In the classic version of the strong drink recipe, the proportions for mash are unchanged and include three parts of water, one sugar and yeast. The latter should be 1/20 of the mass of the sweet ingredient. From the presented components, an excellent and transparent drink is formed at the output, practically odorless. In volume terms, the amount of liquid is identical to the sugar used. The result largely depends on the correct observance of the technology, the quality of water, sugar and the fermentation component.

Preparatory stage

At first glance, the whole process is very simple - pour water, add refined sugar, cook yeast and mix everything. But, as it turns out, the mash may "not go." You need to start with the choice of dishes. It is allowed to prepare the composition in containers made of materials intended only for food products. This list includes:

• stainless steel;
• plastic;
• aluminum;
• glass.

It is strictly forbidden to prepare a drink in galvanized, copper and simple metal utensils. This is due to the oxidation processes, as a result of which all chemical elements will be in the wort. Containers must be clean. Otherwise, an unpleasant smell and taste cannot be avoided.

Braga is a transitional product of the sugar fermentation reaction. Therefore, the quality and quantity of moonshine largely depend on the characteristics of sugar and yeast. The fructose found in beets is best for making a homemade strong product. Cane syrup is inferior to beetroot in this respect. Yeast is a living organism, with the help of which the reaction of fermentation of a sweet substance and its transformation into ethyl alcohol and carbon dioxide occurs.

For an alcoholic product, dry or alcoholic pressed yeast is suitable.

The third component of the must is water. It must be clean, free of odors and impurities. Chlorinated liquid should not be used, as the bacteria will not have time to fulfill their function and will die, and the mash will turn sour. Experienced professionals use soft water from deep artesian wells. In it, the quantitative composition of magnesium and calcium is minimal. Among other things, the substance must be raw. This is due to the fact that there is no dissolved air in the boiled substance, which is necessary for the vital activity of yeast bacteria.

Getting moonshine is not a matter of one or two days. Only mash will gain strength as a result of fermentation for at least 3 days with a small amount of components. If the solution is 30–35 liters, then its readiness should be expected within a week. Then another day will go to the distillation. Very meticulous and patient producers spend several more weeks cleaning.

The proportions of the product in the calculation of obtaining 1 liter of moonshine are as follows:

• 3 liters of water;
• 1 kg of sugar;
• 40–50 g dry or 100–150 g fresh pressed yeast.
• Sometimes citric acid (10 g) is included in the mash recipe.

All data may vary within a small range - proceed from personal experience and the properties of the components. You can make mash without sugar. As a substitute, jam, boiled sugar beets, molasses, honey, and various fruits are used. All of these foods contain glucose and fructose.

Strong drinks are also obtained from starch.

Making mash for moonshine should start with sugar. Most home brewers stir it in warm water until completely dissolved. Otherwise, the product will settle to the bottom and will not participate in fermentation. The rules of the technology provide for inversion, i.e., the preparation of sugar syrup. In such a solution, the reaction of materials is much more efficient, since as a result of heating, sugar breaks down into “semi-finished products” - glucose and fructose. For yeast bacteria, they will become more acceptable components than ordinary "sand".

Warm water is brought to a gentle boil and the substance is dissolved. The syrup is boiled for 10 minutes with citric acid, stirring constantly. Then reduce the heat and cook for another hour. After that, the liquid must cool to a temperature of 30 ° C, after which it is mixed in a fermentation tank with the bulk of the water. The dishes cannot be completely filled, because after adding the yeast, rapid foaming will begin, and part of the wort will flow out.

Rules for introducing yeast and fermentation

The next step is to activate the yeast substance. For dry species, the right amount of product is taken and poured into a small pot or bowl. It is desirable to fill it only with warm water with a temperature of up to 30 ° C. In a very cold liquid, fermentation will not start or will be sluggish. The hot substance will kill the bacteria.

After dissolving the material, the pan is covered with a lid and wrapped in a dense cloth.

Baker's yeast has a significant level of foaming. You can extinguish such a reaction with the help of crackers or simple cookies. Before adding activated yeast to the ready-made wort, it is fed. For this use:

• wheat
• malt;
• raisin;
• dried apricots.

