Moonshine for beginners: equipment, recipes, technology. Moonshine recipe: home brewing for beginners

Almost everyone, even a non-drinker in Russia and the CIS, knows what moonshine is and how it is made (at least approximately). However, as you go deeper into the subtleties of the process, the amount of real knowledge decreases with each stage, more and more intertwined with myths, superstitions and unsubstantiated statements. In order to put everything in its place and completely dispel stupid stories, we will analyze the process of moonshine brewing from beginning to end.

The manufacture of moonshine is by no means limited directly to distillation alone, but includes a number of successive stages, each of which has its own specifics and many nuances. The whole process of home brewing can be divided into several main stages: selection, preparation and processing of raw materials, fermentation, the actual brewing of moonshine (distillation), purification of the resulting alcohol, "refining".

Raw material selection

In most cases, raw materials for brewing moonshine are selected solely on the basis of availability (which is cheaper and easier to get). In addition to purely subjective criteria, there are also objective criteria for the selection of raw materials, based, for example, on the number of liters of alcohol that can be obtained from a kilogram of these products as a result of their distillation.

In addition, taste qualities are not the least important (you can also drive moonshine out of manure, the question is how pleasant it will be to drink it later). The most common products for moonshine are: sugar, starch, malt (sprouted grains of wheat, barley, rye), potatoes, fruits, berries.

Fermentation

After deciding on the choice of recipe and raw materials
and prepared accordingly (production of malted milk from grains of cereals, storage and ripening of fruits, etc.), the turn of the fermentation stage comes.

fermentation process? a chemically complex reaction to convert sugar in the starting material into ethyl alcohol, water and carbon dioxide, and of all of them, alcohol is the main value for us. Fermentation itself is the oxygen-free breakdown of nutrient molecules performed by yeast.

But the mere presence of nutrients and yeast in order for the process to proceed properly is not enough, it also requires constant maintenance of the air temperature within 18? 24°C. Both lower and higher temperatures slow down or stop the fermentation process, which (cessation) also occurs when an alcohol concentration of 10% is reached.

To optimize costs and prevent overspending of materials, it is necessary to observe certain proportions between the components (raw materials, yeast, water). In most cases, a ratio of 1:0.1:3 will be best, but it may vary slightly for each recipe.

Distillation

After the mash is ready, the technology involves its distillation, that is
the process of extracting ethyl alcohol by heating. This is done with the help of special devices for distillation, the so-called moonshine stills.

There are a lot of designs of moonshine stills, from the most primitive to high-tech, but in general terms they have a similar structure: a heated container for mash, a refrigerator (a tube for cooling alcohol vapor), a container for accumulating the resulting moonshine. It is also possible (and very desirable) to add a thermometer to the design.

The size and shape of the heated container for the mash does not really matter, which cannot be said about the refrigerator. The classic and most famous refrigerator design, well known from movies and stories? serpentine (Graham refrigerator) ? a hollow metal (usually copper) tube twisted into a spiral. However, theory and practice show that in terms of efficiency, the coil is inferior to the glass ball refrigerator.

What matters is not only and not so much the design of the apparatus as maintaining the required temperature at all stages of the distillation process. This is due to the fact that mash has a complex chemical composition. and, in addition to water and ethyl alcohol, it also contains many different fractions, both lighter (for example, monohydric alcohol methanol, ethers, aldehydes) and heavier (amyl, butyl, propyl alcohols, fusel oils, etc.).

At the initial stage, the mash can be heated as intensively as possible, and after reaching a temperature of 65 ° C, the lightest fraction containing methyl alcohol and ethers will begin to boil (popularly this fraction is called? Pervach?). Ethyl alcohol, on the other hand, begins to be released when the temperature reaches approximately 78 ° C, after which the technology requires that the heating intensity be strictly adjusted so that the temperature is set in the range of 78 - 83 ° C (less? Ethyl alcohol will not boil, more? heavy fractions).

cleaning

With all the desire, no secrets of home brewing and precise observance of temperature will still completely get rid of harmful impurities that enter the finished product along with water and ethyl alcohol, as a result of which the moonshine looks cloudy. For to reduce the negative effects of consumption and improve palatability, you can resort to cleaning technologies.

Regardless of the recipe and initial raw materials, potassium permanganate (1–2 grams per liter), activated carbon, and repeated distillation are almost always used as reliable cleaning agents. In addition, depending on the recipe, you may encounter the content of specific substances, which will require special means to get rid of.

gentrification

In addition to cleaning, if desired, you can give the drink a certain color and taste, and this can be done by adding a variety of aromatic and coloring substances. For these purposes, you can use both artificial and natural substances, but the latter, of course, is preferable.

