How to brew moonshine at home? Moonshine made from sugar and yeast. How to clean moonshine from fusel oils and smell

In Rus', many people have been making moonshine for a long time. Therefore, moonshine has a very long and rich history. However, making such a high-quality alcoholic drink at home is not very difficult. It is enough to approach it carefully and observe all the necessary technological aspects.

The entire process of this craft includes several main stages:

1. Selection, purchase and preparation of raw materials;
2. Fermentation itself;
3. Distillation;
4. Cleaning;
5. “Ennobling” is necessary in order to give the drink taste, aroma and color.

The technology for preparing moonshine must be followed to the smallest detail. Otherwise, you will end up with a product that will have a cloudy consistency, an unpleasant odor and a disgusting taste. That is why, especially for beginners, there are a lot of secrets that will allow you to get a high-quality and safe final product.

The main criterion for choosing raw materials for future moonshine is the minimum cost. And if sugar today is a rather expensive product, it is often replaced with more affordable raw materials:

• corn;
• sugar beet;
• starch;
• potato;
• all kinds of berries and fruits (irga, grapes, rowan, apples, cherries, quince, plums, etc.).

It is very important when choosing the starting product to pay attention to the variety. It is desirable that the raw materials contain as much sugar as possible, a slight sourness and tannins.

Yeast is another required ingredient. Choosing one is much more difficult. Every moonshine lover prefers yeast from a certain manufacturer and considers it the best. However, do not forget that you can experiment with sourdough and find the best option.

It’s best not to buy yeast, but to make it yourself. Especially if you plan to receive the product constantly.

There are masters who make sourdough from expired beer. However, you should not stick to the same experience. Today, beer is a product that contains a huge number of different chemicals. Therefore, after the process of creating moonshine comes to an end, the result will be a drink with an unpleasant aftertaste. And such “toxic” chemistry will not have the best effect on the body.

Fermentation stage

The main process in moonshine brewing is fermentation. The quality and quantity of the finished drink largely depends on how it goes. Fermentation must take place under 2 important conditions:

• a certain temperature regime. If the temperature at the very beginning of fermentation is not high enough, the whole process may simply stop. Because At low temperatures, although the fungi do not die, they do not work at all. But too high a temperature will lead to the death of microorganisms.
• sufficient concentration of components. A small amount of sugar can cause fermentation to proceed much slower than necessary.

Distillation stage

The technology for proper moonshine brewing also involves distillation. This is the stage when ethyl alcohol is released by heating the resulting mash. Special moonshine stills are used specifically for these purposes. You can purchase them or construct them yourself.

Distillation is a very important stage. If moonshine brewing takes place at home, then maintaining the ideal temperature regime is not always possible.

1. It is advisable to do double distillation;
2. The first distillation of the mash is carried out at maximum speed on a simple potstill type apparatus - we obtain raw alcohol;
3. During the second distillation, we quickly heat the raw alcohol and reduce it with the first drops. We select the head fraction slowly – drop by drop. The very first portion of the “head” shoulder strap is of little use and poisonous. Therefore, it cannot be used either internally or for external rubbing;
4. Heads are selected based on calculations or organoleptically - by smell;
5. If a thermometer is installed in the cube, then the moment when harmful substances begin to form, we look at it, select the body to 83 degrees, when selecting the body, the heating temperature must be increased;
6. If you don’t have a thermometer, then there is one sure way to determine this period. A small piece of paper is taken and moistened with the resulting drink, and then set on fire. It flashed with a blue and very bright flame, we continue the distillation process. If it doesn’t light, we stop the activity and collect the further product in a separate container.

Cleansing

Despite the fact that we tried to protect ourselves from the presence of harmful substances in the drink, they are still present there. Therefore, moonshine should be rid of them. Today there are a huge number of cleaning methods. The main thing is to apply this or that method correctly. The result is an alcoholic drink of perfect purity.

Do you want to improve the aroma and taste of the finished product? There are various moonshine secrets that will help you do this too. For this use:

• Artificial colors and all kinds of flavors;
• Natural supplements that are of plant origin.

Of course, it is the latter that is given special preference. So, by adding vanilla, nutmeg, cinnamon, coriander or any other spice to the drink, you can get moonshine with a pleasant aroma without any problems. It will be very pleasant to drink. In addition, there will be no hangover.

To give a beautiful color to an alcoholic drink, you can add natural juice, citrus peels, saffron, sunflower seeds or any dried fruits and berries.

Do you want to get moonshine without the taste of alcohol? Then sugar syrup will come in handy. It should be added to the finished product and left for a while. The result is an alcoholic drink with a very pleasant taste. And to sweeten it, you can add a little jam.

What are the dangers of moonshine production?

In the distant Soviet Union, the process of obtaining moonshine was prosecuted by law. However, at the beginning of the 21st century this ceased to be considered an administrative offense. Therefore, the technology of this craft is being actively mastered by many lovers of homemade moonshine. Today, only the sale of this homemade drink is punishable.

Moonshine brewing is a very exciting process. However, all stages should be followed carefully. Only in this case is it possible to obtain excellent moonshine, which will have a very mild taste and aroma. It would not be a shame to put such a drink on a rich holiday table.

Moonshine is far from a feminine drink. However, it is enough to show a little imagination, add spices, berries, fruits or other ingredients, and you will get a completely different drink. Even among beginners, there are people who have invented their own unique signature drink. Can't experiment? You can trust the many recipes that are on our website.

