Making Alcohol Without Distilling
Making Alcohol Without Distilling
In countries where it is illegal to distil alcohol for consumption there is another option. You can ferment up to 20% ABV which is fine for many cocktails.Fermenting alcohol without distilling will leave behind some of the fermentation flavours which means you will produce a different flavour. Another option is to purchase vodka or grain spirit and use this alcohol with flavourings.
Making the base that you will ferment
You will need:
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30 Litre fermenter with airlock, bung and tap.
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Steriliser
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Mixing spoon or paddle
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Still Spirits Turbo Yeast
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Turbo Carbon
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Turbo Clear
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6kg sugar or 7 kg of Dextrose
INSTRUCTIONS
1. Add 20 litres water at 30°C to the fermenter, slowly pour in the dextrose or sugar while stirring. Stir well to make sure all the sugar is dissolved.
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2. Add the Turbo Carbon by carefully cutting off the top of the sachet near the seal and squeeze contents into the mix. Use a little water to rinse out the rest of the sachet. This carbon will be absorbing fermentation flavours during fermentation to make your fermented alcohol as clean as possible.
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3. Sprinkle Turbo yeast on top of the mix. Fit airlock and leave to ferment. This will take 7 to 10 days depending on the room temperature. The ideal room temperature is 20- 24°C.Once the mix has finished fermenting. Indications that it has finished fermenting are the airlock has stopped bubbling, no small bubbles are rising through the brew and the mix will look less murky from the top working it's was down the pail as the yeast and carbon start to settle out.
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4. Once all fermentation has ceased we take the unusual step of stirring the whole mix up to remove all the gas from the mix. This mixing should start slowly at first so the mix doesn't froth over, but build to be very vigorous after 5 to 10 minutes to make sure we get all the gas out. If you don't de-gas the mix you are likely to have problems getting the mix crystal clear during the next process.
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5. After all the gas has been removed, add Part A of the Turbo Clear pack and stir well. This needs to be mixed throughout the mix. One hour after adding Part A of the Turbo Clear we need to add Part B. Unlike Part A we want to try to add this to the top layer of the mix with as little disturbance as possible. Sprinkle it over the surface and try to gently stir it in to the first 25mm (1 inch) of the mix.
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6. After 24 hours the wash should be brilliantly clear. If it isn't leave it for a little longer. Once it is clear then siphon or carefully pour the clear mix off the sediment in the bottom.The mix is now ready to be used to make liqueurs. Remember that liqueur recipes are all designed for use with 40 or 50% alcohol, reduce any water from recipes, add the flavour and any base pack required and top up to 1.125L with fermented mix.
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