One of the main principles used to give moonshine special taste and color is insisting on various herbs, spices, parts of plants (roots, fruits, etc.). For example,
the bases of saffron, celery, lemon balm, mint or horseradish give moonshine a yellow or golden color, and the shade can be adjusted both by the amount of added substances and by the time of infusion.

A pleasant red color can be obtained by infusing the drink with dried blueberries or by adding red food coloring. Chlorophyll gives an excellent emerald green color. Is sweetening carried out on the same principle? honey, syrup or jam is added to the moonshine, everything is thoroughly stirred, settled, and then filtered.

Hello friends! Since you have looked at my blog, it means you are interested in making homemade alcohol. And if so, then I’m just sure that at least once you had a question about how to make moonshine at home. That's what we'll talk about today.

Now I will quickly describe the entire sequence of the process, and then we will talk in more detail about each stage. So, how is moonshine prepared?

1. First, prepare a special solution consisting of water and sugar. Sugar can be used either in its pure form, or any sugar-containing raw material (berries, fruits, etc.) can be used. This solution is called wort.

1. Then the wort is processed with the help of yeast into mash. During fermentation, yeast eat sugar and produce ethyl alcohol and carbon dioxide.

1. Braga already has alcohol, but the percentage of its content there is very low. Typically 8-12%. To isolate alcohol from the mash, it is distilled into moonshine still.

There is nothing complicated in this process. The whole point is that the mash is heated to a boil, and the steam evaporating at the same time is cooled to a liquid state and poured into a separate container. This condensed liquid is our moonshine.

1. Then follows the purification of the moonshine. In the process of fermentation, in addition to ethyl alcohol, by-products of the vital activity of yeast are also formed. It is necessary to get rid of these impurities, because. they are harmful to health. Some even very. We will talk about the types and methods of cleaning in the section below.

1. The final and completely optional step is the aromatization and tinting of moonshine. Moonshine is insisted on various herbs and spices, which give it a rich color and smell.

I have listed the main stages of making moonshine. Nothing complicated, right? Now let's look at each point in more detail.

But before that, I want to note that all the stages mentioned are equally important. If the technology is not followed or low-quality raw materials are used, we can get a foul-smelling and even hazardous liquid at the exit.

Raw material selection

As already mentioned, sugar is used to make the wort. You can use sugar either in its pure form (granulated sugar), or use products containing sugar (berries, fruits, sugar beets, etc.).

Also, starch-containing products (wheat, rice, rye, corn) can be used as raw materials. Starch itself is not subject to fermentation, but it is easily processed into sugar under the influence of enzymes that are contained in malt (sprouted grain).

The quality of moonshine also depends on the quality of the raw materials used. Good drink from g…. will not work.

At home, the most accessible raw material for the preparation of wort is sugar. And the recipe is also simple.

Here's a classic:

1. Dissolve 1 kg of sugar in 5 liters of water
2. Dissolve yeast (20 g dry or 100 g pressed) in a small amount of water at 30°C
3. The yeast is mixed in a sugar solution and allowed to ferment for several days.

Agree that it is very simple? But the quality of such moonshine ... no, with skillful manufacture, it is not bad, it is only inferior to drinks made from other raw materials.

A much better drink is obtained from mash made on fruit or berry raw materials. Even if you have to add sugar to the fruit must to increase the sugar content, it will still taste better.

Well, the best result comes from mash on cereals. It is not for nothing that GOST prescribes the production of alpha alcohol (the highest quality alcohol) only from grain raw materials. But cooking mash from cereals is much more difficult.

The amount of alcohol obtained per kilogram of the product used also depends on the type of raw material. Below is a table that clearly demonstrates this. These figures are indicative, they are already obtained from experienced moonshiners.

It is also worth noting that you need to approach the choice of raw materials from the point of view of what kind of drink you want to get. So, to get whiskey, you need to use grain, to get cognac or Georgian chacha, grape mash is used, and to make calvados, apple mash is used.

Read more about the choice of raw materials in this article (Not yet written, but will be soon)

Fermentation

After we have prepared the wort, it must be fermented, during which the yeast will process the sugar into carbon dioxide and alcohol. The quality and quantity of the resulting moonshine also greatly depends on the correct fermentation process.