Many are not even afraid to add old jam, juices or compotes. Yeast is added at the end. Now the fermentation container must be placed in a warm place and wrapped with a blanket. Close the lid, but loosely so that carbon dioxide freely escapes. If the smell is not annoying, then there is no need for a water seal. The reaction can last from 3 to 7 days depending on the behavior of the prepared wort.

At first, the brew has a pleasant sharp taste like champagne.

The solution must be looked after so as not to miss the moment of completion of the process, otherwise the liquid may turn sour and lose its strength. The end of a chemical reaction is determined by the content of carbon dioxide in the dishes and the clarification of the liquid. The presence or absence of carbon dioxide is checked with a lit match. If the flame is on, then the fermentation has stopped. Clarification of the wort indicates the precipitation of processed yeast. The taste of mash becomes sour, unsharp. The presence of alcohol is determined by a slight bitterness.

After that, the liquid is drained without mixing with the components that have settled to the bottom. This procedure must be performed using a tube. The fermentation container does not move. The final phase of the preparation of the drink is degassing, which improves its taste. Even after the end of fermentation, a small amount of carbon dioxide remains. To remove it completely, the vessel with the intermediate product is heated to 50 °C. This eliminates carbon dioxide and remaining yeast. During the day, the mash will completely lighten up.

Strong homemade alcohol can be prepared from almost any raw material. However, the most popular among the people was and remains moonshine from sugar mash. This is explained not only by the fact that the recipe for classic sugar mash is elementary simple. And not even because there are more than 20 variations of the basic recipe. The fact is that with strict observance of the conditions and rules of the technological process, the taste of home-made moonshine is better than that of factory vodka.

There are many nuances of the correct preparation of sugar mash. The first rule concerns sanitary standards. The fermentation tank must be crystal clear so that the sugar solution does not acquire an extraneous taste or smell during the fermentation process. Therefore, before putting the mash, all the dishes involved in the process must be thoroughly washed, dried, and wiped from the inside with a clean towel.

Calculation of proportions

The amount of ingredients for classic sugar mash is calculated based on how much distillate is required to be obtained at the exit. In theory, 1-1.2 liters of moonshine with a strength of 40 degrees can be driven out of 1 kg of feedstock (sugar).

In practice, for a number of reasons, the yield is somewhat smaller. The quantity and quality of the finished moonshine is influenced by factors such as the type of sugar, the type of yeast, the temperature maintained during the fermentation of the wort and during distillation. In this regard, the proportions of all ingredients indicated in the recipe should be increased by 10-15%.

On average, 1 kg of sugar will require 3 liters of water, 100 g of pressed or 20 g of dry baker's yeast. If the recipe says that sugar must be inverted, that is, boil syrup from it, the volume of water is increased: 0.5 liters per kilogram of feedstock.

For example, to get 5 liters of high-quality distillate with a strength of 40 degrees, you will need:

• Sugar? 6 kg.
• Water? 18 liters.
• Yeast? 600 g pressed or 120 g dry.

If inversion is performed, an additional 3 liters of water are measured and 20-25 g of citric acid is taken, which will give the syrup a more pleasant taste.

At the stage of calculating the proportions, it is important not to overdo it with the amount of sugar. If the sugar content of the wort is too high, fermentation will be sluggish or not start at all, since sugar is a preservative and its excess will not allow yeast to multiply normally.

On the other hand, if the wort is sluggish but still fermenting, the yeast may not have time to process all the sugar. Part of it, as expected, will turn into alcohol, part will remain unprocessed. In addition, if the alcohol content of the wort exceeds 12%, the yeast will die, fermentation will stop.

You can check the sugar content, the initial density of the mash using a saccharometer (hydrometer). When using baker's yeast, the average of the device should be 20%. If special alcohol-resistant yeast is used in the recipe, the density of the solution can vary from 20% to 30%.

