Home-made moonshine made of wheat is truly a Russian drink, the popularity of which has remained unchanged for many centuries. It was still made by our ancestors, passing recipes to children and grandchildren, and during Prohibition, moonshine was chased in almost every kitchen of the Soviet Union and secretly delivered to markets. Many are now engaged in the manufacture of a classic hop drink, preferring it to the alcohol offered in stores.

What is wheat moonshine

Home-made moonshine is a drink made from grain by distillation, distillation and purification. It has a good strength, but at the same time contains only natural ingredients. In order for the use of grain moonshine not to end with a heavy hangover, you need to prepare it, strictly adhering to the recipe and strictly observing the technology.

As for the recipe for a drink, here everyone chooses to his taste. Often, home-made moonshine is prepared with the addition of yeast and sugar, which starts the fermentation process. However, some experts argue that alcohol prepared in a yeast-free way is more natural and mild in taste than made with the addition of yeast cultures.

Did you know? It is quite possible to make wheat moonshine without the addition of yeast and a large amount of sugar, because the grain itself contains natural living microorganisms on its surface, which act as an activator of fermentation.

Wheat selection

The key to cooking good quality moonshine is the right choice of wheat. So, freshly harvested grain is not suitable as a raw material, since for distillation of moonshine it is necessary to germinate it, and the instinct of germination in wheat of a fresh crop is still lacking. The same applies to too old wheat - it will germinate quite hard.

It is best to take wheat harvested from 2 months to 1 year before its use as the basis for moonshine. In addition, the fullness of the grain plays an important role. Wheat should be large and smooth, clean and without husk. Spoiled, rotten or damaged by pests grains are unacceptable for the manufacture of moonshine.

Important! It is better to buy wheat for alcohol production either in the market intended for animal feed, or in a specialized store. Beginners often make the mistake of buying grain for sowing, not taking into account the fact that today all sowing material is processed from pests by chemical means.

How to germinate

To make a drink at home, you will need both dry wheat grains and sprouted. It is from the germinated cereals that the green malt obtained is used for distillation.

Germination of wheat is quite simple, but requires attention. To do this, do the following:

1. Pour cereal intended for the preparation of green malt into a wide bowl with sides 8–9 cm high.
2. Pour with clean water for 2-3 hours.
3. Drain the water along with the debris that has risen to the surface.
4. Pour the grains with fresh water so that the liquid is 3-4 cm higher than the cereal. Leave in a warm place for 24 hours.
5. Drain, rinse product.
6. To avoid decay, leave the wheat “breathing” for 4-6 hours, stirring occasionally.
7. Spray the cereal with water from a spray bottle, cover with glass or cling film, put in a warm place, well lit by the sun.
8. Stir wheat every 9–10 hours to prevent drying out.

Green malt is ready for use about one week after the start of germination.

How is the process of making wheat moonshine

The process of making moonshine includes several stages:

1. Selection and preparation of raw materials.
2. Cooking grain mash.
3. Direct moonshine brewing. It takes place in two stages.
4. Dilution of alcohol.
5. Product upholding.

Did you know? In ancient Egypt, moonshine was made from corn grains. This remedy was considered truly a panacea for all diseases.

Cooking mash

The preparation of wheat mash can be called a truly classic of home brewing. This process requires careful observance of all the subtleties of technology. Properly cooked mash has its undoubted advantages. It is completely natural, and the amount of fusel oils in the drink is minimal. Such a product has a high strength, does not exhale and does not lose its characteristics during prolonged storage.

In addition to grain, the taste and smell of mash is also affected by the composition of the water used to prepare it. Experts say that well and spring water are best for moonshine. In the conditions of the city, you can do with bottled water, the hardness of which is 2–10 mmol / dm³ or ordinary tap water, settled or cleaned using a charcoal filter.

To prepare the mash, depending on the recipe, mix the malt, wheat and other ingredients, pour water and put in a dark warm place. The container is closed with a water lock or a rubber glove is put on it. Depending on the composition and storage temperature, the product is ready 5-10 days after the start of the fermentation process.

