and proof that keeps falling. Sometimes the distillate turns slightly cloudy. Once you notice these signs, you've moved into tails. Keep collecting in separate jars so you can sort them out later.

After the Run: Sort, Don't Guess

Here's what experienced distillers know: the best cuts often get made the next day. Let your numbered jars sit uncovered for a while, lightly protected from dust, so the most volatile aromas can air out. Then go back through them in order.

1. Smell each jar from start to finish and mark it as heads, hearts, or tails.
2. Pay special attention to the transition jars on either side of the hearts. That's where your judgment matters most.
3. Blend only the jars you're confident in. When you're unsure, leave a jar out. You can always add more, but you can't take it back once it's mixed in.
4. Record your final decisions in your log, with jar numbers, so the next run starts from real data.

Licensed distillers often save heads and tails, called feints, for a later run. How you handle feints depends on your process and your permits.

The Scientist's Mindset

Every run is a dataset. Change one variable at a time, like your heat, your wash, or your jar size, and watch how your cuts shift. Over time your nose gets sharper, your logs fill in, and your still starts to feel like an instrument you know well. If you want to go further, Distilling Data Dump - Compiled Distillation Research gathers reading material for people who like to understand the why behind the process.

Quick Reference

• Discard the foreshots, always.
• Collect in small, numbered jars.
• Heads are sharp, hearts are clean and balanced, tails are heavy and dull.
• Use smell, proof readings, and your notes together.
• Make your final blend after the jars have rested, not in the heat of the run.
• Stay permitted and follow federal, state, and local law.

Questions about setting up your still for better runs? The family shop behind our copper stills in New Hampshire is happy to talk it through. Call 603-997-6786.