You can get a luxurious alcoholic drink by investing your soul in an exciting hobby. And then even the “first pancake” will turn out “not lumpy.”

How to check if the moonshine is good? You need to try it. And it’s better if a woman does it. It is the fair sex who have excellent instincts. Will he say that the drink is scalding alcohol? Then you should dilute the drink or analyze what mistakes might have been made in the process.

There are special difficulties in choosing a device that will help make the process of making moonshine at home ideal. There are so many specialists, so many opinions about equipment. Some people claim that the best is the classic design, which was developed by our great-grandfathers.

However, progress never stays in one place, but moves steadily forward. And now there are devices that allow you to clean the finished product in the best way. This is a distillation column. Using such devices, moonshine is produced on a large scale in factories.

Some craftsmen claim that a regular distiller and a pressure cooker are best suited for home brewing.

Everyone knows very well that Russian people often have the blues. This is not even a disease, but a state of mind. At this moment, it seems that life is absolutely dull and uninteresting. Russian men have long found the ideal cure for this disease - moonshine. Just one glass is enough to make the world sparkle with bright colors again.

Properly made moonshine is a very high-quality drink; it differs significantly from the vodka that is sold in stores. And it does not need to be frozen before use. Moonshine is chosen for the pleasant sensations when consuming it. Although the muscles become relaxed, warmth spreads throughout the body, but the head always remains light. And in the morning there will be no hangover, even if yesterday you were given a bottle of this homemade drink!

In the country, moonshine technology already has centuries-old traditions and is used by every adult who knows everything about moonshine and moonshine. Some of those involved in moonshine brewing prefer to deal with proven recipes and materials in order to enjoy the beauty of the drink and the elegance of the form of its contents.

The quality of the drink matters. You are probably familiar with the idea of ​​moonshine as a complex product with a cloudy hue. The smell is unpleasant, and the drink is often considered by people to be hazardous to health.

Noting the features of the technological process of moonshine, it must be said that the preparation of such a product is not limited to the distillation process. It requires precise execution of a number of moonshine brewing stages in sequence. If you break this sequence, the result will be an unsightly drink that will not bring pleasure to the person and guests.

Features of moonshine

Moonshine brewing is conventionally divided into several sequential stages.

1. First, you need to correctly select the raw materials, which are then used in moonshine.
2. Next, you will need to carry out preparatory procedures that directly relate to the quality of the distilled product and allow you to perform moonshine according to the technology.
3. Then comes the stage associated with the processing of pre-selected raw materials. This is an event that requires constant monitoring and, if necessary, modern adjustments to the technology in order to obtain a pre-planned result.
4. Then follows the procedure for fermenting the prepared raw materials. At this stage, it is necessary to fulfill the necessary conditions for climate control of the harvested raw materials in order to obtain the starting material of the required quality according to pre-established parameters.
5. After carrying out the complex of works described in the previous sections, the procedure for direct moonshine brewing begins, which is often called distillation. At this stage, it is important to follow the technology so as not to nullify the efforts in the early stages and get a product that will decorate the event.
6. Then a procedure is carried out related to the purification of the alcohol obtained as a result of distillation. At this stage, it is recommended to follow the advice of experienced professionals who have already experimentally derived the best formulas to achieve the required purity of the distillation product.
7. Often at the last stage there is refining. A person focuses exclusively on his own taste preferences, and on the wishes of his family and friends with whom he is supposed to drink the drink. So, for example, everything depends on imagination, which creates masterpieces that differ in color, aroma and taste.

Speaking seriously, making moonshine is a difficult process, which ultimately produces a product that is not inferior in quality, but even superior to industrial copies. At the same time, it becomes important to strictly adhere to the recipe and use only proven raw materials. The result is a drink of crystal freshness, which can become a table decoration.

Selection of raw materials

A difficult stage in the production of moonshine is the choice of the raw materials necessary for it. If this moonshine brewing procedure is carried out poorly, then further actions will no longer lead to the desired result, and the person will be forced to simply carry out work to bring the moonshine to an acceptable quality.

Raw materials are usually selected according to the principle of what is at hand. This position in moonshine brewing is not justified, since it often does not produce a product with exquisite flavor aromas.

In addition to the principle of subjectivity when choosing what is in the house, there are a number of objective factors that are used at this stage to ensure that home brewing is successful.

When choosing raw materials during moonshine brewing, you must be guided by a number of provisions that allow you to obtain a product.

Fermentation

As soon as the process of selecting the necessary raw materials is completed, you need to think about carrying out the fermentation stage. To put it more simply, this stage of moonshine brewing is a chemically complex process that allows, for example, to convert or transform sugar as the raw material of the initial state into an alcoholic liquid and a number of accompanying elements, such as water and gas. The most important criterion for moonshine brewing is the production of alcohol, which is the result of the entire event.

The very process of moonshine brewing, called fermentation, is expressed in a combination of oxygen-free breakdown of molecules that are contained in a number of nutritional substances. This procedure is carried out with the direct participation of yeast.

However, the presence of all of the above substances does not guarantee that fermentation will be carried out appropriately for the subsequent production of moonshine. It is necessary to observe a certain regime from a temperature point of view. For example, the range of permissible temperatures ranges from 18 to 24 degrees Celsius. If this range is not maintained, then there will be a time deviation from the required fermentation period, and will also lead to the negative side of the entire process and the unusability of the raw materials.