Compliance with technology at this stage is very important. In the room where the fermentation tank is located, it is necessary to maintain a certain temperature. Don't let it slip. It is also necessary to monitor the temperature of the mash, because. during the fermentation process, it tends to heat up.

The optimum temperature for fermentation is 25-28°C. At lower temperatures, the fermentation process will slow down, and at temperatures below 20 ° C it will stop altogether (yeast will fall asleep). Also, do not allow the mash to overheat above 40 ° C. This is much more dangerous than cooling, because. at this temperature, the yeast will begin to die.

Depending on the selected raw materials, yeast and temperature, the fermentation process can last from 1 to 14 days or more.

A little about yeast

In principle, any commercially available yeast is suitable for making mash. Pressed bakery products are very popular. You can also use dry yeast. But the best option is special alcohol and wine (cultural) yeast, which are sold in specialized stores for winemakers and moonshiners.

If you are preparing fruit or berry mash, then you can do without adding yeast at all. Wild yeasts already live on the surface of the fruits, which will take care of the process we need.

The fermentation period and the strength of the resulting mash depend on the type of yeast chosen. So bakery and wild brew 7-12% alcohol, wine (cultural) and alcohol up to 12%. There are also special varieties of alcohol yeast, through which you can get mash with 18% alcohol.

The topic of yeast selection and the fermentation process itself is quite extensive and it is beyond the scope of this article to cover it all. Read more in these separate articles:

1. Sugar mash recipe with dry yeast

2. Recipe for sugar mash with pressed yeast

3. jam recipe

4. Wild Sam - mash recipe with wild yeast cereals

5. Clarification of the mash with bentonite

6. How much moonshine should be obtained from mash

Distillation

As I already wrote, in order to isolate alcohol from mash, i.e. to get moonshine, you need to overtake this very mash. The distillation process is also called distillation. Braga is heated, and the steam released during this is condensed and drained into a separate container.

Distillation is carried out by means of a moonshine still. The classical design of such a device is quite simple. I present its schematic diagram below:

The principle of distillation is based on the fact that the boiling point of alcohol is lower than the temperature of water, which mainly consists of mash. Therefore, when the mash is heated, alcohol evaporates first. In vapor form, it enters the coil, where it is cooled to a liquid state and flows into the collection tank.

The first drops leaving the apparatus contain a high concentration of harmful substances. This liquid is called “pervach” or “heads” and is not eaten. “Heads” must be cut off, i.e. separate from moonshine. The number of heads is approximately 50 ml per 1 kg of sugar in Braga.

After “cutting off the heads”, the distillation process is continued until the liquid leaving the coil ceases to burn. This means that the strength of the outgoing moonshine has fallen below 40 degrees and then there are “tails” - a non-food part containing harmful and very smelly impurities. The tails are also cut off. Their number is approximately 100 ml per 1 kg of sugar used to make mash.

After distillation, moonshine with a strength of 30-50% is obtained. It can be distilled again to get a stronger and better drink. But pure alcohol by distillation still does not work; for these purposes, rectification is carried out. This is a topic for a separate discussion.

Home-made moonshine is perhaps most associated with the Russian people. An appetizing picture immediately arises: a glass with a homemade drink poured into it, a piece of black bread with lard, a chopped pickle. But not only in Russia this alcoholic masterpiece is known. Ukraine, Belarus, Czech Republic, Bulgaria, even the USA know what moonshine is, only in some countries it is called differently. For example, southern Russia is famous for its famous chacha, a liquor made from grapes. Making moonshine at home can be mastered by everyone, you just need to acquire the necessary tools and patience.

moonshine manufacturing technology

Classic moonshine production takes approximately 14 days if you decide to make it at home. The home process consists of several stages:

• Preparing the necessary ingredients for the future drink
• Preparation of sugar-yeast mash
• Directly, the distillation of the resulting raw materials
• Purification of the resulting drink
• Supplementation with aroma and taste

Since a homemade drink is also made on its own in order to save money, those products are often chosen that contain a lot of sugar and tannins. What raw materials are commonly used:

• Sugar beet
• Potato
• cereal crops
• Fruit and berry mixes

Before producing high-quality moonshine, it is necessary to take care of the purity of the produced drink, since many produce a low-quality drink precisely because they did not thoroughly wash the pots, bottles and other necessary containers for the produced moonshine. Homemade moonshine may have an unpleasant odor and a third-party aftertaste.

