How to prepare apple wood chips for moonshine. This page does not exist

There are many factors that affect the color and taste of a cooked dish. One of these factors is wood chips; if you choose the right wood chips, the smoked foods will be aromatic and very tasty. Today we will look at which wood chips are suitable for a particular smoking product.

For example, apple, pear, alder, currant, rowan and even beech wood chips are perfect for smoking fish. In addition, juniper, eucalyptus and peach are used.

Rowan, pear, black currant, peach, apricot, oak, and cherry chips are suitable for smoking chicken meat. To smoke duck, wood chips from oak, alder or cherry are used, as well as other types of wood that are used to smoke chicken.

Pork is smoked on apple, cherry, peach, apricot, and alder wood chips. The same tree species are used to smoke beef. For smoking lamb A mixture of juniper and any fruit tree would be amazing.

Smoking vegetables

In a smokehouse you can cook not only meat and fish, but also vegetables. Cherry and pear chips, as well as cherry shavings, are suitable for this. Cheeses are also smoked. To do this, we take beech, alder or cherry chips.

Salo smoked on cherry, black cherry, and currant chips with the addition of rosemary. To smoke a rabbit you need to take grape or plum chips. You can add juniper.

Pre-sowing preparation of vegetable seeds:…
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Preparation of moonshine and alcohol for personal use
absolutely legal!

After the collapse of the USSR, the new government stopped the fight against moonshine. Criminal liability and fines were abolished, and the article banning the production of alcohol-containing products at home was removed from the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. To this day, there is not a single law that prohibits you and me from engaging in our favorite hobby - preparing alcohol at home. This is evidenced by the Federal Law of July 8, 1999 No. 143-FZ “On the administrative liability of legal entities (organizations) and individual entrepreneurs for offenses in the field of production and circulation of ethyl alcohol, alcoholic and alcohol-containing products” (Collected Legislation of the Russian Federation, 1999, No. 28 , art. 3476).

Extract from the Federal Law of the Russian Federation:

“The effect of this Federal Law does not apply to the activities of citizens (individuals) producing products containing ethyl alcohol for purposes other than sale.”

Moonshining in other countries:

In Kazakhstan in accordance with the Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan on Administrative Offenses dated January 30, 2001 N 155, the following liability is provided. Thus, according to Article 335 “Manufacture and sale of home-made alcoholic beverages”, illegal production of moonshine, chacha, mulberry vodka, mash and other alcoholic beverages for the purpose of sale, as well as the sale of these alcoholic beverages, entails a fine in the amount of thirty monthly calculation indices with confiscation of alcoholic beverages , apparatus, raw materials and equipment for their manufacture, as well as money and other valuables received from their sale. However, the law does not prohibit the preparation of alcohol for personal use.

In Ukraine and Belarus things are different. Articles No. 176 and No. 177 of the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses provide for the imposition of fines in the amount of three to ten tax-free minimum wages for the production and storage of moonshine without the purpose of sale, for the storage of devices* for its production without the purpose of sale.

Article 12.43 repeats this information almost word for word. “Production or acquisition of strong alcoholic beverages (moonshine), semi-finished products for their production (mash), storage of apparatus for their production” in the Code of the Republic of Belarus on Administrative Offenses. Clause No. 1 states: “The production by individuals of strong alcoholic drinks (moonshine), semi-finished products for their production (mash), as well as the storage of devices* used for their production, will entail a warning or a fine of up to five basic units with confiscation of the specified drinks, semi-finished products and devices."

*You can still purchase moonshine stills for home use, since their second purpose is to distill water and obtain components for natural cosmetics and perfumes.

All strong alcoholic drinks obtained by distilling mash are analogues of moonshine and differ only in certain nuances of technology.