In order to optimize such a moonshine process from the point of view of the cost part in terms of procurement of materials, compliance with pre-established technologies and proportions of materials is required. The most optimal ratio of raw materials such as yeast and water today is 1 to 3 or 1 to 0. It is also necessary to say that each recipe can have its own individual proportions, determined by a number of factors and preferences of people.

Distillation

When the mash is prepared, you can begin the distillation procedure and subsequently obtain the moonshine itself. Such stages of moonshine brewing as fermentation, distillation, purification are always connected, and if you make a mistake in one of them, the whole process will turn out to be negative.

For such purposes, it is necessary to use a moonshine still, which has various designs.

In general, all types of moonshine stills have a common operating principle. First of all, the liquid is heated, which is placed in advance in this apparatus and then, as a result of this process, ethyl alcohol is released.

This is a rather important step, which is very difficult to complete at home. This warning is explained by the difficulties of maintaining the temperature regime.

The main task of this stage of moonshine production is the separation of alcohol from other components.

The initial distillation is carried out at maximum power. Then the tank of the device itself needs to be filled 60 percent with mash. When the temperature reaches 89 degrees Celsius, drops of alcohol begin to appear.

In the first stage of distillation, no attempt is made to carry out detailed purification. Therefore, there is no need to boil the mash for a long time, which will lead to a deterioration in the quality of the moonshine.

However, there are situations when, during the first distillation, light impurities begin to separate at a temperature of 65 degrees Celsius. You should also know that for one kilogram of prepared sugar, 30 grams of impurities will be obtained. It is them that needs to be gotten rid of.

When this stage is completed, it is necessary to continue the process, bringing it to 98 degrees Celsius. After the mark of 96 degrees Celsius passes, processes associated with the separation of fusel oils will begin. This part of the drink appears to be very dangerous for the human body.

During the first stage of distillation of future moonshine, the impurities that are present in the mash itself are separated. If the mash is based not on sugar, but on fruit additives, then such cutting is not carried out when distillation and purification of the moonshine occurs.

Cleaning

When the primary distillation process is already completed, you need to think about purifying the resulting alcohol and preparing the drink for permanent distillation. This allows you to significantly improve the quality of future moonshine.

There are a number of cleaning methods required.

1. There is an option for cleansing with milk.
2. You can also carry out this procedure with potassium permanganate.
3. Activated carbon copes well with the assigned tasks.
4. It is also possible to carry out cleaning based on ordinary oil of plant origin.

The best option seems to be cleaning using an integrated method.

This is an important stage in the production of moonshine, which allows you to give it an excellent taste and smell, and also additionally relieves a person of hangover problems after consuming the product.

It is recommended to clean this product at a strength that does not exceed 35 degrees. In this proportion, fusel oils are best purified. Before starting the process, it is recommended to steep the drink for a couple of weeks at room temperature.

The best option for cleaning moonshine at home is to use activated carbon.

If cleaning is carried out using activated carbon, then the following steps must be performed:

1. A cotton wool disc is placed in the funnel.
2. Then a layer of coal, previously converted into a fine fraction, is filled.
3. Larger fractions can be laid on top of this.
4. At the end of all this, another layer of cotton pads is laid.

This allows you to quickly and effectively clean moonshine without additional processes.

In our country, the technology of moonshine brewing has been mastered by almost the entire working population. And it’s strange to blame the Soviet government for this, or rather M.S. Gorbachev personally, who came up with the “prohibition law,” since we cooked, cook and will cook it, no matter what. Of course, only a few abuse the drink; the rest prefer to enjoy the quality of real moonshine and elite drinks made from it.

Why are we talking about quality? Because for many, moonshine is associated with a cloudy, foul-smelling liquid that is dangerous even for external use. In fact, the process of moonshine brewing at home, following the technology, produces a crystal clear strong drink with a pronounced taste. In this article we will describe the basics of moonshine brewing and tell you what this process is all about.

Basic terms

Much of what will be listed below is known to most, but still, for accuracy and further understanding, you must first understand the terms.

• Moonshine- a clear drink with a strength of 48-60°. Initially it has a neutral alcoholic taste; third-party aromas are added during the infusion process.
• Moonshine- a technological process for producing an alcoholic drink, during which mash is brewed.
• Braga- a sugar-containing wort that is made from processed yeast and a selected base product. The fermentation process produces ethyl alcohol, gas and by-products.
• Alcohol mashine- a design for producing an alcohol-containing liquid by cooking mash, during which the composition is divided into fractions. It consists of a distillation cube, a cooling unit, a coil and a storage tank (collector).
• Pervach- alcohol-containing liquid obtained during the first distillation of mash. Contains toxic impurities, is characterized by a cloudy color and a pungent odor.
• "Heads"- the concentration of methanol and acetone, which boil at lower temperatures than ethanol. In the process of fractional distillation, they are cut off and their quantity is reduced to a minimum.
• "Tails"- fusel oils separated at a higher temperature than is created in the distillation cube. They are also cut off during re-distillation and additionally settle in the steamer when leaving the refrigerator.

Separately, it should be noted that the quality of the drink directly depends on the amount of distillation. The saying “less is more” works 100% here.

The main stages of moonshine brewing

The rules of moonshine establish 4 main stages of preparing this wonderful drink:

1. Preparation of raw materials.
2. Fermentation.
3. Distillation of mash.
4. Purification of the resulting drink
5. Flavoring is an optional but recommended step to enhance the taste and give it a bright aroma.