How to cook sugar-yeast mash

How to make moonshine at home? Before you start making homemade alcohol, you need to answer the question of how much of the final product you want to get. Those who are just starting home-brewing, often get one liter of a forty-degree drink from one kilogram of sugar used.

On a note! The advice of professionals who have mastered the production of moonshine at home is this: use more raw materials by 10-15%. With an insufficient volume of initial products, the resulting homemade drink will not be as much as originally planned.

Ordinary moonshine is made from classic sugar-yeast mash. To prepare it at home, you will need the following ingredients:

1. Sugar - 6 kg
2. Pure water (distilled water is not recommended) - 24 liters
3. Yeast. Yeast in any form is allowed. Those who have been engaged in home-brewing for a long time prefer alcohol-resistant yeast. They will help make the drink stronger. Dry yeast will need 120 grams.

If you want to invert sugar, make syrup from it with the addition of citric acid. Otherwise, just pour granulated sugar into a special container designed for mash, and then pour clean water at room temperature into it. The contents of the container must be mixed. This should be done until the sugar crystals are completely dissolved. After the sugar is completely dissolved, the yeast previously diluted in water is added to the container.

Place the fermentation container in a dry, dark place for at least four days. The room in which the container will be located must be warm enough.

How to make moonshine from starchy materials

The most delicious homemade drink is obtained from products that contain a significant amount of starch: potatoes, as well as cereals. There are many recipes for the production of moonshine from these products at home. We bring to your attention one of the most common homemade recipes.

1. 20 kg of potato tubers should be washed and then grated with a coarse grater.
2. Pour the resulting mixture with warm water (15 liters).
3. A mixture of grated potatoes and water must be mixed, and then pour one kilogram of wheat flour into the resulting mass.
4. Mix thoroughly again and wait until a precipitate appears.
5. The resulting liquid is poured into another bowl, and 10 liters of warm clean water are poured into the sediment.
6. Next, you need to return the drained liquid, and also add 500 grams of dry yeast.
7. Braga is infused for about 14 days. After the end of fermentation, the liquid is distilled through a moonshine still and cleaned of unnecessary impurities.

Method for preparing moonshine based on berry-fruit mixtures

If you want to get a high quality homemade drink from fruits and berries, you should choose a distillation method. Otherwise, it does not matter what fruits and berries you use, because during the distillation process, all individual taste qualities evaporate.

Thick homemade mash must first be clarified, then it must be rid of sediment. In no case should you immediately distill thick mash. The preparation of fruits and berries is that they need to remove rotten areas, remove seeds and seeds, cut off the stalks.

Important! To prepare a drink at home, you do not need to wash the fruits, because there are yeast bacteria on their peel, which will help a faster fermentation process.

The proportions of raw materials should be as follows:

• For each kilogram of sugar used, we take 100 grams of pressed yeast.
• Sugar will need 15% by weight of the product used.
• Water + mass from berries and fruits - 85%

You can make fruit homemade moonshine from a wide variety of manufactured fruit and berry raw materials. Apples, cherries, plums, raspberries, pears, citrus fruits, etc. will do.

How to properly distill moonshine

Moonshine is obtained subject to the temperature regime at all stages of production. Many people ask themselves: "How to master moonshine, where to start its production?"

The main points can be noted:

• implementation of the selection and preparation of initial raw materials;
• fermentation process;
• distillation;
• cleansing;
• refining, during which the drink is given a certain taste, aroma and color.

Moonshine for beginners can result in a low-quality drink. The output of cloudy alcohol with a bad smell is the result of a deviation from the rules of preparation. Therefore, it is necessary to highlight the main stages. So, let's talk about moonshine. Where to begin?

Selection of initial raw materials

Usually, when choosing raw materials, their availability, that is, saving money, is taken as the main criterion. Often sugar is taken as the basis. This product is valuable and nutritious. Depending on the location of the area in which the drink is made, instead of sugar, starch, various cereals, beets, potatoes can be taken.

What to choose - a distiller or a rectifier?

Moonshine for beginners involves resolving the question: "Which apparatus to choose?" All distillation devices that are represented by the industry can be divided into distillers and distillation columns. Many different units are presented on the website www.zasamogon.ru. Moonshine for beginners is widely covered on it.

• Distillers are classic devices, the design of which was invented several centuries ago. The basis of their functioning is to heat alcohol to a boil and further condense its vapors in a cooling coil.
• Rectifiers are devices that have appeared relatively recently. They are based on laboratory invented installations, with the help of which pure alcohol is obtained. When distilling mash using this device, very strong alcohol is obtained. This cannot be achieved by using a distiller, even with numerous distillations.

