Pot Stills vs Reflux Stills: A Beginner’s Guide

If you’re new to distilling, one of the first decisions you’ll face is: what kind of still should I use? The answer comes down to two main types—the pot still (often called an alembic still) and the reflux still (also known as a column still). Each serves a different purpose, produces a very different kind of spirit, and comes with its own approach to the distillation process.

Let’s break down what each one does, how it works, and what it’s used for.

What Is a Still?

At its most basic, a still is a tool that uses distillation to separate alcohol from water and other compounds. Distillation is defined as “the separation of the constituents of a liquid mixture by partial vapourisation and separate recovery of the vapour and residue”. It takes advantage of the fact that alcohol has a higher vapour pressure and lower boiling point than water. When a mixture of alcohol and water is heated, the vapour will be richer in alcohol than the liquid, and when that vapour is condensed, the collected liquid will have a higher alcohol content than the original mixture.

The products of fermentation are not simply alcohol and water, but include many other compounds such as aldehydes, esters and higher alcohols. These components behave differently during distillation, which is why the choice of still matters so much.

The Pot Still (Alembic Still)

What It Is

The pot still is the oldest and most traditional still design. It consists of a heated chamber (the “pot”) that holds the wash, connected to a pipe or neck that leads to a condenser, where the vapour is cooled back into liquid.

In home distillation, a typical pot still setup features a copper dome top that sits on top of the boiler, with a copper condenser attached. The condenser features an outer water jacket tube with an inner distillate arm, allowing for efficient cooling.

How It Works

In a pot still, the liquid in the pot is heated until it boils. The vapour rises, travels through the neck, and is cooled in the condenser, where it turns back into liquid and is collected. Pot still distillation gives an incomplete separation, which is actually desirable for many spirits because it allows flavour compounds (called congeners) to carry through into the final product.

The distillation process in a pot still aims not only to increase ethanol concentration but also to lower or eliminate compounds considered harmful or detrimental to flavour, while increasing the concentration of others considered beneficial for the spirit’s taste and aroma.

In practice, distillers using an alembic pot still typically perform two separate runs. The first is a stripping run, where the wash is distilled rapidly to recover the bulk of the alcohol and volatile compounds together as ‘low wines’, without making any cuts. The second is the spirit run (or distillation run), where these low wines are distilled more slowly and deliberately. This slower second run allows the distiller to make precise cuts between the fractions, resulting in a much cleaner and more refined final spirit.

What It’s Used For

The pot still is by far the most used still for distillation of premium spirits such as whisky, gin, rum, tequila, brandy, and wine spirits, including cognac, pisco, and grappa. Pot stills are valued for their simplicity and flavour retention, producing a spirit with a rich, full-bodied character. A pot still typically produces spirit at up to around 60% - 70& ABV.

Distillers using pot stills collect the distillate in different fractions and make cuts—selecting the highest quality parts of the distillation for their final spirit while discarding or redistilling the other parts. These fractions are generally divided into four categories:

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The Reflux Still (Column Still)

What It Is

The reflux still, also known as a column still, is a more technologically advanced design. It features a distillation column with trays or packing that sits between the boiler and the condenser. This type of still is more efficient and allows more exactly tuned separations.

How It Works

In a reflux still, vapour driven up the column from the boiler interacts with reflux liquid coming down from cooler areas at the top. Reflux is a technique where the mixture is heated to produce vapour, some of which is then condensed back into liquid, falling back into the column where it is reheated and re-vaporised at a higher concentration. This allows for higher-efficiency separation via repeated condensation and re-vaporisation.

At the top of the reflux column, there is a deflagmator (also called a column cooler or reflux condenser). A deflagmator is a cooling coil placed in the column that converts some of the rising vapour back into liquid, which then returns into the column for reprocessing. By controlling the coolant flow through the deflagmator, the distiller can manage the reflux rate: more cooling creates more reflux, which raises the alcohol proof but reduces output; less cooling allows more vapour through, increasing output but lowering proof.

The reflux rate—the ratio of the amount of condensate being refluxed to the amount being withdrawn as product—provides great flexibility in the style and quality of the spirit produced. Changing the reflux rate allows the distiller to control the vapour temperature, which in turn indicates the alcohol concentration.

Depending on the level of refluxing, a reflux still can produce spirit from around 70% ABV through to a theoretical maximum of 96.4% ABV.

What It’s Used For

Reflux stills are used when a high degree of purity is desired. They are ideal for producing vodka, neutral spirits, and a base to add flavourings to or infuse with botanicals. A reflux still refines the distillate to a high degree, producing a distillate of very high alcohol content with very little of the 'character' of the wash or mash coming through.

For these types of spirits, a column still is often the best choice. Even with a reflux still, distillers typically make cuts between foreshots, heads, hearts and tails to ensure the highest quality final product.

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Pot Still vs Reflux Still: The Big Picture

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Which One Should You Choose?

The choice between a pot still and a reflux still comes down to one question: what kind of spirit do you want to make?

If you want a flavourful, characterful spirit that carries the taste of the grains, fruits, or molasses you started with, a pot still is the traditional choice. It’s the still of choice for whisky, rum, brandy, and other premium spirits where flavour complexity is key. However, the rich mix of congeners and heavier compounds that give these spirits their distinctive character also means the fresh distillate can be quite harsh and unrefined straight off the still. Consequently, pot-distilled spirits almost always require a significant period of conditioning or aging—typically in wooden casks—to mellow aggressive notes, allow oxidative reactions, and extract flavour and colour from the wood. This maturation process is essential for developing the smooth, complex profiles associated with aged spirits and can take anywhere from several months to many years depending on the desired outcome.

If instead you want a clean, pure, high-proof alcohol that serves as a neutral canvas, a reflux still is the way to go. Because the reflux process strips away the vast majority of flavour compounds and impurities, the resulting neutral spirit has very little character of its own. Critically, this means it requires no long-term aging (although it may soften a little with a short period of conditioning).

Once collected and diluted to drinking strength, it is ready to be transformed using spirit flavourings, fruits, or botanical infusions to create a wide range of products—such as gin, liqueurs, or flavoured vodkas. These can often be prepared and ready for consumption in just a few days or weeks, offering a much faster path to a drinkable product compared to the extended barrel-aging required for pot-distilled spirits.