Therefore, properly prepared moonshine is in no way inferior to the best examples of tequila, brandy and other strong alcoholic drinks.

how to choose material for making mash;
how to prepare mash, and what methods of obtaining it exist;
what method to choose for this or that material;
how, by changing the composition and technology of preparing mash, you can change the taste of the finished moonshine;
what methods of distilling mash exist;
how the method of distilling mash affects the taste, color and smell of the finished product;
what does infusion on wood chips give?
how the choice of wood type affects moonshine infused with wood chips;
how to prepare it correctly and how long you need to steep moonshine on oak chips, recipe for cherry, pear, apple and other types of chips;
how to store and consume the finished drink;
what can be made from fractions of mash distillation that were not included in the moonshine.

Braga is the basis any moonshine. From her chemical composition determines taste, color and smell finished product, because moonshine is an extract from mash or wine.

Therefore, during the distillation process, separation of mash into light and heavy fractions.

Light fractions include various acids and alcohols, and heavy fractions include esters, oils and water with pulp.

Therefore, it is necessary to be very careful in choosing the material for the mash and the method of its fermentation, because any mistake will change the organoleptic properties of the finished product and may make it unfit for drinking.

During perestroika, moonshine made from any vegetables, or even just yeast and sugar. The drink turned out to be strong, with a high content of methyl alcohol, which increased the “spiciness” of the moonshine, but was harmful to health.

The combination of mash and sugar is ideal for producing alcohol, but to give the desired taste and color, other components must be included in the composition of mash products.

No less important is the amount of sugar-containing substances, because bacteria process sugar into ethyl alcohol until one of the conditions is met:

the food (sugar) ran out and the bacteria died of starvation;
the alcohol content (strength) reached a critical value, and the bacteria died from intoxication.

By changing the amount of sugar-containing products, you can regulate the strength of the mash and the remaining sugar, which will go into the distillate, giving it a sweetish taste, as well as saturating it with fusel oils. By changing the type of sugar-containing product, the taste of the finished moonshine is adjusted, because each product gives it some of its own characteristics.

Moreover, a lot depends on the fermentation technology, therefore, for different masters, the taste and smell of the finished product obtained from the same components may differ markedly.

Using products with a high content of polysaccharides, that is, potatoes or various cereals, to produce mash, it is necessary to add sugar or malt to them.

They will break long chains of polysaccharides into short monosaccharides.

If the amount of sugar or malt is not enough, then some of the long chains will fall into the mash, and from it into the distillation apparatus.

There it will break down into monosaccharides, giving the finished drink a sweetish taste. The same effect gives excess sugar, which remains after the death of bacteria and gives the finished drink a sweetish taste.

The choice of water is no less important., because it is a habitat for bacteria. Tap water contains chlorine, which inhibits the activity of microorganisms, so the mash not only ferments more slowly, but often ends up with mold or rot.

Boiled water loses the oxygen dissolved in it, so bacteria cannot exist normally and quickly die.

The best choice is stream water or a spring, however, you need to make sure that there are no harmful or toxic substances in it, so it is advisable to have it tested.

Highly hard water is also not suitable because excess calcium and other minerals inhibit bacteria.

Preparation

To get a high-quality mash, from which excellent moonshine will come out, you need to both carefully prepare everything and follow the instructions for its manufacture.

At the preparation stage selecting dishes for fermentation, giving preference to:

glass;
enameled;
aluminum.

Preferably do not use small containers, because the ratio of mash and moonshine with a strength of 45 degrees is approximately 6:1.

As the strength of the distillate increases, this ratio becomes even greater. Proper selection of components and fermentation mode slightly reduces this ratio due to an increase in the strength of the mash.

When choosing components, you must remember that each of them influences the properties of the mash. Even a minor change to any of the components, as well as deviations in technology lead to changes in the organoleptic properties of the mash.

Therefore, we recommend making mash in large batches so that the fermentation conditions in all containers are the same. Even if different batches of moonshine differ from each other in color or smell, within the same batch such deviation will be minimal.

It is advisable to use containers with a relatively narrow neck so that you can install a water seal on them or put on a rubber medical glove.

During fermentation, a lot of carbon dioxide is released, and a reduction in the rate of its release indicates the end of fermentation. Therefore, it is very important to monitor the amount of gas by bubbles in the air seal or by the size and shape of the glove.