For those who are just learning the basics of moonshine brewing, it is advisable to have a fully equipped apparatus, which includes:

• hydrometer to determine the strength of the finished drink;
• thermometer to control distillation temperature;
• pressure gauge - a device for measuring pressure in a distillation cube.

Classic types of raw materials and methods of their processing

As it is written in the immortal novel “The Twelve Chairs,” moonshine can be made even from a stool, and it will be a stool. Modern production does not offer such extreme measures, and therefore the best products for obtaining good wort are starch and sugar-containing ingredients.

Depending on the time of year and financial condition, the following is used to prepare the wort:

• corn;
• potato;
• sugar;
• fruit and berry cake;
• berries and fruits, etc.

Starchy foods

The highest quality grain is grain, in particular wheat, and it is not for nothing that wheat vodka has always been a priority. In second place are whole fruits and berries, from which soft drinks with a low alcohol content are made. Potatoes also give a mild taste, but not such a rich aroma. The most unpleasant would be moonshine made from sugar beets and cake, but such a drink is both prepared and consumed.

Concentration of starch and sugar in grains and roots:

All of these products contain high concentrations of starch. In order to convert starch into glucose, the gelatinization technique is used - first the product is generously moistened, then heated to remove the starch and transform it into a water-soluble state. Next, you need to saccharify the resulting paste, for which you use malt (the procedure itself is described below in the “Fermentation” section).

If you do not use malt or special enzymes, the wort will simply turn sour, and the drink itself will have a disgusting taste.

In order to prevent souring, do the following.

1. They soak the raw materials so that they could cook a thin porridge.
2. They cook it until “al dente” - when the grains or root vegetables are not yet completely boiled.
3. Malt or enzyme preparations are added for saccharification.
4. Yeast is added and left for a certain time until the wort ferments.
5. They distill the mash and get moonshine.

VIDEO: How to make mash with wild wheat yeast

These are the ingredients for making wort with a high sugar content. They mainly use apples, grapes, raspberries, viburnum and other berries. The cake also contains a large amount of sugar, but it is not enough to obtain high-quality raw materials.

The concentration of acid inhibits the activity of acids, so sour berries and fruits are first boiled to neutralize the acid, and then baking soda is added at the rate of ≈20 g. per liter of wort.

In order to accurately understand which raw materials are best to work with, we present tabulated values ​​for the yield of alcohol (96%) and vodka (40°) for individual products. The data was compiled by distiller Waldemar Strieter (Germany).

Fermentation stage

The longest stage preceding the actual distillation. During the fermentation process, ethyl alcohol, water and CO2 are formed, which are divided into fractions during distillation.

The fermentation time directly depends on the amount of sugar in the prepared wort, but there should not be too much of it - as soon as the ethyl concentration exceeds 10°, fermentation stops. And vice versa. If there is not enough sugar, ethyl is released extremely slowly and little, so the mixture can simply turn sour.

Saccharification procedure

If you work with starch-containing products (grain, potatoes or pure starch), it is necessary to carry out saccharification correctly and there are certain subtleties here.

1. Starch is diluted with water to a liquid state.
2. First boil water, into which water with starch is slowly poured in a thin stream, stirring constantly and preventing a paste from forming.
3. When all the starch has been poured in, turn off the stove and place the cup with the solution in cold water. It needs to be cooled to a temperature of 68-60°C. Next, malt, malted milk or finished enzyme products are added.

How to make malted milk

1. Grain (wheat, rye, barley) is pre-sprouted.
2. The sprouted grain is well dried and pounded until a paste is formed.
3. Dilute with water until creamy.

After the starch solution and malted milk are mixed, the bowl with the liquid is left for 3-3.5 hours in a warm place. It is advisable to use a battery or wrap it in a blanket - the temperature should remain at 60°C. That's it, this completes the process of starch saccharification.

Which yeast to choose

It is during the life of fungi that ethyl alcohol is released, so you need to:

1. Choose the right yeast
2. Use the desired concentration.

If there is a lot of yeast and a large amount of ethyl begins to be released (more than 13%), the remaining mushrooms will die and the fermentation stage will not reach a certain end.

To prepare high-quality mash, you need “live” yeast - pressed, fresh, moist with a characteristic aroma. The color is uniform, the edges are not dry. Dry yeast is of little use - although it is also a living unicellular organism, its concentration is not enough to obtain high-quality raw materials.

During the entire fermentation procedure, it is necessary to maintain a certain temperature of 18-30°C. To do this, place the vat of mash in a warm place, but make sure not to exceed the 30° mark, otherwise the mushrooms will die. If suddenly this happens, carefully drain, collect the layer on top and add fresh yeast.

You can determine that the wort is ready for distillation by its appearance and smell:

• the taste of the mash is bitter with a slight sour aftertaste;
• there is no foam or air bubbles on the surface;
• The smell is sweetish, but quite mild.

Distillation process

Moonshine brewing technology is not limited only to this stage, but this is precisely the mechanism for obtaining ethyl alcohol from fermented mash.

For this purpose, a moonshine still is used - it can be either homemade or factory-made.

The mash itself is poured into a sealed distillation cube, where it is heated to a certain temperature. The purity and content of the drink depends on how correctly the temperature is maintained at each stage.

The whole process can be divided into the following stages (distillation):

1. Intensive heating to a temperature of 66-68°C, when the first impurities begin to separate. Next, the temperature is gradually raised to 78°. It is important to do this slowly so that some of the mash does not splash out.