To decide which device is right for you, you must answer the question of what you want to get as a result: pure alcohol or classic drinks that preserve the natural taste of the initial raw materials?

What are the volumes of the drink received?

Do not forget about the level of performance. Before purchasing, you must decide how many liters of drink you want to receive at the exit at a time. If you do not need large volumes, then it is advised to purchase a 13-liter moonshine still. For one distillation, it makes it possible to obtain 3 liters of distillate. However, if you want to get a larger volume of moonshine, then you should pay attention to 35-liter units.

How to heat a cube for distillation?

If the house has a gas stove, then the heating process will not be problematic. But if you are the owner of an electric or induction stove, then certain difficulties may arise, since in this case the distillation cube must have an absolutely flat bottom. This is necessary for maximum pairing with the heating element. And the device of the standard modification will be inappropriate.

Especially for this case, special models of devices have been developed that are suitable for induction cookers and electric heaters. For example, we can note the brand "Ivanych-Lux".

A separate problem is the availability of running water at the place of moonshine brewing. Undoubtedly, the supply of cold water from the tap is carried out in almost all modern dwellings, and if you are engaged in moonshine at home, then there are no problems with the flow of water.

But if you are relaxing in a country house and are going to cook mash there? In this case, the supply of running water can be problematic. To solve this problem, special models have also been invented that function without the presence of running water.

Do you need a dryer or not?

What should be noted in such a process as moonshine for beginners? Sukhoparnik is an integral attribute of the process. Its other name is a dephlegmator (or a sump). It is needed in order to prevent heavy ones from getting into the moonshine during the distillation process. This device provides good taste and physical qualities of moonshine at the exit. The drink is obtained without impurities and does not have foreign odors.

Also, with the help of a reflux condenser, you can give the drink a pleasant aroma. For this purpose, before distillation, citrus peel is placed in the container.

In sedimentation tanks with a vertical tsarga, the level of purification of moonshine is much higher. Recently, devices with double dry steamers have become very popular.

Will a thermometer be needed?

Undoubtedly, like a dephlegmator, a thermometer is extremely necessary for home brewing. It is known that water is in the middle between the boiling points of each of these two substances. Knowing this feature, many resort to compiling their own tables to control the temperature at which distillation proceeds. The result is a product with a higher level of quality.

However, there are supporters of traditional methods in home brewing, where the presence of a thermometer is not a prerequisite. But every day there are fewer such fans. In this case, it all depends on the taste of the manufacturer. He has to choose: to purchase a moonshine apparatus with or without a thermometer.

What is needed to make mash?

To do this, you must stock up:

• a container for fermentation made of food material (plastic, glass, stainless steel, an aluminum milk can is also suitable);
• hydraulic lock;
• alcohol yeast;
• water;
• sugar.

Preparing for the process

If you decide to resort to using a 30-liter fermentation tank, then you will get about 25 liters of mash in it. First of all, bottled water is purchased. You can also take water from pipes, but it must be filtered. Spring water is also applicable, or it will take 20 liters.

Water should be slightly warmed up. It should be brought up to about 40 degrees. Sugar dissolves more easily in warm water. 5 kg of granulated sugar is poured into the water in a ratio of 1: 4 and thoroughly mixed until completely dissolved.

Yeast preparation

• The smell from them is much less and, as a rule, pleasant, which affects the taste of the mash.
• Significantly less foam is formed.
• Special yeasts show resistance to alcohol. Braga will become stronger, and the output will be more product.
• Yeast for alcohol during the fermentation process emit a smaller amount of impurities.

In a business like moonshine for beginners, the proportion of dry yeast is very important. Calculating their number is very simple. For 1 liter of wort you will need about 3.5-4.5 g of alcohol yeast. It turns out that for 23 liters of mash you will need 80-100 g.

1 liter of warm, but not hot water, about 35 degrees, is poured into a small bowl. It dissolves 50 g of sugar. Then the yeast is added. After a while, bubbles will appear on the surface. This means that the yeast has begun to ferment.

It is necessary to wait about a quarter of an hour and pour the resulting mixture into the prepared wort. The container should be hermetically sealed and a water seal installed. A small amount of water is poured into it.

Fermentation will begin in about half an hour. The first two days, the mash must be mixed, since it is covered with a film on top, which prevents the flow of oxygen.