Also you will need a warm (23–26 degrees) room, closed from bright light and with low humidity. It is advisable that the room be ventilated.

It is necessary to provide a place for storing containers, which would make it possible to periodically mix the contents. This mixing improves the quality of the mash and increases its strength.

Ingredient Selection

If the proportions are chosen so that the maximum strength and complete production of sugar occur simultaneously, then after distillation it turns out distillate with neutral alcohol taste.

Besides, any sugar-containing product is converted to methanol during fermentation and other toxic substances that are cut off during the distillation process.

Potatoes, all cereals and fruit and stone fruits produce more methanol during fermentation than other products. Sugar and yeast mash contains the least amount of methanol, but it also contains less other substances that give this drink a more pleasant taste and smell.

Therefore, there is no recipe for how to infuse the ideal mash for moonshine, which would give an excellent taste and do not contain toxic substances.

Theoretically moonshine can be made from any product containing simple or complex sugars. Therefore, it is not particularly important what exactly to use to make mash.

Most often, to make mash, they use what is easiest to get. Residents of regions where the cultivation of wheat and other cereal crops is developed make mash from them. Those who have apples, pears or stone fruits growing in their yards make mash from them.

If it is impossible to get fruits or grains, potatoes, beets or cabbage are used. Regardless of the choice of the main component Effective fermentation requires sugar and yeast..

Considering the abundance of types of sugar, as well as the difference in sweetness between granulated sugar that is familiar to everyone and different manufacturers, we will give only average proportions of components, which will need to be clarified as a result of numerous experiments and experiments.

Yeast can be anything, including Pakmaya, which can be purchased at any grocery store.

The most effective wine yeast, but not everyone can get it. Yeast selection affects the strength of the mash, varying within 9–18%.

In addition, baker's or brewer's yeast, which are noticeably inferior to wine yeast, can give a higher alcohol content with better compliance with the thermal regime. That's why only the amount of distillate changes depending on the type of yeast, but not quality.

Mash recipes

We have selected several popular recipes from various products that allow you to obtain mash suitable for making high-quality moonshine. In addition to the combination of products, each recipe contains recommendations for preparing and fermenting the mixture.

Sugar with wine yeast

This recipe is a classic for the perestroika era, but it makes moonshine with a minimum content of fractions that give it a pleasant taste and smell. Here is the number of products:

water 25 l;
sugar 5 kg;
pressed wine yeast 0.5 kg.

The water is heated to a temperature of 30–35 degrees and sugar is added, maintaining the temperature until completely dissolved.

Then they wait until the temperature drops up to 25–27 degrees and pour a little syrup to dissolve the yeast in it, while the temperature of the main mass support on same level.

When the yeast is completely dissolved, it is mixed with the bulk of the syrup and sent for fermentation. Fermentation time amounts to 4–8 days.

Wheat malt

Here are the proportions of the main components:

wheat that has been in dry storage for 2–10 months since harvest, 4 kg;
sugar 4 kg;
water 30 l.

1 kg wheat rinse several times with clean running (not tap) water, then soak for a day or two, changing the water every 6–10 hours.

The water is drained and the soaked wheat washed with a weak solution of manganese or iodine, after which they are placed in a shallow dish and left to germinate, covering the top with a damp cotton cloth.

More details on how to soak wheat and germinate it are described in this article (Whiskey). Wheat turns into malt when the length of the sprouts becomes slightly longer than the length of the grain.

The malt is crushed using a blender and mixed with sugar and a small amount of water heated to a temperature of 30 degrees, after which it is placed in a warm place for 10 days.

Then the remaining water is heated to a temperature of 30 degrees, sugar is dissolved in it and the ground grain is poured into this syrup, after which, according to the recipe, malt infusion is poured into the mixed ingredients. The finished mixture is sent to fermentation, which will take 10–20 days.

Wheat with yeast

Here quantity of required products:

grain (as in the previous section) 5 kg;
sugar 2 kg;
baker's yeast or Pakmaya 50 gr;
water 30 l.