The drink obtained during the first distillation contains more than 50% of harmful impurities, including acetone and fusel oils. Its consumption is fraught with food poisoning and even death.

1. Maintaining the temperature at 78-82° is the longest stage during which the main part of the ethyl is released. After the second distillation, the product can already be consumed, but if not used, the concentration of fusel oils is still very high.

Periodically check the alcohol content in the collection with a hydrometer or the old-fashioned way - setting it on fire on a spoon. As soon as the liquid stops burning, turn off the heating.

1. In the third distillation millet, the temperature is increased to 87-90°C so that the separation of heavy fusel milk begins.

Throughout the entire moonshine brewing process, the temperature in the refrigerator (coil) is controlled - it should not rise above 30°C. This balance is ensured by constant circulation of cold water.

VIDEO: How to make high-quality moonshine

Finished Product Cleaning

Since we want to teach you how to cook a clean product, we need to learn how to clean it properly. After the second distillation, even if there is a dry steamer, it still contains some foreign substances that are harmful to health and taste. Experienced distillers do not recommend doing the third distillation, as it removes the very taste of moonshine.

Some organic compounds cannot be removed during the boiling process of mash - their boiling point is much higher (see table).

To get rid of the above organic compounds, several stages are practiced:

• chemical in the first distillation;
• fractional by repeated distillation;
• chemical after the second distillation;
• filtration.

1. At the first stage, a weak solution of potassium permanganate is used, for which they take 2 grams, dissolve in 50 ml of purified water and dilute to a liter with moonshine. Leave for about 10 minutes, then filter through cotton cloth.
2. Fractional distillation involves dividing the resulting drink into fractions again, but this does not guarantee total purification, since, for example, isomeric amyl alcohol with the highest boiling point will not be able to separate.

The concentration of heavy impurities can be reduced by diluting the drink to 45°.

1. At this stage, activated carbon or charcoal obtained from fruit logs is used. This is the highest quality method in which porous carbon absorbs up to 85% of impurities.

Pour moonshine into the container and add coal at the rate of 150-180 g. for every 3 liters. Infuse for 15-20 days, periodically shaking vigorously (at least 2 times a day). Strain through cotton cloth.

Mastering the technology of moonshine brewing is actually not difficult. The main thing is to maintain order, maintain temperature and consistency at each stage. But the most important thing is to make high-quality wort and work with a working moonshine still.

VIDEO: How to make high-quality moonshine at minimal cost

Moonshine is a strong alcoholic drink. Its history goes back several hundred years. Nowadays, a huge amount of alcohol is offered on store shelves. Despite this, many continue to make moonshine. The whole secret is that this drink is not inferior in quality to its more expensive competitors. Moreover, it contains exclusively natural products. Over the course of its existence, manufacturing technology has undergone some changes, but the basic principle has remained the same.

I would like to note that the process of moonshine brewing is quite complex and requires a lot of attention. In addition, negligent actions can lead to a product that is not suitable for consumption. Therefore, it is very important to strictly follow the technology and devote enough time to each stage. Only under such conditions can a high-quality and environmentally friendly product be prepared.

Raw materials

First of all, you need to decide on the choice of raw materials. The main requirement is the presence of sugar in the product. Therefore, various fruits and vegetables are most often used. You can even use pure granulated sugar. In addition, many prepare wort from grain crops. The whole secret is that they contain a large amount of starch. Separately, starch is not subject to fermentation, but in combination with malt the desired effect is created.

Making mash

The initial and most important stage is the fermentation process. Considering that mash can be prepared from different products, let's look at a few examples:

• 
  

  The recipe is quite simple. To implement it you will need:

  • thirty five liters of water
  • ten kilograms of wheat
  • ten kilograms of sugar

  To ensure that the drink is of good quality, only selected grains are used. All wheat must be carefully sorted, sifted, and separated from the husks and other debris. Next, everything is washed under running water and placed on sheets from a conventional oven.

  In order for the wort to ferment well, the wheat needs to be sprouted. It is the sprouts that contain important enzymes. To ensure germination, the grains are placed in a warm place and filled with water. After about forty-eight hours, small shoots will begin to appear. After this, pour one and a half kilograms of sugar into the wheat. The grains will remain in this state for a week. This is quite enough for natural yeast to form.

  The next step is to pour clean water into a large flask and dissolve the sugar in it. Next, add the wort and mix thoroughly. The resulting mixture should be stored in a warm room for ten days. During this time, the mash should completely ferment. During this process, a foam cap may appear on the surface. It must be removed periodically. Otherwise, everything may go wrong.

• 
  

  The easiest way to make mash is from granulated sugar. This product is available in every home and is quite cheap. At the same time, the quality of the final product will not be inferior in its taste characteristics.

  To implement this recipe you will need:

  • six kilograms of sugar
  • thirty liters of water and six hundred grams of compressed yeast. If dry yeast is used, then 120 grams is enough.

  Heated water is poured into a prepared container and all the sugar is dissolved in it. It is very important to pay special attention to this process. Undissolved grains of granulated sugar will fall to the bottom and will not participate in fermentation. Next, dilute the yeast according to the instructions on the package and add it to sweet water.

  We put the resulting solution in a warm room, where it will spend the next seven days. Carefully pour the resulting product into another container to separate it from the sediment. It is best to use a small tube or hose for this.