Fermentation activity is monitored by the operation of the hydraulic shutter. If gurgling is often heard from it, then fermentation is active. The process can take up to 3 weeks. You can also determine its end by shutter activity.

Braga at the exit should not be sweet, otherwise, not all sugar has been processed, and yeast will need to be added to continue fermentation. This will help a device that measures the amount of sugar. It should have an indicator of 0-2%.

When the drink is ready, it must be put in a cold place, but not in the cold, for clarification. If this is not possible, then just let it stand for a couple of days so that the fermented yeast precipitates.

distillation process

The settled mash is poured into a cube for distillation. This is done with a hose so as not to raise the sediment from the yeast. The tank of the moonshine still is three-quarters full. For example, 9 liters of mash are poured into a container of 12 liters. Then the distiller is installed on the cube, and the moonshine apparatus is placed on the stove, cooling water is supplied and the refrigerator is filled with it.

We wait until the thermometer rises to 80 ° C, after which the water starts up. The first drops will appear at a temperature of 80-83°C.

The primary product is by no means drunk. In the terminology of moonshiners, it is called the "head". It is based on low-boiling poisons (acetone and methanol). About 130 ml of the first drops are taken from 9 liters of mash, which should be poured out.

Next, the product is selected, for the sake of which the whole process was carried out. It's called "heart". The selection continues until the alcohol in the jet (drops from the apparatus that did not fall into the container for moonshine) has an indicator of 40%. You can determine the level of alcohol in the stream using an alcohol meter and a small flask (25-100 ml).

After that, the selection stops. The remainder of the mash, stillage, alcohol contains little, but there is a large amount of fusel oils. If you need to continue the selection of "tails" (moonshine with a strength of 40%), then change the container and continue the process until the alcohol is 20%. You should not interfere with the "tails" and "heart" of moonshine. "Tails" can be poured into a cube for the next distillation.

A classic moonshine still usually produces 1.5 liters of moonshine with a strength of 58-62% from 9 liters of mash.

What is important to consider?

• During the distillation process, the heating of the mash above 96 ° C should not be allowed.
• Be careful when handling gas. Moonshine with a high alcohol content can easily ignite, resulting in a fire.
• After the end of distillation, turn off the heating element so as not to get burned.
• Let the machine cool down.
• Pour out the spent bard.

Cleaning process

What question still arises before those who master moonshine brewing? For beginners, cleaning, or rather its rules, are also unfamiliar. This article will describe the most common method of cleansing with activated charcoal. Used birch or coconut. It is advised to use as it is more porous and will provide better cleansing.

For passed through coal. The powder itself cannot be thrown into alcohol, since after an hour it begins to release aldehydes.

For filtration, they resort to the use of a specialized column or funnel made of glass or stainless steel. It is not recommended to use a plastic funnel or jug-type charcoal filters, as the alcohol will interact with the plastic.

Secondary distillation

To improve the taste, the resulting alcohol is subjected to secondary distillation. It is preliminarily diluted to 20 or 30%. The process proceeds similarly to the previous method. The exception is that this time the "heads" are taken twice as less.

gentrification

The resulting product is of high quality and is used in food. If desired, the drink is given a certain taste, color and aroma.

For 1 liter of moonshine, 1 tbsp is taken. l. honey and 5 whole prunes, and 4 g of oak chips are also added. It should be insisted for 3-4 weeks. The content is then filtered.

Improving the flavor of a drink can be achieved in a variety of ways. Many plants contribute to this. The main thing is to know which part of it is more effective.

For example, if you are using mustard, anise, cumin or dill, then it is better to take seeds. If pepper, cardamom or vanilla is taken, then their fruits are used. The inflorescences of saffron and cloves give a wonderful taste. The most fragrant plants such as marjoram, laurel and tarragon are leaves. Cinnamon or oak bark is very suitable. If horseradish, ginger or galangal are used, then their roots are taken. Nuts can also change the smell and taste. Many people use apricot pits.

You can also sweeten moonshine with syrups. The simplest is brewed from sugar and water in a 1: 1 ratio. The syrup is allowed to brew for 2 weeks. Honey is also used to add sweetness.

When adding syrup and honey, alcohol must be heated so that gases are released from it. At the end of the evolution of gases, the drink is ready for filtration.

In such a case as home brewing for beginners, a recipe book will come in handy. It should be noted that there are many ways to prepare this alcoholic beverage. Moonshine for beginners fb2 reveals in sufficient detail. Files with the fb2 extension are e-books in the FictionBook format. There is also a book for those who master moonshine. For beginners, the recipes are quite understandable and accessible.