The water is heated to a temperature of 30 degrees, after which yeast is diluted with it, as written on the package, and sugar is diluted in the remainder of the water. Then cereal and diluted yeast are added to the syrup, after which the mixture is sent to fermentation, which will take 6–12 days.

Apple

Here are the ingredients:

fresh apples 30 kg;
running water 20 l;
sugar 1.5–4 kg, depends on the sweetness of the apples;
wine yeast 200–300 gr.

Apples are not washed, because on their peel live the bacteria necessary to start the fermentation process.

However, careful removal of the seeds and any damaged or rotten areas is necessary.

Then grind it using a blender or any other method and mix it with water and sugar. This mash can be made with or without yeast.

The only difference is that Without adding wine yeast, fermentation takes 3–7 weeks, and with them – 5–10 days.

Watermelon

Ingredients:

ripe red pulp 100 kg;
sugar 10 kg;
pressed yeast 200 g or 1 sachet Pakmaya.

Can use only whole watermelons without damage, preferably freshly collected.

After all, the longer they sit, the more fructose and glucose turns into sugar, which is more difficult for yeast to eat.

The rinds are cut off and the pulp is ground through a sieve to remove bones and white veins. All components are mixed and sent to a warm room for fermentation, which will take 7–15 days.

Raspberry

Here are the ingredients:

fresh raspberries 60 kg;
sugar 10 kg;
water 50 kg;
pressed or wine yeast 500 gr.

Raspberries are cleaned of stems and damaged berries, and then kneaded thoroughly. You can’t wash the berries, because this will remove the natural yeast necessary for fermentation.

If you make mash with yeast, its taste will become much worse, as well as the taste of the finished moonshine, but the fermentation process will end 20–30 days earlier, namely in 5–8 days.

If you decide to add yeast, then pour it into a container with raspberries and water, then add sugar there. If made without yeast, then only sugar is added to water and raspberries.

Fermentation

For fermentation you need a room in which you can maintain a stable temperature at 20–25 degrees.

A decrease in temperature will slow down the action of bacteria that process sugar into alcohol and activate pathogenic microflora, which also feeds on sugar, but produces substances unsuitable for distillation.

Temperature increase above optimal will lead to putrefactive processes, which will spoil the mash.

Another condition is lack of bright light, because some bacteria and processes are sensitive to it, so excess light will disrupt fermentation and introduce undesirable changes into it. However, a small light bulb that is bright enough to prevent you from wandering around in the dark will not harm your mash.

A prerequisite for successful fermentation is cutting off the mash from the flow of fresh air.

This can be done with using a water seal or medical rubber glove, in one of whose fingers a hole is pierced with the thinnest needle.

The water seal and glove do not prevent carbon dioxide from escaping from the fermentation tank, so they can be used as sensor signaling the end of the fermentation process.

When the water seal sharply reduces the number of bubbles and the glove stops inflating, you need to open the container and check the condition of the mash.

All water-soluble parts must precipitate with a clear boundary between the sediment and the liquid. Herself the liquid should be relatively clear, without thick turbidity. Then you need to try the mash.

A sweetish taste indicates that the yeast was not able to process all the sugar, so you must either wait a few days or add water to reduce the strength of the mash and allow the yeast to finish its work.

This point is associated with risk, because an incorrect assessment of the situation can lead to souring of the mash. Therefore, experienced moonshiners Check the strength of the mash with an alcohol meter and compared with the maximum strength that a particular yeast can produce.

When the mash is ready, it filter to separate liquid and sediment, after which the liquid mash is poured into a moonshine still, and the sediment is used as yeast for the next batch of mash or used as fertilizer in the garden.

Distillation

A moonshine still is required for distillation.(distillation cube), which you can make with your own hands or buy in a store.

The main condition for obtaining high-quality moonshine is to use a device that has possibility of constant temperature control.

This will allow you to regulate the chemical composition of the moonshine, thus affecting its taste and smell. In one of the articles (cognac on oak chips) we already talked about the importance of observing the temperature regime, as well as about such distillate fractions, How:

head;
body;
tail.