• 
  

  Almost everyone has several jars of jam in their home. But not everyone knows that it can be used to make excellent moonshine.

  To prepare the mash you will need:

  • thirty liters of clean water
  • six liters of jam
  • fifty grams of dry yeast
  • three kilograms of sugar. If the jam is not sweet, the amount of sugar can be increased.

  When all the components are collected, you need to find a large vessel and fill it with warm water. Next, dissolve all the ingredients in water. Now we transfer the container with the contents to a warm and dark room. The optimal air temperature is twenty-five degrees.

Fermentation period

The fermentation period is the most important. Therefore, it is very important to constantly monitor the temperature. Sudden changes or drops in temperature below eighteen degrees can ruin the entire product. When the temperature rises above forty degrees, the yeast may die, which will also lead to a negative result. To achieve the desired effect, the vessel with mash is left in a warm room with a constant temperature. To avoid sudden jumps, the container is placed on a wooden stand and wrapped in a blanket.

We pull a rubber glove over the neck of the container and make a small hole in it. It will serve as a kind of signaling device. During fermentation it will rise and puff up a little. As soon as the mash is ready for further distillation, the glove will fall off. On average, the process takes about a week. If the neck is too wide, you can use a water seal instead of a glove.

Degassing and clarification of mash

To make alcohol transparent and pleasant to the taste, it is necessary to carry out degassing and clarification. During fermentation, a large amount of carbon dioxide is formed in the liquid. As a result, it resembles factory-made lemonade.

To degas, the liquid is poured into a clean container and heated to fifty degrees. As a result, all the gas rises to the surface and leaves the mash. The heating process also kills any remaining yeast that is unnecessary at this stage. After heating, a small sediment forms at the bottom again. It must be separated by transfusion.

There is another method of degassing, but it is less effective. A special attachment is put on the drill, after which the liquid is actively mixed. The procedure is carried out within ten minutes. This technology is suitable for those who prepare mash in huge quantities. Large barrels will be inconvenient to heat and pour from one container to another.

As for lightening, this is done quite simply. To do this you will need bentonite, which is also called white clay. We crush the substance in any convenient way. For ten liters of mash we need one tablespoon of the resulting powder.

Dissolve the clay in 500 milliliters of mash and wait until it swells. The process can take up to four hours. After this, add the mixture to a common container with mash and mix thoroughly. The liquid will become cloudy, but that's how it should be. After one day, all the clay, along with harmful substances, will settle to the bottom. All that remains is to separate the sediment from the clarified workpiece. After this, you can begin the distillation process.

Distillation is the process of separating ethyl alcohol from mash. This stage requires extreme concentration and temperature control.

At the very beginning, you can heat the mash with any intensity; this does not affect the quality of the product. When the temperature reaches 65 degrees, the release of harmful substances begins. Therefore, the first portion of the drink, which is obtained at a temperature of 65 to 78 degrees, is hazardous to health. This alcohol can cause poisoning and harm the body even by wiping it down. The first portion is always poured out, and the container is replaced with a clean one.

When the threshold of 78 degrees is crossed, the device begins to produce a safe and high-quality product. The optimal temperature range is from 78 to 83 degrees.

During the distillation process, the amount of alcohol in the mash will gradually decrease. Distillation must be stopped if the temperature of the mash rises above 85 degrees.

If you don't have a thermometer, you can use another method. We wet the paper with moonshine dripping from the apparatus and set it on fire. If it flares up, it means we continue the distillation process. If intense combustion does not occur, then there is no alcohol in the mash and you need to stop distilling.

Cleaning the “pervach”

After the initial distillation, the drink contains not only alcohol, but also many harmful impurities. To get rid of them, you can use one of the effective cleaning methods:

Secondary distillation

Secondary distillation is necessary in order to get rid of residual harmful substances. Only in this way can you obtain a perfectly pure product without foreign odors and impurities. By devoting a couple of hours to the process, you can significantly improve the quality of the drink.

Before starting the process, moonshine is diluted with clean water to a strength of twenty degrees. It is this consistency that will allow you to get rid of harmful impurities as much as possible. In addition, distilling undiluted product poses a fire hazard.

Distillation occurs in the temperature range from 83 to 85 degrees. We stop the process when liquid with a strength below forty percent alcohol begins to flow out of the device.

Homemade moonshine tinctures and liqueurs

Homemade moonshine is consumed not only in its pure form, but various tinctures are prepared. There are a huge number of recipes, but we will look at the most interesting of them.

To prepare this drink, we will need the following ingredients:

• – one kilogram of fresh pitted cherries;
• – eight grams of ground cinnamon;
• – three hundred grams of sugar;
• – fifty grams of ground cherry pits;
• - carnation;
• - one liter of moonshine.

All ingredients except sugar are mixed and sent to a dark place for fourteen days. After this, the solution is filtered through several layers of gauze and sugar is added. After another two weeks, the liqueur is considered ready.

Add four tablespoons of black leaf tea to one liter of moonshine and leave for thirty minutes. After the time has passed, add burnt sugar and mix thoroughly. At the end, the tincture must be filtered through a thick layer of cotton wool and bottled.

Let's talk about moonshine. How to make it, how and from what to prepare mash for it.

Moonshine is a famous alcoholic drink prepared at home.

I want to clarify right away that this article is not a call for alcoholism, but quite the opposite - primarily for those who do not abuse alcohol and who want to always have high-quality and tasty alcoholic drinks in their home supplies.