How to make moonshine from jam?

How to master moonshine for beginners? From jam, the recipe is quite simple. First of all, you should put the mash, which will then turn into moonshine during distillation.

Such moonshine is made, as a rule, if a jar of jam has sour. You can even mix several types of it. The main thing is that it should be as sweet as possible.

There are a number of ways to prepare such a drink, including without the use of yeast. However, it is not advised to make moonshine without their use. In particular, this method is not recommended for beginners. The jam has already begun to ferment, and sour fermentation may take over in the process. Braga will go bad, and the drink will fail.

Another important detail. The jam, on the basis of which the mash will be prepared, must be cooked on sugar, and not on a substitute.

How is moonshine made from jam without sugar?

In a business like moonshine for beginners, proportions are very important. To prepare a drink according to this recipe, 6 liters of fermented jam, 300 g of yeast and 30 liters of water are taken.

The process consists of the following steps:

• water is heated, and jam dissolves in it;
• crushed yeast is poured into 0.5 liters of warm water and left until the foam begins to rise;
• water with jam is cooled to a temperature of 40 0 ​​C, and yeast dough is poured into it;
• everything is thoroughly mixed and closed with gauze;
• a container with mash is placed in a warm place and wrapped;
• fermentation should take place for 5 days;
• Moonshine is filtered and filtered.

How to make moonshine from jam with sugar?

What recipe can be advised for people mastering moonshine? For beginners, the recipe for sugar moonshine is also simple. The same ingredients are taken as in the previous recipe, only 3 kg of granulated sugar is added.

The cooking process consists of the following steps:

• The water heats up and the sugar dissolves in it.
• Jam is added and everything is thoroughly mixed.
• The crushed yeast is poured into 0.5 liters of warm water and infused until the foam rises.
• The sweet solution is cooled to 40 0 ​​C. Yeast dough is poured into it.
• Everything is thoroughly mixed, and the container is closed with gauze.
• The container is wrapped and placed in a warm place. The fermentation process takes place over 10 days.
• Fermentation should be controlled, as it may end earlier, and the mash will turn sour. The distillation process begins at the moment when the mash acquires a bitter taste.
• Braga is filtered and distilled.

What is often of interest to people who are mastering moonshine for beginners: how much sugar moonshine is the output? The drink will eventually come out 6 liters.

How to make moonshine based on jam without yeast?

This recipe involves replacing yeast with beer.

You should take:

• sour jam - 6 liters;
• sugar - 1.2 kg;
• beer - 1.2 l;
• boiled water - 27 liters.

Jam is poured into the fermentation container. Sugar is poured into it, beer is poured in and cooled to 40 0 ​​C is added.

The neck of the container is closed with gauze. The container is wrapped and placed in a warm place for 10 days. After the end of the fermentation of the mash, the drink is filtered and distilled into moonshine. The output is 8 liters of drink.

Note

For all three methods of making moonshine based on jam, it is not at all necessary to take 6 liters of jam. You can take as much as you need or as much as you have, the remaining ingredients are reduced or increased in the appropriate proportion.

In order for moonshine brewing for beginners to proceed without errors, you should follow a number of important recommendations from experienced professionals:

• Never overheat the brew. In addition to spoiling the drink, you run the risk of the vessel exploding. In addition, at high temperatures, the mash may begin to overflow through the neck. To prevent this effect, an additional filter is placed. A three-liter jar is taken, which is twisted with a metal lid. Two small holes are pre-drilled in it. If the high temperature causes the mash to overflow, then it will fall into the jar, and not into the prepared drink.
• Both sugar-based and starch-based products are taken as the basis of the feedstock. A good drink comes from sweets, fruits, tomato juice, bread, peas. But the ideal ingredient is still sugar.
• To determine the readiness of the mash, you can try it. It is ready if it has a bitter taste. If it is sweet, then the fermentation process has not yet ended.
• So that the sourdough does not get into the moonshine during distillation, then even before the start of the process, pour in 0.5 liters of fresh milk and add 2 tablespoons of oil.
• Waste from mash that has undergone distillation can be saved. The ingredients for the new starter are added there. The quality of such moonshine is always higher.
• If the starter is based on flavored water, and there are fragrant herbs in the steamer, then the moonshine at the exit will not have a sharp specific smell.

Many useful tips can be found on the site www.zasamogon.ru. Moonshine for beginners in this case will be easier.

