How to distill moonshine the second time: step by step instructions and useful tips

2024 Author: Isabella Gilson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:14

First-class moonshine cannot be achieved only with the use of high-quality raw materials and the correct execution of all stages of primary distillation. Extraneous flavors and an unpleasant odor will remain in the resulting drink due to the content of yeast and harmful impurities in it in small quantities.

Why is a second distillation of moonshine necessary?

Double distillation of moonshine at home with proper implementation will achieve excellent taste of the drink and reduce the hangover as a result of its use. With the help of cleaning, fractional method and dry steamer, you will remove the aldehydes and fusel oils remaining after the first distillation, which cause significant harm to the body.

Thus, the advantages of this method of making moonshine include:

• Significant improvement in palatability.
• No bad smell.
• Reducing harm to he alth.
• The ability to manufacture nobledrinks based on the resulting moonshine.
• In some cases, an increase in the degree.

There are situations in which a second run is required. These include:

• Using mash based on berries and fruits.
• Cleaning with sodium hydroxide, baking soda and other chemicals.
• So as not to pour out if the first time turned out badly.

Spending time on one more cycle, you will get a wonderful distillate that will be a pleasure to drink yourself and treat your neighbors.

Second distillation of moonshine: the right technology

Having decided on the need to improve quality, many distillers are wondering: how to distill moonshine the second time?

The technology of brewing the drink for both the first and second cycles is based on different boiling point parameters for the chemicals in the composition and their separation into fractions to separate from each other.

An important factor in the question of how to distill moonshine a second time at home is the use of only the central fraction from the primary distillation. The so-called body contains an order of magnitude less hard-to-remove impurities. Sometimes a third fraction is used - "tails", but to obtain a quality product, it is necessary to use the "body".

The first stage. Dilution

The first step on the way to the secondary stage is dilution of moonshine with water.

Moonshine forsecondary processing should be a fortress of 35 to 45 degrees. Use an alcohol meter to accurately determine the strength of the drink. The concentration of alcohol required after dilution depends on the fraction used and on the desired strength of the result:

• About 20° - if you took the "body".
• About 10° - if you use tails.

It is extremely important not to exceed the indicated concentration of alcohol for two equally important reasons:

1. Ignition of alcohol fumes can cause equipment to detonate.
2. Harmful impurities at high concentrations form a stable chemical bond and are difficult to remove.

The water used must be clean, preferably melted or spring water. It is not recommended to use distilled or boiled. Tap water must be passed through a carbon filter and allowed to settle.

Water temperature can be at room temperature, but it would be nice to cool it down to 10 degrees by putting it in the refrigerator for a while.

Second stage. Cleaning

An equally important step in how to properly distill moonshine a second time is cleaning. The most environmentally friendly way is cleaning with charcoal, made by yourself. Barbecue charcoal bought at the supermarket contains its own harmful impurities, and in the future it will be necessary to get rid of them as well.

For the manufacture of charcoal, it is better to use soft woods. They need to be cut into small briquettes or rounds andremove bark. It is undesirable to use a freshly cut tree, it is better to let the wood dry for a couple of weeks. After drying, the briquettes are tightly packed in a metal barrel with a sealed lid and a hole for a fitting. A fire is made, ready-made coal is periodically removed, and fresh briquettes are placed.

More often, activated carbon is used in the cleaning step as a less labor-intensive method.

It is also possible to clean with potassium permanganate. This is done as follows:

1. Dissolve potassium permanganate in hot water at a ratio of 1 gram of manganese per 100 ml of liquid.
2. Pour the solution into the moonshine and stir.
3. Let stand for an hour until sediment appears.
4. Add one tablespoon each of baking soda and s alt.
5. After two hours, strain through a strainer made of cheesecloth or fine cotton.

It is important to remember that you should not rush. The quality of cleaning using this method depends on the slow pouring of moonshine through the manufactured filter.

Third stage. Secondary haul

There is nothing complicated or radically different from the first distillation in how moonshine can be distilled a second time. The resulting product is also divided into fractions:

• The head fraction, or pervach, is the first 10-12% of a liquid containing acetone and methyl alcohol.
• The main fraction, or body, is the next 80-90% liquid, consisting mostly of ethyl alcohol.
• Tail fraction –the last 5-10% liquid.

Pervach, despite the great love for him in the Soviet era, should never be drunk. It has an unpleasant odor and can cause great harm to the body, but you should not pour it out. Such moonshine can be used to ignite coal or wipe the contacts of the board. The volume of the fraction, according to general estimates, is 50 ml per liter of pure alcohol.

Double distillation of moonshine at home aims to obtain exactly the main fraction. It is collected until the strength of the outgoing product drops to 45%. The strength of the total volume of moonshine received is estimated at 60-70%.

Many lovers of homemade alcohol add the tail fraction to the next portion of mash to increase its strength.

Do I need a dry steamer for secondary distillation?

The presence of a dry steamer or a reflux condenser is optional, but desirable during the primary distillation. Many distillers replace them with the re-distillation of moonshine. After all, it also cleans the product from fusel oils without additional waste of time.

But a dry steamer cannot provide a complete cleaning during the primary distillation. For people who strive for perfection in everything, using it in the first distillation and re-distillation will achieve a near-perfect product.

Using distillation column

In how to properly distill moonshine a second time, additional cleaning with a rectifier can help. In himliquids are separated according to the difference in volatility. In the process of distillation from moonshine, albeit first-class, the purest ethyl alcohol is obtained.

The use of mash leads to clogging of the rectifier. That is why it is desirable to use moonshine of double distillation in the distillation column.

The output is an absolutely neutral pure product without impurities for the manufacture of tinctures or use in its pure form.

Recommendations

How to distill moonshine the second time? Find tips below.

For secondary distillation, the quality of water for the first stage is a very important factor.

Do not interchange dilution and purification steps. Water partially destroys the structure of impurities, and cleaning with potassium permanganate or coal frees moonshine from the remnants of these compounds.

To determine the fractions during distillation, constantly monitor the "revs" with an alcohol meter.

The approach of the main faction can be determined by smell. If the sharp unpleasant smell is gone, then the “body” has gone.

Don't be greedy. Drain pervach - he alth is more expensive.

You can determine the strength of moonshine by burning. Paper moistened with moonshine will burn without a match only if the strength is over 40 degrees.

Adding oak bark or wood chips after secondary distillation removes residues of harmful substances and makes the moonshine look like cognac.

Using these tips, you will be able to understand how to properly distill moonshine a second time. Andremember that the result is worth the effort. The second distillation of moonshine is an important step in obtaining a quality product.

Double distillation drink recipes

The absence of unnecessary odors and flavors in double-distilled moonshine leaves room for the distiller's creativity. The easiest way is to buy and use flavoring additives in the preparation of tinctures. You can also use natural ingredients that are on hand.

Most often, lovers of home-brewing imitate noble French cognac. There are many recipes for such "cognac". Most often, pepper, tea and bay leaf are used in the composition, the infusion process is required either in an oak barrel or on oak chips.

The recipe for Christmas moonshine will never be superfluous. Of course, you need to do it in advance:

1. Fill an oak barrel with sliced apples and top with moonshine.
2. Leave to infuse for six months.
3. Strain through a cloth or fine sieve.
4. Add sugar to taste.
5. Bring to a boil three times, paying close attention to fire safety.
6. Stay in a cool place for a week.
7. Strain again.
8. Dilute with water in proportion to 10 liters of liquid a quarter of the water.
9. Distill and filter.
10. Christmas vodka is ready.

There are a lot of recipes based on moonshine, and everyone can choose the one that suits their taste.