Previously, it had never even occurred to me to start making moonshine, but I have a small garden in which apple trees, cherries, plums, several grape vines grow, and sometimes it’s simply not practical to make jam from the entire harvest; it just doesn’t make sense - we haven’t eaten last year’s yet.

I make homemade wines and so I decided to try making moonshine

I don’t like the name “moonshine”; I prefer to call it a strong homemade alcoholic drink. I associate the word “moonshine” with a cloudy liquid, with a specific smell and with Gaidai’s film “Moonshiners”

In this article I want to tell you how you can prepare wonderful, tasty and aromatic strong drinks at home, popularly referred to as “moonshine”

Law in Russia on moonshine (punishment for moonshine)

Today, if you make such drinks for personal use, you can safely do so.

No one will make any claims against you if you use it personally or decide to treat it to friends or acquaintances

But if you decide to make extra money on this, then many laws and regulations will immediately fall on your head - from illegal business activities to licensing the production of alcohol-containing liquids, which imply from administrative punishment (fines from 500 to 5000 rubles) to criminal ( from 300,000 rubles to the actual term of imprisonment).

So prepare any delicacies for yourself, and it’s better to forget about business.

I would like to give some advice for beginners in this field:

If you decide to get serious about this to get real, tasty drinks, don’t use homemade distillers.

If it is not possible to make a high-quality and correct distiller, it is better to purchase one ready-made.

When choosing, pay attention to what material it is made of, preferably food-grade stainless steel, but the steamer connecting the tubes and the coil in the refrigerator should ideally be copper.

Keep in mind when choosing the volume of the apparatus that during distillation you only need to fill it to 2/3 of the volume, that is, if the apparatus is 12 liters, you can distill no more than 8 liters of mash at a time.

Please note that the device must have a built-in thermometer, this will make the cooking process much easier for you.

To prepare mash, try to use juices of berries, fruits, jam - what gives the final product taste, believe me, water, sugar, yeast - this is not the best option for preparing a tasty drink

Do not use yeast for baking; as a last resort, use wine yeast.

Be sure to purchase a hydrometer to measure the density of your wine material and an alcoholometer to measure the strength of your finished product

To make mash, prepare a clean, food-safe container with a tight-fitting lid.

The volume of the container should be 1/3 greater than the volume of the material you prepared.

Prepare a water seal to remove carbon dioxide during the fermentation process, which can be purchased ready-made at the store and cut into the lid of the container, or use a hose and a jar of water for this.

Moonshine recipe with berries

Let's consider two options for preparing the material using the example of a well-known and popular grape and a rather controversial berry - lemongrass.

The grapes can be any kind - varietal, wine, wild.

It is advisable to collect it in dry weather, at least 3-4 days after rain, so that the resulting yeast bacteria on its surface are not washed off.

Look through all the bunches of berries, remove rotten and spoiled ones

Since home volumes are usually not large, it is better to use a small saucepan, in which, in small portions, crush the bunches of grapes with a masher and load them into the container.

After processing all the material, do not forget that there should be 1/3 of free space in the container, cover the container with a clean towel and leave at room temperature for 3 to 5 days.

Every day, do not forget to stir your mixture with a long wooden spoon, preferably 2–3 times.

As it settles, the released juice will be in the lower part of the container, and all the pulp will rise to the top in the form of a cap.

Using a colander and a layer of gauze, carefully pour the juice into the prepared glass bottle or fermentation container, squeeze the pulp through several layers of gauze and put it back into the empty container.

The resulting juice is first-pressed juice; it is best to make wine from it; if such a task is not necessary, then it will make excellent cognac.

Pour water into the container with the squeezed pulp, exactly the same volume as the juice drained

The whole procedure is repeated for 3 - 5 days, at the end you will receive second-press juice, from which you can also get wonderful, tasty wine or excellent whiskey

After the second extraction, we also fill the cake with water, equal in volume to the drained juice and prepare the material for chacha, the technology is similar.

And so your juice is ready. If you decide not to make wine, but to use all the material for distillation, then decide, based on the volume of juice obtained, what you want to get as a final result - just strong alcohol or cognac, whiskey, chacha.

You can ferment each press separately and then distill it separately, you can mix everything together and prepare the mash in one volume

Depending on the varieties of grapes and their sugar content, you need to add sugar, per 10 liters of juice 2 - 2.5 kg of sugar, but it is better to measure the density of the material with a hydrometer after the sugar has completely dissolved, and add sugar if the density is below 20 – 25 mg/cm3, the higher the density before fermentation, the better. Keep in mind that the yield of a strong drink will be approximately 1 liter from 1 kg of sugar or from 5 liters of mash.

Pour in wine yeast - you can purchase it in specialized stores that sell everything necessary for winemaking and moonshine brewing. There are now such stores in almost every city.

It is better to ferment in a warm place, but I do not recommend placing it close to heating radiators.

Your mash will brew for 7–10 days; you will see the end of fermentation by the absence of bubbles in your water seal.

The mash has fermented well if its density when ready is 3 – 5 mg/cm3.

From lemongrass, as well as from other soft berries (raspberries, strawberries, honeysuckle), juice is best obtained with sugar.

Be sure to sort through the berries and remove any rotten or spoiled ones.

The berry is poured into a large basin and it must be covered with sugar in a thick layer.

Cover with a towel and leave for 3 – 5 days.