Homemade moonshine- This is a strong alcoholic drink that is produced at home by distilling mash through a moonshine still. In order to make moonshine in your kitchen or garage, you do not need special equipment or special skills or abilities.

How to make moonshine at home.

Make moonshine at home- can be done in several ways. Let's first take a look at what you need to make homemade moonshine. First of all, you will need a container for the production of mash. A glass container or glass bottle is best. Through the glass, you can observe how the fermentation process proceeds, the transparency of the must, and the precipitation. The optimal volume of the container is 20-30 liters.

For production of homemade moonshine You will also need a home-made or factory-made moonshine still.

In addition to the container and the moonshine still, you will also need an alcoholmeter. Next we move on to the process itself. how to make homemade moonshine.

Braga for moonshine at home.

Braga for moonshine- this is an alcohol-containing mass, which is obtained as a result of the fermentation of sugar and yeast, saccharified grains, potatoes, beets, fruits or other products that contain sugar or saccharified starch substances. To prepare the mash, we need to choose a specific moonshine recipe, and then proceed to the preparation of the mash.

The easiest way to make mash:

• sugar - 5 kg;
• water - 22 liters;
• pressed yeast - 200 grams (or 70 grams of dry inactive).

Water for the preparation of mash should be settled, but not boiled or distilled, the wort in the bottle will occupy about 1/3, because during fermentation foam will be actively released.

For making moonshine brew You need to dilute sugar in 0.5 liters. warm (+ 25 ° - + 30 ° С) water until completely dissolved, after which we grind the yeast and place them in the solution. After that, the container with the wort should be placed in a warm place (+30°C, but no more) for about 30-60 minutes. During this time, the yeast will come to life and active foaming will begin.

The water that remained and did not participate in the preparation of the wort must also be heated to + 25 ° C, pour the resulting mixture into it. All contents are well mixed and placed in a warm place (+25°-+27°C). It is necessary to put on a rubber glove with several punctures on the neck of the bottle - carbon dioxide will leak through them, which will be released during the fermentation process. The fermentation process itself will take about a week.

The end of fermentation is defined as follows:

• foaming has stopped;
• the emission of carbon dioxide has ceased - the glove has opal;
• There is no sugar in the taste of Braga, alcohol is felt.

This is the process of processing an alcohol-containing fermented mass into a strong alcoholic drink by evaporating alcohol with water and then distilling it. After the mash for moonshine is prepared, pour it into the distillation cube and start heating. According to the recipe, there will be no sediment (if you still have a sediment, it must be drained through cotton pads). The distillate output rate should be approximately 350-400 ml/hour.

As a rule, the distillation product is usually divided into three parts:

• head
• tail

1. Head- the product primarily obtained by distillation. It has a strength of 75 ° or more and contains a large amount of fusel oils in its composition. They are difficult to remove, so we “cut off” this portion. It will be 50 ml for every 1 kg. sugar that we put in the mash. In our case - 250 ml.
2. Body- secondary product obtained during distillation. It is this part that is used for further processing (you can also immediately use it). The minimum strength should be 40°. We check with an alcohol meter or see if the expelled liquid burns or not (less than 40 ° does not burn).
3. Tail- this part also contains many harmful impurities. However, the "tails" can be used to prepare the next batch of mash.

How to clean moonshine at home.

Cleaning moonshine at home- this is the filtration of the resulting product through activated or ordinary carbon, the precipitation of the precipitate with the help of potassium permanganate, the addition of milk, settling and removal of flakes through the filter. Unfortunately, even with high-quality equipment, during the primary distillation of mash, it will not be possible to get rid of components harmful to health by 100%. Therefore, home-made moonshine must be cleaned of impurities.

Ways to clean moonshine at home:

• Filtration of moonshine through activated or regular carbon. Coal can be placed in a container with moonshine, wait a while until the chemical reaction takes place and strain everything. You can also install a carbon filter at the outlet of the moonshine still. Homemade filter: (cotton wool, a layer of coal, again cotton wool)
• Planting the sediment of moonshine with potassium permanganate. The maximum amount is 2 grams of potassium permanganate per 3 liters. moonshine. After a couple of days of settling, it is necessary to filter the liquid, add baking soda, stand and clean again. Old-timers of home brewing recommend distilling again after this method of cleaning moonshine.
• Adding milk, settling and removing flakes through a filter.

After purification of moonshine you will receive a sufficiently high-quality product that will contain a low amount of harmful substances.