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The right recipe for homemade whiskey. Classic Whiskey Production Technology Whiskey Yeast

Yeast is the cornerstone in the foundation of any alcoholic beverage. This is a complex world that can only be seen under a microscope, but the world is partly studied and adopted by all mankind. Today, hundreds of strains of yeast fungi are used for the preparation of kvass, beer, fruit and berry wines and products of their distillation: moonshine, vodka, whiskey, horseradish, calvados and hundreds of exotic distillates and rectified products. In this material, we will not focus on microbiology, but will answer more topical issues modern moonshiner. So, what is spirit yeast, for what purposes is it intended and how, in fact, to choose it for your needs?

Fermentation and types of yeast

Fermentation or fermentation is the biological process by which yeast converts sugars such as glucose, fructose, and sucrose into cellular energy, producing alcohol (ethanol) and carbon dioxide as by-products. Without yeast, it is impossible to cook any known to mankind. alcoholic drink(with the exception of those obtained through mold fermentation, such as sake). As a result of fermentation from fruit and berry juices, we get wine, including grape wine, from starch-containing raw materials (malt of various grain crops) - beer and kvass. Through the distillation of fruit, grain or sugar mash, which are also a product of fermentation, strong alcoholic drinks such as vodka, whiskey, cognac, calvados, rum, etc. are obtained.

There are many types of yeast that can produce alcohol as a by-product of anaerobic (without oxygen) fermentation. However, today the most studied and widespread yeast is Saccharomyces cerevisiae, different strains of which are used by home brewers, winemakers and distillers to produce alcoholic beverages. And although the yeast is the same, on the market today you can find several of their groups, which are usually divided into:

Baker's yeast- usually used for making baked yeast bread and various pastries as a leavening agent. Fermentation also appears here, only the resulting alcohol evaporates during heat treatment, and carbon dioxide provides the bread with the spongy structure we are used to. This type of yeast is also used by moonshiners to ferment mash from sugar and other raw materials, but the quality of the resulting drink often leaves much to be desired, as does the yield of alcohol. However, even some eminent producers of Scotch whiskey do not deny that ordinary baker's yeast is used in the production of their product.
Brewer's yeast- are used for making beer, as well as for making whiskey mash and other grain mash. Often these are the same baker's yeast, only more suitable strains that provide slow fermentation and a higher alcohol yield. In practice, brewer's yeast, if we talk about moonshine, allows you to get a good whiskey brew, but with a noticeable loss of alcohol.
wine yeast - are used to obtain alcoholic beverages from fruit and berry juices. These are mainly various strains of Saccharomyces cerevisiae, occasionally mixed with yeast nutrients. Wine yeast provides a greater yield of alcohol than baker's yeast, has a high resistance to sulfur dioxide (fermentation by-product), works in a fairly acidic environment, and also has a positive effect on the organoleptics of the drink (a combination of taste and aromatic qualities). In home brewing, they are used for the production of sugar and fruit and berry distillates (cognac, calvados, grappa, etc.).

And, finally, the last group of yeast used to make moonshine is the so-called alcoholic yeast or turbo yeast, the intricacies of the choice and use of which we will tell in this material.

What is alcohol yeast?

Alcohol yeast (turbo yeast) is a ready-made mixture of dry yeast and nutrients designed for more efficient fermentation of the mash before its further distillation. These blends use the strongest strains of yeast that have a high tolerance to alcohol, guarantee fast and stable fermentation, and, under certain conditions, provide better organoleptic properties than conventional baker's yeast. The nutrients that are part of the turbo yeast serve to maintain the optimal level of nitrogen, vitamins and trace elements in the brew that the yeast needs at different stages of alcohol fermentation, contributing to the creation of those very ideal conditions for drinks with good taste and aromatics.

In addition to yeast and nutrients, alcohol yeast for moonshine often includes a pH regulator (wort acidity), as well as a defoamer, which is indispensable for fast and intense fermentation, which is usually accompanied by abundant foaming. To obtain a more “clean mash”, some turbo yeasts contain sorbents. There are also specialized spirit yeasts designed to produce a certain class of drinks, in particular from cereals and fruit brews. They are known as yeasts for whisky, calvados, vodka, etc. The composition of such turbo yeast is designed in such a way as to ensure stable fermentation of one or another type of mash, as well as preserve the original organoleptic properties of the raw material. For example, yeast for rum, in addition to proper nutrition, contains the enzyme glucoamylase, which is necessary for the breakdown of dextrins from molasses.

