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Not sure what else to do during self-isolation? And I’ve decided to cook moonshine. I haven’t done this in a long time, I didn’t have time.
And then it suddenly appeared. Of course, I also had to agree with my wife – she is an ardent opponent of home-brewing. But I did.
I came to the garage for a moonshine, and there was a neighbor. Talk, he reacted very positively to my idea of brewing moonshine, said that he himself had long wanted to try, that he had a lot of theoretical knowledge, but practical … I told and explained a lot to him that evening.
And now I want to fill in the gaps in your education. So, the topic of today’s lesson is the design of a moonshine still! Get comfortable and let’s go!
What is moonshine
If moonshine is prepared correctly, it will be very tasty and fragrant. And tinctures from it are obtained no worse, and sometimes even better, than vodka or cognac. They make it with the help of a moonshine or, more correctly, a distiller.
A moonshine still is a device in which alcohol is obtained from an alcohol-containing wort under the influence of temperature.
The quality of alcohol depends on the type of moonshine still, its design, technology, and distillation method.
Alcohol is a decomposition product of organic carbohydrates. Therefore, the purity of the product depends on the content of organic impurities in it. In good, high-quality moonshine, these impurities will be in the minimum amount that is allowed even in drinks such as vodka, cognac or whiskey.
The principle of operation of the moonshine still
The action of the moonshine is based on the fact that alcohol evaporates at a lower temperature than water. And the finished wort, or it is also called mash, is just an aqueous solution of alcohol.
When the solution is heated to a temperature of approximately 78°C, the alcohol begins to evaporate. Water, as you know, evaporates at 100°C at atmospheric pressure.
If you keep the temperature as close as possible to the boiling point of alcohol, preventing its further increase, the resulting product will have a minimum amount of harmful organic impurities.
And then you have to solve the problem of how to “catch” the alcohol evaporated from the mash. For this purpose, various devices and parts are provided in the design of the moonshine still.
What is a moonshine made of?
The “heart” of the moonshine still is the distillation cube – the tank in which the wort is heated. It is often made from any suitable container. The most common option is a 40-liter milk aluminum can.
But this is not the best capacity. An ideal distillation cube will turn out if it is made of cast copper. This metal does not react with alcohol at all and does not change its properties. But this design is available to few, primarily because of the high price.
Moonshine of excellent quality is obtained, even if the elements of the distiller are made of high-quality stainless steel, which is used to make dishes. For home use, it is enough to have a distillation cube with a capacity of 12-15 liters.
To obtain liquid alcohol from vapors, a special device is used – a refrigerator or a condenser. This device is a closed container in which coolant circulates or flows freely.
A long tube runs through the entire structure of the refrigerator. Sometimes it is bent in the form of a coil to maximize the area of uXNUMXbuXNUMXbcontact of the walls with the coolant.
Passing through the tube, the alcohol vapor cools down and turns into a liquid, which then drains into a storage vessel. Usually it is a glass jar. A distillation cube and a refrigerator are two essential elements, without which it is impossible to assemble a moonshine still.
How much does a moonshine still cost
How much money do you need to spend to become the owner of a moonshine still? Specialized stores offer ready-made solutions at a price of tens of thousands of rubles.
These devices, of course, are easy to use, often they are able to independently regulate distillation modes, since heating is carried out using electric heating elements.
I bought the simplest device for only 4200 rubles. For me, the main acquisition was the distillation cube and the refrigerator. About 3000 rubles more had to be spent to purchase additional accessories and fixtures to get better moonshine.
Buying them separately is more convenient in my opinion. You can create any configuration that is most suitable for the preparation of a particular drink.
However, not wanting to “mess around” with pieces of iron, someone will prefer to buy a ready-made device at a higher price and then simply and comfortably get their favorite drink. Well, everyone is free to make their own choice. And which option would you prefer?