Sugar inversion

The complex term refers to the preparation of a syrup from sugar, water, citric acid. Why is it necessary to include this stage in the process of making mash? Sugar may contain bacteria, the activation of which during fermentation can adversely affect the quality of the product. Long-term heat treatment of raw materials allows you to destroy these microorganisms, which will help reduce the risk of malnutrition, souring of the mash, and mold.

In practice, the inversion process looks quite simple:

1. Pour 3 liters of water into a large saucepan.
2. Warm up on fire to 80 degrees.
3. Pour 6 kg of granulated sugar into a hot liquid, stir until the crystals are completely dissolved.
4. Bring the syrup to a boil.
5. Reduce the heat, boil the container with syrup for 10 minutes.
6. Add 20-25 g of citric acid, stir.
7. Cover the pan with a lid and continue to heat the sugar syrup over low heat for another hour.
8. Before mixing with the rest of the components of the mash, the resulting syrup is slightly cooled.

You can skip this step by making syrup by dissolving sugar in warm water. But on inverted raw materials, the wort ferments much faster. And the distillate obtained after distillation has a milder taste.

Water treatment

Good water? one of the conditions for obtaining high-quality moonshine. The liquid should be exceptionally clean, transparent, no taste or smell should be present in it. This rule applies not only to the preparation of sugar wort, but also to other recipes in which mash is prepared without sugar.

Ideally, clean spring water should be used. But since not everyone has such an opportunity, they usually take water from the tap. Before pouring into a fermentation tank, it is filtered or defended.

For filtration use a standard household filter jug? Barrier?. Defend water for 2 days in a clean container, for example, in glass jars, bottles of 3-5 liters. Thanks to such a simple treatment, the hardness of the water is reduced, and foreign impurities precipitate. After settling, the liquid must be carefully drained from the sediment through a tube.

It is not recommended to use boiled and, moreover, distilled water for the preparation of any mash wort, including sugar-free mash. In such a liquid, there is not only the substances necessary for the life of yeast cultures, but also oxygen, without which fermentation is impossible.

Mixing Ingredients

The sequence of adding the wort components to the fermentation room
capacity is an equally important stage in the process of making high-quality home brew. According to the recipe, first of all, hot sugar syrup is poured into the container. Then add 18 liters of water heated to 20 degrees. The solution is stirred vigorously.

Important! The volume of the fermentation tank is calculated depending on how many liters it is planned to put the mash. Since active foaming is observed at the first stage of fermentation, the container must be filled no more than 75% of its volume.

For example, if the total volume of wort together with sugar syrup is 20 liters, the capacity of the fermentation tank should be 23-25 ​​liters. Otherwise, during the period of active fermentation, the solution will overflow over the edges of the dishes.

Introduction of yeast

If pressed baker's yeast is used in the recipe, there are two ways to add it to sugar syrup diluted with water. You can simply knead the briquette with your hands and pour the crumbled yeast directly into the wort. In the second variant, fermentation is performed.

1 liter of warm solution is taken from the fermentation tank, the yeast is crushed and poured into sweet water. Close the lid and set aside for 10-15 minutes. During this time, the yeast will come to life, which can be judged by the formation of foam. It is important that the temperature of the solution at the time of adding the yeast is about 30 degrees.

Dry yeast must be activated before being added to the wort. To do this, boiled water (0.5 liters) cooled to 36 degrees is poured into a separate container, yeast powder is poured into it. The pan is covered with a lid, wrapped on top with a terry towel and left for 40 minutes in a room with a temperature of 23-28 degrees. When a cap of thick foam forms on the surface of the liquid, yeast can be added to the sugar wort.

Fermentation

It is necessary to install a water seal on the container with sugar mash or put a medical glove on the neck. The container is transferred for the entire period of maturation of the mash in a dark, warm room. The air temperature should be stable, in the range of 26-30 degrees. Additionally, it is recommended to wrap the fermentation tank with a blanket, wrap it with a roll of thermal insulation material, or put a compact heater for the aquarium next to it.

How many days does fermentation take? If everything is done exactly recipe, sugar mash ripens for 4-5 days. If the temperature regime is not observed, fermentation can last up to 10 days.