Do not fill the container full; the released juice will lift the berries upward.

Carefully drain the juice from the container, and pour clean water into the berries remaining in the container, exactly as much as the juice was drained; the infusion procedure will also last up to 5 days.

After a similar third procedure, drain the juice through cheesecloth and squeeze out the berry pulp.

Keep in mind that a sour berry, such as lemongrass, will require more sugar, otherwise the fermentation will not be complete and long.

In the same way, you can separate the juice and currants, but it is better to mash them before adding sugar.

The berry juice mixed with sugar is poured into a fermentation container, wine yeast is added (how many grams and how many liters of juice is usually indicated on the bags of yeast).

The container is tightly closed, a water seal is installed and placed in a warm place for 7 - 10 days.

Homemade jam for moonshine

If you have leftover jam from last year that you no longer intend to use for tea, this is an excellent material for making tasty strong drinks.

From practice, I don’t separate the jam by grade, but pour everything available into one tank (don’t forget that you should only use containers suitable for food).

Fill with water - at the rate of 2 - 3 liters of water per 1 liter of jam and leave to infuse for 4 - 5 days, stirring the whole mass regularly.

Drain the resulting infusion through a colander, and the remaining berries from the jam can be poured again with water in the volume of half of the drained infusion, let stand for 4 - 5 days and the drained second infusion can be combined with the first.

Determine the density with a hydrometer and, if it is less than required, add sugar.

The rest of the fermentation process is described above.

How to make mash for moonshine from wheat without yeast at home

To prepare such mash per 1 kg of pure wheat, you will need 1.5 kg of sugar and 7 liters of water

Pour the wheat into the pan and fill it with a sugar solution based on 1 liter of water, 200 g of sugar, pour it so that the sugar solution covers the wheat by 2 - 3 cm.

Cover the pan and place in a warm place for 3 to 4 days.

During this time, the wheat will ferment and foam.

Pour into an airtight container, add sugar and remaining water, and install a water seal.

Stir the wheat occasionally.

After 10 days, the fermentation process will end, the mash is ready.

To get a high-quality product from such mash, you will most likely have to distill it 3–4 times.

Recipe for odorless moonshine made from sugar and yeast

I suggest you watch this video, which shows an experiment with different yeasts for making mash and the entire step-by-step process, I think you will choose the best option for yourself.

How to properly distill moonshine at home

So, your mash is ready, you need to carefully drain it, preferably through a soft, thin hose into another container, maybe in three-liter jars (this process is also called skimming) and let it sit for a few more days. Before distillation, remove the sediment again.

1. We prepare the distiller and wash it.
2. Fill the mash to 2/3 of the volume, tighten the lid tightly and connect the steamer, then the refrigerator, to which cold water is supplied and drained, it is better that it is running.
3. Place the device on the stove over high heat.
4. At temperatures around 50 degrees, run cold water through the refrigerator in a thin stream.
5. Place a clean jar near the product drain.
6. The first drops will appear, which by 60 - 70 degrees will turn into a thin stream.
7. The first 30 - 50 grams need to be drained, maybe a little more, these are the so-called “heads”.
8. Under no circumstances should they be left; it is better to use them for technical needs.
9. People also call the heads “pervach”. Sometimes you can hear: “I’ve had enough first, great.”
10. The first thing cannot be class - it is pure acetone, smell the liquid of the first 50 grams, there is a strong smell of acetone.
11. With the heads separated, reduce the heat to low to stop the vigorous distillation process.
12. Maintaining the temperature between 65 and 85 degrees, adjust the heat so that the product comes out in slow drops.
13. The strength of the product can be checked by filling a spoon with a few drops, setting it on fire, the flame will be red-blue.
14. The output volume of a strong product will be approximately 1 liter out of 5 liters of poured material.
15. Once your drink stops burning when tested, the presence of alcohol can be determined by taste.
16. I’ll say right away that it is not recommended to take a sample during preparation, and you need to determine the presence of strength with a few drops on the tongue; you will feel the presence of alcohol by a slight burning sensation.
17. If before this you took a larger sample, then determining the presence of alcohol from a few drops will be very problematic.
18. You have determined that the presence of alcohol in the resulting product is minimal or completely absent.
19. Place new dishes under the exit and continue driving, then you will get the so-called “tails”.
20. You will need them in order to dilute the resulting product to the strength you need.
21. In this case, the temperature will gradually begin to rise to boiling.

Having collected a small amount of tailings (how many of them you need, determine by measuring the strength of the resulting main product with an alcohol meter), turn off the heat, finish this lesson, if you still have material for distillation, and you decide to continue the process further, you need to refill the distiller with a new portion of mash .

Be sure to wear thick gloves when doing this, so as not to get burned, be sure to disconnect and drain the liquid from the steamer, all fusel and essential oils remain in the steamer, rinse it.

The finished product must be diluted with tails to the required strength and left to cool.

For cognac, the strength is within 40 degrees, whiskey is a little more than 45 - 50 grams, if you plan to make tinctures, liqueurs, you can use a little less than 40 grams.

Even at this stage, a drink made from juices, jam, turns out to be tasty, aromatic and practically without the smell of fusel oils, which does not require re-distillation.

You can then pass it through a charcoal filter, add 2-3 teaspoons of oak chips or 3-4 prunes to a 3-liter jar and leave it in a dark place to infuse.

I assure you that everyone will really like these drinks, even those who don’t drink strong drinks.