Still LEONARDO® Grande, 2 Liters (6.5 ltr. Plant Volume), according to plans by Leonardo da Vinci

LEONARDO® still CLASSIC or GRANDE

• The still is made of solid, high-quality copper. The LEONARDO® still was designed by us and is optimally designed from a process technology perspective. It is manufactured exclusively for us. The still corresponds to the construction plans of Leonardo da Vinci from the 15th century for making essential oils and hydrosols with the highest possible yield.
• There is a flavor basket above the bottom of the kettle. Hence, the material being distilled, i.e. the flowers, herbs, seeds, roots or other plant materials, does not come into contact with the water during distillation, only with the STEAM. This results in particularly high-quality essential oils and hydrosols.
• The cooler has inlet and outlet nozzles for connection to a water tap. On the inside the inlet nozzles reach down to the bottom of the cooler in order to ensure complete circulation of the cooling water. To go with this, a meter-long piece of silicon tube is included. Tube connectors and tubes with different diameters are available in DIY markets and aquarium shops. It is also possible to operate the cooling system by means of a recirculation pump (not included in delivery), similar to indoor fountains. The cooler is open on top, so it is also possible to operate the still without running water. In this case, simply pour cold water into the cooler from the top in order to exchange the cooling water.
• Due to the flat kettle bottom, the still can be placed directly on a gas or electric stove. No additional burner is required. A wood stove (kitchen stove) or open fire are naturally also suitable as heat sources.
• The still is made of hammered copper to increase the strength and chemical resistance. When the individual parts are connected together, the still is sealed, and no replacement parts or gaskets are required.
• Since the stills are handmade, each LEONARDO® is in fact unique. To prevent mixing up the exact-fitting individual parts if you have multiple stills of the same type, they are marked individually with embossed stamps.
• The still is delivered with detailed operating instructions.
• The vapor condenses in a copper dome (topmost container). Due to this short vapor and cooling path, a very rich hydrosol is created, and there are no losses of the valuable oil during cooling, as there are for example in a cooling coil.
• With the LEONARDO®, the complete interior including the cooler and run-off groove can be reached by hand. Therefore the still can be cleaned effortlessly on the inside and outside without any residue in no time at all with a cleaning sponge and dish soap. Nothing is more annoying than impurities in the distillate simply because certain areas of the still are not accessible. The best thing for cleaning the distillate drain tube is the matching tube brush.
• The still deliberately has NO automatic oil separator or separating funnel. First of all, this is because considerable quantities of oil stick to the insides of this type of equipment, so no oil is lost unnecessarily. Secondly, because some oils are heavier than water (e.g. cinnamon, cloves, alant root, balsam poplar and so on), and thirdly because the container with the hydrosol and essential oil should be stored for at least several weeks BEFORE separation in order to obtain the highest possible quality oils and hydrosols. Apart from this, the hydrosols obtained from the LEONARDO® are so intensive that , depending on the plant type, they often exhibit very opaque and milky cloudiness, or there are accumulations of oil drops in the bottom area. Hence, with automatic oil separation, considerable amounts of the valuable oil would not be separated. Even with crystal clear hydrosols, you should wait at least several hours before you separate the oil from the hydrosol.
• In our book The Essential Oil Maker’s Handbook (not included in delivery), you will find many tips and guides that go far beyond the operating instructions such as, for example, the right part of the plant, the optimum harvest and harvesting time (time of day) and the best processing methods for more than 140 native and exotic plants in order to obtain the most intensive hydrosol possible and high oil yields. Furthermore, there are more than 50 basic recipes for using the essential oils and hydrosols. The selection ranges from products for facial and body care, liqueurs, spiced oils, flavoring for tea, and inhalations to room sprays, sauna infusions and perfume.

Kettle size, filling volume, distillation time

LEONARDO® Classic, kettle size: 2 liters

• Filling volume, water: 1.5 l
• Filling volume, material to be distilled (vapor space): 3.6 l
• Remaining vapor space: 0.6 l
• Distillation time with an electric 1500 W single hotplate: 35 to 45 minutes (including the heating-up time)
• Dimensions: width 21 cm, length 27 cm, height 47 cm

LEONARDO® Grande, kettle size: 2 liters

• Filling volume, water: 1.5 - 2.0 l
• Filling volume, material to be distilled (vapor space): 6.5 l
• Remaining vapor space: 0.6 l
• Distillation time with an electric 1500 W single hotplate: 35 to 45 minutes (including the heating-up time)
• Dimensions: width 25 cm, length 40 cm, height 53 cm

Which LEONARDO® is best suited to you, the CLASSIC or GRANDE?

If you have smaller quantities of plants, e.g. 1 to 2 herb bushes per plant variety, then the LEONARDO® CLASSIC is completely adequate. On the other hand, the GRANDE makes more sense for larger quantities of plants, so you don’t have to perform multiple distillation processes with the same plant material. However, if you work mainly with plants that have very low oil content, such as roses, wild herbs, lemon balm, chamomile, and so on, then the GRANDE is the right choice. This is because only with a suitable amount of plants in the still will you also obtain the most intensive hydrosol possible, and actually also obtain essential oils from these plants. If you only want to make hydrosols and consider the essential oil to be a welcome by-product, then the right still size depends exclusively on the amount of plants available to you.

Distillation of essential oils - step by step

Example of oil distillation using Dill tip oil as an example.