Important! To remove excess carbon dioxide from the solution, which reduces the rate of fermentation, twice a day, the must from sugar must be shaken without removing the water seal from the fermentation tank.

Determining the readiness of mash for distillation

You can find out that the mash is ripe and completely ready for distillation by a number of characteristic features:

• During the last 24 hours, carbon dioxide is not released, the glove has settled or bubbles have stopped appearing in the water seal.
• No hiss is heard.
• The solution acquired a specific alcohol smell.
• A lighted match brought to the neck of the container continues to burn.
• The top layer of the mash became light, transparent, the remains of the yeast settled to the bottom.
• The taste of the drink is sour-bitter, absolutely not sweet.

Yeast is an important ingredient for making moonshine. They convert sugars into ethyl alcohol. In order to successfully put the mash and get a high-quality and tasty product, it is important to use fresh "working" bacteria and correctly calculate their number. How much yeast is needed for dry or pressed mash, this article will help you figure it out.

Why is it important to measure yeast correctly?

You can use any kind of yeast: wine, dry, pressed bakery. It is important that they are fresh, made in the right proportion. You also need to create the best conditions for yeast reproduction: put moonshine in a clean container and a warm room, feed microorganisms with nitrogen and suppress hostile microflora with an antibiotic.

If there is not enough yeast

A sign that there is not enough yeast is considered weak fermentation on the first day after you put the mash. A cap of foam should form intensively. It can take a third of the dishes and more. Therefore, it is so important to take a container for making mash with a large supply of volume. If cap formation is not observed, then the shutter needs to be warmed up and / or fresh yeast must be added.

If there is too much yeast

What happens if you put in a margin? Putting an extra amount of yeast for mash is also wrong. Bacteria eat sugar from the wort until the concentration of alcohol in the mash is 12 - 15%. In such an environment, they die. At this point, the mash is ready, and you need to start distilling it. If the microorganisms do not have enough food, then a lot of yeast will remain in the mash, which will have a bad effect on the smell, taste and quality of moonshine.

Basic mash recipe with pressed yeast

They often argue about how much yeast should be added per 20 liters of mash.

The answer is simple: For a 20-liter mash, you need 4 kg. sugar in a ratio of 1 to 4 i.e. 1 kilogram of sugar and 4 liters of water, per 1 kg. sugar you need 70-100 grams of pressed yeast, it turns out that for 20 liters of mash, according to the standard proportion, you need 4 kg. sugar multiplied by 100 grams of yeast is 400 grams.

Consider the recipe for 5 liters of mash:

• 1 kg sugar
• 4 liters of water
• 100 grams of alcohol or baker's pressed yeast

1. Take unboiled clean drinking water
2. Dissolve sugar in it and stir vigorously
3. Grind the yeast with your hands and dilute in a small amount of warm water
4. Introduce into the wort, while the temperature of the medium for dissolution and subsequent fermentation should be 25-30 ° C
5. Leave to ferment in a dark warm place for 7-10 days

Use of dry yeast

The standard proportion for sugar mash is 15-20 grams of dry yeast per 1 kg. sugar is the perfect amount. The best brands are SafMoment, SafLevur, Pakmaya work well and are inexpensive. For specialized yeast, the proportions are indicated by the manufacturer, for example, for some wine yeasts, 4 grams per 10 liters of must or 2 grams per 1 kg. Sahara.

Before the introduction of dry yeast, a so-called "fermentation" or activation must be carried out. In half a liter of warm water up to 30 ° C, add all the measured dry yeast and let it stand for ten minutes. Then you need to stir the yeast until dissolved and add to the shutter.

Braga on dry yeast (usually baker's) often behaves capriciously on the first day of fermentation: it either does not rise or forms a “cap” too intensively. In this case, it may be necessary to add 50 gr. vegetable oil. Or you can use a defoamer, which is sold in specialized stores (sofexil, bobotik). You can also crumble one simple cookie without additives onto the surface.

The maturation time of the mash is approximately 7 days. It should become bitter in taste and light. Foam ceases to stand out on the surface. If sweetness is still felt in the mash, then it is worth leaving it to stand for another one or two days.

