Picking your first still is very personal decision. Every kit on this page turns a fermented wash into clean spirit, so you are not choosing between good and bad. You're choosing between benchtop convenience and serious batch size. This guide compares the kits we actually stock, with real prices, and tells you straight who each one suits.
We have been selling this gear from Melbourne since 1968, so we have heard every question you are about to ask.
The short answer
- Best first still: Air Still Complete Distillery Kit, $489.95. Benchtop, air cooled, no hoses. The gentlest way in.
- Best overall: Air Still Pro Complete Distillery Kit, $855.00. Easy like the Air Still, with the capacity and control to grow into.
- Best for serious spirit runs: Turbo 500 Stainless Steel Still Kit, $599.90, or the Stainless Pro Kit with Filter Pro at $815.00. The benchmark for clean, high volume spirit.
- The full producer setup: Turbo 500 Copper Pro Kit, $989.00. Copper in the vapour path, plus the Filter Pro finishing system.
Compare the kits at a glance
| Kit | Price | Style | Cooling | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Air Still Complete Distillery Kit | $489.95 | Benchtop pot still | Air cooled, no hoses | First timers who want spirit on the bench this weekend |
| Air Still Pro Complete Distillery Kit | $855.00 | Benchtop, pot and reflux modes | Air cooled, no hoses | Most people. Room to grow without a plumbing project |
| Turbo 500 Stainless Steel Still Kit | $599.90 | Reflux column, 25L boiler | Water cooled | Volume and purity. The serious hobbyist standard |
| Turbo 500 Stainless Pro Kit + Filter Pro | $815.00 | Reflux column, 25L boiler | Water cooled | T500 spirit plus the filtering system, in one box |
| Turbo 500 Copper Pro Kit + Filter Pro | $989.00 | Copper reflux column | Water cooled | Producers who want copper character and the full finishing setup |
Start here: which path are you on?
There are really two ways into home distilling, and knowing which one you are on makes the choice easy.
The benchtop path (Air Still family). Air cooled, compact, no water hookup, nothing to plumb. You ferment a wash, sit the still on the bench, press go. Batches are smaller, but you will be running it the day it arrives. If the phrase "no hoses" appeals to you, this is your path.
The serious hobbyist path (Turbo 500 family). A 25L boiler and a water cooled column that produces exceptionally clean spirit in real volume. It wants a tap and a bit of bench commitment, and it rewards you with the best cost per bottle in the hobby. Most people who start here never need another system, they just add attachments.
Air Still Complete Distillery Kit: the best first still
$489.95. View the Air Still Complete Distillery Kit.
The Air Still is the kettle of the distilling world, and we mean that as the highest compliment. Air cooled, benchtop sized, no hoses or water connection. The complete kit gives you the still plus the fermentation and finishing gear to go from sugar to sippable without a second order.
Who it suits: anyone who wants to prove to themselves they can do this before committing serious money. It is also the still we recommend for small kitchens and apartments. If you outgrow it, the fermenting gear carries over, and a well kept Air Still holds its value.
Air Still Pro Complete Distillery Kit: the best overall
$855.00. View the Air Still Pro Complete Distillery Kit.
The Air Still Pro is what happens when the easiest still in the hobby grows up. It keeps everything people love about the original, air cooled and benchtop friendly, and adds selectable pot and reflux distillation modes. Run it in reflux mode for clean neutral spirit for essences, or pot mode when you want character to carry through. One appliance, both jobs.
Who it suits: honestly, most people reading this. It is the kit we point to when someone says "I want to do this properly but I am not plumbing a column into the laundry." Reviews consistently call out how easy it is to get a great result, and that matches what our customers tell us in the shop.
If you already own gear and just want the unit, the Air Still Pro on its own is $749.00.
Turbo 500: the serious hobbyist standard
Stainless Steel Still Kit $599.90: view the T500 Stainless Steel Still Kit.
Stainless Pro Kit with Filter Pro $815.00: view the T500 Stainless Pro Kit.
The T500 has been the benchmark home reflux still in Australia and New Zealand for years, and for good reason. The 25L boiler and water cooled column pull off remarkably clean spirit at a volume the benchtop units cannot match. If you are making essences based spirits regularly, the cost per bottle is where the T500 quietly wins.
It does want a water connection for the condenser, and it takes up more room. That is the trade. In exchange you get the system the serious hobby community standardised on, with every part, seal and upgrade available off the shelf (we stock the lot, from copper saddles to flow controllers).
Who it suits: brewers who already know they love this hobby, anyone making spirits for the cupboard rather than the curiosity, and gin makers who want a botanical basket in the vapour path.
Going all in: the T500 Copper Pro Kit
$989.00. View the Turbo 500 Copper Pro Kit.
Same T500 system, copper column, plus the Filter Pro finishing setup. Copper in the vapour path does real work on sulphur compounds, which is why every commercial whisky distillery you have ever toured is full of it. If you want the cleanest possible spirit with a touch of traditional character, this is the full producer setup, and it is the one we would buy with someone else's money.
What your kit actually makes
Every kit here produces spirit from a simple sugar wash using Turbo yeast. From there, the Still Spirits Top Shelf essence range turns that clean spirit into bourbon, whisky, rum, gin, vodka and liqueurs at a fraction of bottleshop prices. Browse the spirits range for essences and everything that goes with them.
Gin fans: the T500 takes a botanical basket ($76.90) for real botanical gin in the vapour path. On the benchtop path, see our guide to making gin with the Air Still Pro.
What else you will need
- Fermentation consumables: Turbo yeast, Turbo Carbon and Turbo Clear per wash. Grab them as Air Still fermentation kits or Turbo Pure packs for T500 washes.
- Filtering: carbon cartridges for Air Stills, or the Filter Pro system bundled in the Pro kits.
- Testing: an alcometer ($19.95) so you know exactly what you made.
The legal bit, briefly
In Australia, owning a still is legal, but distilling alcohol requires an excise manufacturer licence from the ATO, and there is no personal use licence. The equipment on this page is sold on its capability: water distillation, essential oils, and spirit production where you hold the appropriate licence. For the full picture, including how the excise system works, read our complete guide to home distilling in Australia.
Frequently asked questions
Air Still or Turbo 500: which should I buy?
If you want to start this weekend with zero setup, Air Still family. If you want volume, purity and the best long run cost per bottle, T500. The Air Still Pro sits deliberately in the middle: benchtop easy with reflux mode capability.
Do I need a water connection?
Not for the Air Still or Air Still Pro. They are air cooled, which is the whole trick. The Turbo 500 uses a water cooled condenser, so it wants to live near a tap.
What should I make first?
A simple sugar wash with Turbo yeast, run through your still, carbon filtered, then a Top Shelf essence. It is the fastest route to something you will genuinely enjoy, and it teaches you the whole process end to end.
Are the complete kits worth it over the bare still?
Almost always. The complete kits bundle the fermenter, filter and testing gear you will otherwise buy in your second order anyway, and the bundle pricing is kinder than buying piecemeal.
Can I make gin with these kits?
Yes. Botanical basket on the T500 for vapour infused gin, infusement basket on the Air Still, or the easy route: a clean neutral run plus a gin essence or botanicals steep.
Why buy from Australian Home Brewing?
We have been in this hobby since 1968, we answer the phone, and you can walk into our Melbourne store on a Saturday morning and talk to someone who has actually run every still on this page. Flat rate $9.99 metro shipping under 10kg, and genuine Still Spirits gear with local support.
By Hamish Rodgers-Wilson, Australian Home Brewing. Helping Australians make their own since 1968.
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