Remember that the temperature is critical to your success. If it gets too cold, boiling temperature, the fermentation can stop because the yeast will go dormant. Remember that yeast likes it warm and moist. Some recipes call for a 1:1 ratio. For example, you will use 1 gallon of water to 1 pound of sugar and 1 pound of corn meal. Feel free to experiment and see what works for you! Equipment For Creating the Mash The first thing you’ll need for making moonshine is a mash. This part of the process will depend on the flavor you want. You’ve done the most difficult step in making mash water for your moonshine. Now, you just need to distill your mash water and separate all the alcohol content into a purified form. In the historic run, farmers used this to earn extra money because low-value corn crops could be made into high-value whisky. The U.S. government had a hand in this because of the how much sugar how highly they taxed alcohol.

The basic ingredients for making corn moonshine are water, flaked corn maize, crushed malted barley, bread yeast, and optionally, sugar. Similarly, the choice of bread yeast could result in variations in both yield and flavor, compared to specialized distillers’ yeast. While you can always use some other alcohol like Everclear from your drinks, where’s the fun in that? History of MoonshineWe highly recommend taking down notes throughout your distilling and moonshine-making process so you know what to improve on whenever you start a new batch. Prepping Your Still You need to make sure you still are always clean, even when you’re not using it. This means that even if you cleaned it after the last time you used it, you need to wash it again if you let it sit empty for a while. The next 30% yielded by your distilling process contains mostly ethanol. This is the good stuff you want to collect and store. Moonshine is a distilled alcohol made from any grain or fruit, with corn being the classic choice to produce moonshine. The term “moonshine” originated from its illegal production, which was often done at night or under the moonlight. During the Prohibition era in the U.S., moonshine became one of the most profitable businesses in the country. What are the different types of moonshine mash? Now, you’ve successfully finished making moonshine! All you need to do is collect it with the yield of your distillation equipment. Collecting Foreshots

By now, your product should lose the harsh, solvent smell you found in the heads. The flavor of your moonshine or whatever flavor you want from your recipes should now come out. Sugar shine is popular among beginners and those looking to experiment with flavors as it doesn’t require any mash. The hybrid mash replaces some corn with table sugar, allowing for a higher yield with the same amount of corn. Final Words Distillation happens when you heat a mix of corn, sugar, and yeast (this mix is called corn mash) in a big tank or pot. The heat causes the yeast to turn the sugar into alcohol, a process known as fermentation. Making moonshine involves a process called distillation, which is commonly done using a pot still. The distillation process starts with creating a mash, a mixture of corn, sugar, and yeast, which is heated in a large tank or pot. The heat causes the yeast to turn the sugar into alcohol, a process known as fermentation. Now that you are reaching the end of your product, you will get to the end of the ethanol and hit the last stage: the tails.

You can make moonshine from different mash made of different ingredients. There are also various recipes you can try, depending on the flavor you want to bring out.

It’s important to note that distillation of alcohol for personal consumption is illegal in many jurisdictions without a proper license. On a speculative note, future advances in fermentation technology, such as engineered yeast strains or enzymatic treatments, could potentially optimize yields. The tails make up about 35% of your production. They will also have a unique taste from the hearts. Note that the ingredients we mentioned above will differ, depending on the recipe you follow if you are making something other than the classic corn-barley-yeast moonshine recipe. Equipment and Supplies You Will Need Basic Moonshine Ingredients Just like the foreshots, the heads contain volatile alcohols that you should try to avoid consuming. While this will not blind you, it will give you one hell of a hangover which isn’t really pleasant.After the fermentation period is done, siphon the mash water out of the mixture. Ensure that you leave all the solid material and sediment behind by straining everything through a cheesecloth. Some distillers add 2 tsp. of gypsum to the mash water at this step. Then they test the pH of the mash water. Write the specific gravity reading at the start of fermentation and at the end of the process. If you had not guessed it, you can increase the ABV by adding more sugar, more on this below. Straining Use cheesecloth or auto-siphon to transfer the mash water into your still, including none of the solid material that may be leftover. Remember that just like making mash, the distillation part is both a science and an art form. It will take a lot of practice and trial and error before you get great at this, so be patient with yourself.