Conclusion

Summarize:

• Pressed yeast per 1 kg. sugar 70-100 grams
• Dry yeast per 1 kg. sugar 15-20 grams

As a fermentation tank, you can use any container designed for storing food products. It is desirable that it can be tightly closed with a lid, but at the same time be equipped with ventilation holes. The latter successfully replace rubber gloves or more modern water seals.

Many novice moonshiners neglect the cleanliness of containers for moonshine and brew. The flask must be thoroughly washed and wiped with a dry cloth. If the slightest foreign smell remains in it, it will be transferred to sugar and water, which will affect the taste of the final product.

It is not necessary to wash everything clean between distillations, but after the end and until the next time the still, all hoses and refrigerator should be clean and dry.

As a guide, consider the traditional set of components that will be required for mash and subsequent distillation of 5 liters of moonshine with a strength of 40 °.

The composition of the mash:

• pressed ("wet") yeast - 600 gr. or 120 gr. granular dry;
• drinking water - 24 l;
• citric acid - 25 gr.;
• granulated sugar - 6 kilograms.

This recipe for sugar and yeast mash allows you to get classic moonshine without any frills and specific flavors.

Correctly calculate products

To understand what proportions of sugar and yeast mash should be used, first of all, you need to decide how much moonshine you need to get as a result. Subject to the rules of preparation, approximately 1100 ml of an alcoholic beverage with a strength of 48-50 ° will come out of 1 kg of granulated sugar. But the following factors still influence the volume of the finished product:

• quality of raw materials;
• temperature regime of aging mash on sugar;
• additional components, etc.

Theoretical calculations will always be 5-15% more than the real output.

For 1 kg of granulated sugar, 4 liters of purified water are used, in addition another 500 ml, if inversion is required, 20 gr. granulated yeast or 100 gr. "wet".

Invert sugar

The complex term refers to a fairly simple process of mixing sugar and lemon to make syrup. This is one of the main theses on how to properly put mash on moonshine. Pre-mixing the components will improve the taste of the product and speed up the fermentation process.

To make syrup, follow these steps:

• pour 3 liters of clean water into the pan, put on fire and bring to a temperature of 70-80 ° C;
• add granulated sugar, the proportions of sugar and liquid should be 2: 1;
• stirring the contents, boil it for 10 minutes, while regularly removing the foam “cap”;
• when a large amount of foam is formed, gradually pour out 25 gr. lemons and reduce the intensity of the fire to a minimum;
• close the lid and cook for 1 hour.

As a result, you should get a viscous dark amber-colored syrup that looks like honey (by the way, unscrupulous sellers often sell invert sugar under the guise of honey).

VIDEO: How to properly invert sugar

We prepare water

Water is an important ingredient in the preparation of mash from sugar and yeast. It forms the taste of alcohol. The correct mash is prepared on a liquid that does not have a shade or taste, it must fully comply with hygienic standards.

Water for moonshine should be soft, purified - most of all, melt, spring and bottled water meet these requirements.

Before preparing the mash, it is recommended to stand the water for two days, this is if tap water is used. Due to long exposure, the composition loses its rigidity, all harmful components settle in the form of a precipitate. Next, you only need to carefully drain or pass through the filter.

Do not use boiled or distilled water. Both of them do not contain the air necessary for the growth of fungi and the active release of waste products - the very ones that make up the organoleptic of moonshine.

Which yeast to choose

Without going into too much detail, we note that the range as a whole is limited to two product groups:

• bakery;
• alcohol (wine, beer).

You can use both of them, but with some adjustments for the features of fermentation.

Bakery is less suitable than alcohol for the following reasons:

• the maximum concentration of alcohol will not exceed 12 ° - anything higher is detrimental to the strain;
• in the process of fermentation, a large foam cap will form - when pouring the wort into a container, one third of the volume must be left free;
• the finished product will have a specific taste - on the one hand, such an authentic organoleptic is characteristic of moonshine, on the other hand, if you make drinks or tinctures from moonshine, a sharp aroma will be superfluous.