First distillation

Having prepared the mash, they proceed to the first distillation, the main purpose of which is the isolation of raw alcohol from the mash.

Important! The first distillation is carried out at the highest possible speed so that the heated yeast does not have time to release toxic substances.

For the distillation of mash, a distillation cube is used, which creates a critical temperature difference that promotes the release of alcohol. During the first distillation, it is ensured that when leaving the apparatus, the raw material is cold, and at the same time, the water leaving the cooling system is sufficiently warm or hot. The process is stopped when the strength of the product at the outlet drops to 5%.

Second stage

Before the second stage of distillation, the crude alcohol obtained must be diluted with clean water to a strength of 20–25%. This is to ensure that fusel oils stand out from the alcohol component and are easier to separate from the product. In addition, it is possible to further purify the product before the second distillation. To do this, you need activated carbon. It is necessary to take activated carbon powder per one tablespoon per 1 liter of liquid and defend the drink for 7-10 days, and then filter it with gauze.

The second stage of distillation is as follows:

1. The crude alcohol is poured into a distillation cube, after which the system is heated.
2. When the first drops of moonshine appear, the fire under the cube is reduced and the so-called “head” or “pervat” is taken away. This liquid contains harmful and even poisonous components that must be taken away. As a rule, the “head” occupies 10% of the total amount of moonshine. It is important to select a harmful drink at a low speed of 1-2 drops per second. Depending on the amount of drink, the process of selecting the “head” takes up to 4–5 hours. You can understand that a harmful drink is completely removed by the neutral alcoholic smell of the drink at the outlet.
3. After that, the selection of the “body” itself begins - the distillation goal. The "body" of the drink is taken until the fortress has fallen to 40%.
4. Then the so-called “tails” are selected, which can be used for distillation the next time.

Dilution

Next, the resulting "body" of the drink must be diluted. To do this, again, pure water is used, preferably spring or well. Of course, everyone has their own preferences in the strength of the drink. Someone can safely drink a 50 ° product, while others can not tolerate a fortress above 20 °. According to generally accepted criteria, alcohol obtained after the second stage of distillation must be diluted with water to a fortress of 40 ° ... 45 °.

Upholding

In order for an alcoholic drink to acquire its inherent taste, you need to give it time to relax. Usually wheat moonshine is insisted for a week. This time is enough to stabilize the chemical reactions into which water and alcohol enter after dilution. For settling, it is better to choose a cool place away from sunlight. It is in the process of infusion that the drink acquires taste, smell and even some useful properties.

Home-made wheat moonshine recipes

There are a huge number of recipes for brewing moonshine at home. One thing unites them - the main ingredient is wheat with the addition of auxiliary products, for example, yeast, sugar, fruits and so on. Fans of old recipes use various natural additives, such as hop cones or pine nuts, when creating a drink. Often you can find moonshine, prepared with the addition of all kinds of berries.

Did you know? Among people, moonshine with the addition of pepper is considered the best way to treat a cold. The dose of the drink should not exceed 70 g.

Classic recipe using yeast and sugar

The most popular is a recipe with the addition of yeast and granulated sugar, and the latter will need a lot.

To do this, you need the following ingredients:

• wheat: 2 kg;
• granulated sugar: 4.5 kg;
• raw yeast: 100 g;
• water: 14-15 liters.

Cooking method:

1. Peel the wheat from the husk, germinate. When the first sprouts appear, the wheat is ready for use.
2. Heat the water to + 50 ° C, add sugar and boil the syrup.
3. Cool the liquid to + 10 ° C, add yeast and sprouted wheat. Cover and clean in a warm place for 2 weeks.
4. After completion of the fermentation process, drive out the moonshine.

For the preparation of moonshine, you can use not only raw, but also dry yeast. You will need:

• wheat grain: 5 kg;
• malt: 1 kg;
• dry yeast: 30 g;
• water: 25 l.