When distilling, the following must be taken into account:

Head, consisting of methyl alcohol and other poisons, in small quantities (1–2%) makes moonshine more “challenging”, that is, at the same strength the intoxicating effect is stronger, but the load on all organs increases sharply.
Body, completely cleared of the head and tail, turns into an analogue of medical alcohol - a drink, having an alcoholic effect and an alcoholic taste without any zest.
Tail much less dangerous than the head, but gives moonshine fusel smell, inherent in tequila, whiskey and many other drinks that are considered noble.

Therefore, there is no ideal distillation recipe. Some drain only part of the head, turning the drink into a lethal, stinking swill, others make an analogue of vodka, devoid of any special taste or smell.

Infusion on wood chips

To improve organoleptic properties Moonshine is infused with wood chips from various wood species.

Initially for this used wooden barrels, however, they take up a lot of space and are quite expensive, and the effect of their use is enough for 3–5 treatments, after which the wood loses the necessary substances, and infusion of moonshine no longer changes its properties.

Keeping the distillate in barrels is still used in the industrial and semi-industrial production of strong alcoholic beverages.

Those who make moonshine for themselves make do with wood chips.

When distillate interacts with wood, it fills the pores, and the diffusion process begins, as a result of which some of the elements of moonshine replace what filled the wood, and its contents enter the distillate.

If wood that will interact with alcohol, pre-fired, the drink acquires an additional taste and smell, which depend on the degree of firing. This is due to the fact that temperature exposure destroys cellulose and lignin, converting them into glucose and simple sugars, which change the taste of the distillate.

In addition, roasting destroys many other substances, resulting in the release of oils and esters, which also affect the taste and smell of the finished product.

The chips will have an even greater impact if If pre-soak it in good wine or liqueur. Once in the moonshine, she will give it an unusual pleasant taste and smell, thanks to which it will be able to compete on equal terms with many well-known drinks.

After all, the general principles of making any strong alcoholic drink are unchanged, that is, brandy, cognac and other well-known products are, in fact, the same moonshine.

Selection and preparation of wood material

Most often, oak, alder and fruit wood are used for infusion. Oak and, accordingly, tincture from it contain a lot of tannins.

Such substances give a special bitterish tart taste and unusual smell drink.

A fruit trees, thanks to the large number of resins and esters, give the smell of moonshine aroma of wood and earth, and the taste is slightly sour, sometimes with a sweetish tint.

We have compiled a table in which turned on most popular wood species, used for infusion, as well as the effect they give. To obtain the results, identical jars were used, into which 600 ml of distillate was poured and 5 grams of wood chips were placed.

The infusion time was 14 days, so the influence of wood chips was minimal. If infused for several months, the effect will be more pronounced and may also change over time.

Making wood chips

The best thing for infusion use fresh wood, for example, a freshly cut branch or a sawn trunk, and the older the tree, the more strongly the chips from it will affect the moonshine. The question of where to get one is always very relevant.

Such branches can be collected while felling trees, and It is desirable that the thickness of the branch is 5 cm or more.

Form wood chips doesn't matter, the main thing is that it passes through the neck of the container for infusing moonshine without any problems. Therefore, you can use wood chips produced by a chipper that processes branches, or you can chop it yourself using an ax. Read more about this.

Exception constitutes chips in case, if there are any previously soak in other alcohol.

In this case It is advisable to use cubes with a side size of 3–5 cm, they will release the liquid absorbed into them for a long time.

Thanks to this, metabolic processes will be more efficient, and the constant but slow supply of liquid soaked in sugars will not lead to the proliferation of sugar-eating bacteria, which is difficult to avoid when using thin impregnated wood chips.

The only condition is wood chips must be obtained from living, healthy wood, only in this case it will give maximum taste and smell to the drink, and will not harm it.

After all, pathogenic bacteria multiply in diseased wood, processing the residual sugar of both the wood and the distillate, releasing substances that will spoil the taste, color and smell of the drink.