Bakers also have advantages:

• price and availability - can be purchased at any grocery department;
• fast fermentation - in general, the whole process takes from 8 to 12 days, depending on the composition of the must, while wine can take up to 3 weeks;
• the same aroma and taste - for many moonshiners this is a fundamental point.

Spirits, as the name implies, are designed specifically for the preparation of alcoholic beverages. They ferment better - there is practically no residue, they survive even at high concentrations of alcohol, they give a milder taste to the finished drink, there is very little foam. At the same time, they are much more expensive than bakery ones - 100 gr. will cost an average of 140-170 rubles. - and they are sold only in specialized stores.

Mixing components

The second step in the manufacture of mash is to mix the ingredients. The syrup is placed in a fermentation tank, the required volume of water is added to it, in our case it is 24 liters. If a yeast mash recipe with inverted sugar was chosen, then it should first be dissolved. But in any case, you need to use a sweet liquid with a temperature of 26-30 °.

The tank is filled no more than ¾ of its dimensions. This eliminates the possibility of leakage of wort during the action of yeast and syrup. This factor should be taken into account before putting the must on fermentation.

When using bakery, you can only pour 2/3 of the mash into the container - the remaining volume will be filled with a foam cap

1. The pressed product is added directly to the wort container, but it is preliminarily crushed by hand. Experienced moonshiners dissolve the briquettes in sugar water before adding, after which they cover the consistency with a lid and wait for the formation of a “cap”. As a rule, this process takes 7-9 minutes, after which the mixture is added to the common tank.
2. Dry products are pre-activated according to the instructions. They are mixed with water 33-35 ° and put in a warm place to form a uniform foam. Next, the contents are mixed into the mash.

fermentation stage

You need to put the mash on sugar and yeast in a dark place with a constant temperature regime of 27-30 ° C. But before that, the container is hermetically sealed with a water seal. To speed up the fermentation, the wort is wrapped in heat-insulating material or an ordinary blanket.

Fermentation can last from 3 to 10 days. Throughout the entire time, you need to mix the mash daily without removing the water seal. Thus, excess carbon dioxide will be released from the mixture.

How to determine the readiness of mash from sugar and yeast:

• the smell of alcohol;
• bitter aftertaste;
• cessation of carbon dioxide formation, hissing;
• a lit match continues to burn when brought to the wort.

One match will not be enough, it is best that 2-3 signs are detected at the same time.

Clarification and degassing

Making moonshine from sugar and yeast without this step will be meaningless. Before you put the mash for distillation, you need to remove it from the yeast sediment. This is done with a hose. Next, the composition is heated to 50 ° to remove residual carbon dioxide.

The degassed mash is poured into a clean bottle and clarified. In this case, concrete will be required. It is difficult to find this ingredient in its pure form. But it is contained in the composition of cat litter. Moonshiners have identified several proven brands:

• Kotyara;
• PiPi Bent;
• Closet WC Cat.

When buying a filler, it is important to study the composition, it should not include aromatic substances and dyes.

To lighten 20 liters of sugar and yeast mash, you need 3 tbsp. l. ground bentonite and previously dissolved in heated water with a volume of 0.25 liters. The composition is mixed with the mash and left until the powder settles at the bottom in the form of liquid sour cream. As a rule, it takes up to 20 minutes.

Stages of clarification:

• betonite is ground, diluted in water;
• the mixture is added to the mash, thoroughly mixed;
• the container is closed with an airtight lid and left for 20 minutes;
• the purified liquid is drained, and the sediment is disposed of.

Draining sedimentary components into the sewer is strictly prohibited. They form strong plugs in pipes, which are difficult to even mechanically clean.

This is the final stage in the preparation of sugar mash and its purification, followed by the distillation process.

The most popular question among novice distillers is how many times to distill. From experience, we will answer - 2 times, in order to get rid of fusel oils and other harmful components (isoamyl, formic and methyl alcohol, acetic acid, etc.), while correctly selecting heads and tails at each stage. Only in this case, the moonshine will really turn out to be clean and moderately picky.

VIDEO: The easiest and most correct sugar mash recipe