Brandy used to distill brandy: A cucurbit was filled half full of the liquor from which brandy was to be drawn and then raised with a little fire until about one-sixth part was distilled, or until that which falls into the receiver was entirely flammable. This liquor, distilled only once, was called "spirit of wine" or "brandy". Purified by another distillation (or several more), this was then called "spirit of wine rectified". The second distillation was made in "balneo mariae" and in a glass cucurbit, and the liquor was distilled to about one half the quantity. This was further rectified as
Chaplin's patent distilling apparatus to supply their soldiers with fresh drinking water in Suakin and Sudan. This supply of fresh drinking water was of utmost importance in the 1882 Anglo-Egyptian War. Similar distillers, such as Dr. Normandy's, were on a much larger scale, distilling some 12,000 gallons of water per hour, whereas the Chaplin distilling apparatus used onboard vessels produced roughly 23 gallons of fresh water per hour. Essentially, the distilled water produced for Egypt was made in a special apparatus with various forms of condenser employed. The principle for distillation is the same as the apparatus on steamships. On ships, steam is generated