Important! Wort readiness can be checked by iodine testing. To do this, iodine should be added to a spoonful of the mixture. If its color does not change, the wort is ready to use.

Cooking method:

1. Grind wheat and malt into porridge.
2. Bring water to a boil, add ground wheat.
3. Insist in a warm place for one and a half to two hours.
4. Cool to a temperature of + 65 ° C.
5. Add chopped malt and cool to + 62 ° C.
6. Wrap the container and put it in a warm place for one hour.
7. After the allotted time, raise the porridge temperature to + 72 ° C and remove to a warm place for another 30 minutes.
8. Cool the resulting wort to + 25 ... + 28 ° C. Pour into a fermentation tank.
9. Dilute the yeast, add to the wort, install a water seal or put on a glove.
10. Put the mash in a warm, dark place and stand for a week at a temperature of + 26 ... + 29 ° С.

Some experts prepare mash from wheat and malt, previously dried in the oven and ground into flour.

The following ingredients are needed for this recipe:

• wheat: 5 kg;
• granulated sugar: 7 kg;
• water: 15 liters.

Ground grains are mixed with sugar and malt, water is added and insisted in a warm place. Using this method, you can get ready-made mash 4–5 days after the start of the fermentation process.

No yeast or sugar added

You can brew moonshine on wheat and without adding yeast with a minimum amount of sugar. Sugar can not be dispensed with, since it is he who starts the fermentation process.

To create an alcoholic drink you will need:

• wheat: 1.5 kg for malt and 1 kg for sourdough;
• granulated sugar: 200 g for sourdough;
• pure water.

To make malt:

1. Pour the wheat onto a wide tray and add water.
2. Put the grain in heat, after covering it with clean gauze.
3. Stir once a day, maintaining the necessary level of humidity. Malt is ready for use when the sprouts reach 1–1.5 mm.

Prepare the leaven:

1. Peel the wheat, but do not wash the grains.
2. Heat 1 liter of water to a temperature of + 35 ° C, dissolve sugar.
3. Pour wheat with warm, sweet water.
4. Put the leaven in a warm place closer to the battery. Depending on the temperature, the sourdough is ready in 2–5 days.
5. Then you need to conduct the process of saccharification of wheat, for which you need a thermometer.

Ingredients:

• malt: 1 kg;
• wheat: 4.5 kg;
• water: 15 l.

The saccharification algorithm is as follows:

1. Grind the resulting malt and wheat into groats.
2. Pour the mixture into a saucepan or other container.
3. Heat water to a temperature of + 80 ° C and add wheat-malt mixture, mix.
4. Heat the mixture to a temperature of + 63 ° C, cover with a blanket and leave in a warm place for 9-10 hours.
5. Check the readiness of the wort using an iodine test.
6. Cool to a temperature of + 35 ° C.

After that, you need to put the mash. For this, the wort together with the sourdough is placed in a fermentation tank. The process should begin approximately 3-5 hours after mixing. After 10-12 hours, a water seal or glove is put on the container. Braga is mixed every two to three days. The drink is ready for distillation 5–10 days after the start of the fermentation process.

Without germination

It is possible to drive out quality moonshine without wheat germination. To do this, you will need:

• sugar: 6 kg;
• water: 16 l;
• wheat: 1.5 kg.

The recipe for a drink is quite simple and even an amateur lover can do it:

1. Pour the purified wheat with water so that it covers the grain by 4–5 cm. Water should be at room temperature.
2. Add 3 kg of granulated sugar.
3. Cover the container tightly and send it to a dark place for about 6–7 days.
4. After time, add the remaining water and sugar, mix and install a water seal. Braga will be ready for use after a few days.

Moonshine from wheat is a kind of national drink for the residents of our country. In popularity, it is akin to whiskey for the Swiss and Irish, or cognac for the French. It is not surprising that it is in Russia that there is such an abundance of recipes for making a hop drink using both additional ingredients and pure wheat.