Therefore, when using wood chips obtained from the disposal of branches using a chipper, carefully inspect each wood chip and remove it at the slightest suspicion. Also, do not use wood chips with bark.

Burning

Firing can radically change the produced wood chips Effect Therefore, every master has been searching for and creating his own recipes for preparing the drink at home for many years, giving the distillate an unusual taste, color and smell.

Some share their little secrets in recipes and tell how and how much to infuse the drink on special forums, and post useful videos.

Quite often there are recipes for tinctures made with medium-roasted wood chips. How does it turn out? color of wood material after firing at a given degree, shown in the photo.

In addition, mixing wood chips from different species and different processing methods allows you to make tinctures according to the same recipe, but with a unique combination of color, taste and smell.

For firing, the wood chips are loaded into an oven heated to a temperature of 120–210 degrees and left there for a while.

Gradually the chips begin to change color, because in the absence of a constant flow of oxygen is happening not wood oxidation, but caramelization, as a result of which lignin and cellulose break down into monosaccharides. During soaking, monosaccharides pass into the distillate and give it a special taste, color and smell.

Soaking in another alcohol

If you decide to soak wood chips in another alcoholic drink, then consider the following rules and instructions - preparation and soaking will take:

chips 2-5 mm thick - 10-15 hours;
cubes with a side size of 1-2 cm - 30-50 hours;
cubes with a side size of 3 cm or more - 1-3 weeks.

For soaking, you can use both strong and weak alcoholic drinks. Soaking gives good results wood chips in various juices, which then enter the distillate and change its taste.

You will find more detailed information about wood chips for moonshine and how to process it.

How to insist and how long should I insist?

Clear formula and proportions relative to quantity, that is, how many grams of wood chips should be put per 1 liter or, for example, 3 liters of alcohol, which provides the best result, does not exist.

The more wood chips, the stronger its influence, up to too strong, spoiling the taste and smell of the drink.

A further increase in the proportion of wood chips is not advisable, because it will only slightly shorten the infusion time and will most likely give the drink an unpleasant taste and smell, which go unnoticed at a low concentration of wood chips.

For infusion use glass and enamel containers with hermetically sealed lids, into which, following the recipe, wood chips are first loaded, then moonshine is poured. Infusion time ranges from a week to a year, depending on the desired result.

In a shorter period of time, the processes occurring inside the wood will not have time to noticeably change the composition of the alcohol, and exceeding this period will not in any way affect the taste and color of the moonshine.

It should be taken into account that the more wood chips, the faster the alcohol is filled with the contents of the wood pores, so it is necessary to experimentally determine the balance between the amount of wood and the infusion time.

When preparing wood chips for infusion, remember that apple, cherry and other fruit trees do not contain tannins, so moonshine infused with them will have a pleasant smell and slightly sweetish taste.

In contrast, oak contains a lot of tannins, so it will give the drink a cognac smell and taste. Due to the unusual influence of oak, lovers of vodka and light alcoholic drinks leave negative reviews of cognac and its recipes on wood chips, declaring that it “stinks of bedbugs.”

It is necessary to infuse moonshine on wood chips in a dark room with a temperature of 10–15 degrees.

Exceeding this temperature can lead to repeated fermentation and souring of the product due to the proliferation of harmful bacteria.

After infusion, the wood chips can be used several more times, but each time its influence will be less and less. Infused alcohol need to pour into glass bottles and store in a cool, dark place.

Video about how to prepare a flavorful drink by infusing moonshine on wood chips with your own hands, what smell and taste the types of wood chips of various fruit species and oak give:

Conclusion

Infusing moonshine with wood chips can turn it into a noble drink that you won’t be ashamed to treat to any guests. And during the holidays, such a liqueur would be just as appropriate as expensive drinks such as whiskey, cognac or brandy. After reading the article, you learned how to:

make moonshine;
regulate its taste and color - how much wood chips should be added per 1 liter of alcohol, and how long the drink should be infused;
Wood chips affect the distillate.

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