Comparing the above, we have the following characteristics of alcohol yeast, which is not so much a list of their advantages, but a description of differences from other types of yeast:

Reduced fermentation time . The average term for the complete fermentation of mash with baker's, beer and wine yeast is from 7 to 60 days or more (in practice, only bakers can provide a weekly fermentation period for sugar mash, grain and fruit mash usually ferment longer). Spirit yeast, under certain conditions, allows you to get mash for distillation in just 48 hours (there is a turbo yeast that will allow you to get mash in an incredible 24 hours), more often in 3-7 days.
Increased alcohol tolerance . When a certain level of alcohol in the mash is reached, the yeast dies due to the toxicity of ethanol. For baker's and brewer's yeast, this is about 12-14% alcohol, for wine - about 15%. Spirit yeast strains are able to withstand up to 20% alcohol in mash (today the maximum is 23%). At the same time, the distiller can independently influence the final strength of the mash by adjusting the amount of yeast, sugars and temperature.
High level of sugar fermentation . Yeasts are unable to consume certain sugars, such as dextrins found in molasses and starchy raw materials. Thus, there are always residual sugars in beer, which affects its density and taste. The composition of alcohol yeast often includes enzymes that break down non-fermentable sugars, thereby providing a greater yield of alcohol. Tolerance to alcohol also contributes to a greater yield of the product.
Acceptable organoleptic and "purity" of the drink . Experienced moonshiners usually criticize alcohol yeast, operating on the fact that rapid fermentation completely “kills” the taste and aroma of the drink, and as a result, nutrients remain unclaimed and have a bad effect on the same organoleptic. This is partly true, but last years Producers of distilled yeast have advanced far in this area and the composition of turbo yeast, especially specialized ones, is gradually approaching the ideal. In addition, today the distiller himself can influence the quality of his product obtained using alcoholic yeast - reduce their concentration for more restrained fermentation, maintain the correct temperature, must pH and other parameters of the mash.

How to choose alcohol yeast

Before proceeding with the choice, it should be understood that yeast not only produces alcohol, but also affects the taste and aroma of the drink, because in addition to ethanol and carbon dioxide, they produce a whole range of by-products: esters, volatile acids, organic acids, higher alcohols and much more. It is these fermentation by-products that form the final profile of the drink, its taste and aroma. This is important to consider when choosing yeast for a particular type of raw material for fermentation. Namely:

fit: all universal spirit yeast Bragman, Still Spirits, Pathfinder, Alcotec, especially .

fit: alcohol yeast

Scotch single malt whiskey is a drink that was born in the country of the same name, and is still produced there. Its main value lies in the long aging period - from 8 to 20 years. The cost of such a drink is high, and what is sold in stores in the middle and low price range can hardly be called noble whiskey.

Scotch single malt whiskey producers go to great lengths to attract consumers. Artificially inflating the cost of flavored analogues, they regularly generate new legends around their products. In the description on the label, it is much easier to find information about: ancient Scottish traditions, special cleaning peat, pure mountain or spring water, fresh sea air, etc. But whiskey production technology remains inaccessible to the common man. Alkopribor specialiststried to reveal the secrets of making single malt whiskey at home using standard moonshine equipment.

How to make single malt whiskey at home?

If you love Scotch whiskey, you can make it at home now if you follow the recommendations in this article. Moreover, the storeYou can buy all the necessary components for a noble drink. At its core, it is a highly purified malt moonshine. The main nuance lies in the aging, which, under the conditions of the factory, is carried out in oak containers.

If you use all kinds of additives, colors and, for example, burnt sugar, then in the end you will get not whiskey, but improved moonshine - tincture, liqueur or something else. If we talk about quality, then we dare to assure that the resulting product will be tastier, more aromatic and better in all respects of the whiskey that is sold at an average price in alcohol stores.

In order to bring the production of single malt whiskers as close as possible to factory conditions, it is necessary to select high-quality ingredients, prepare them correctly, and overtake a high-quality distillate. And after all these procedures, also keep the alcohol in an oak barrel for at least 24 months. In industry, containers with a volume of 100 liters or more are used for such purposes. But enough for personal use.barrelsvolume of 10-20 liters.

If you think about what costs the company incurs while observing the technology for the production of whiskey or scotch, it becomes clear where the fabulous prices for a standard liter bottle come from. What we are used to buying in the store is done in this way: the distillate is stored inmetal containerwith burnt oak boards for about 7-10 days, then it is “ennobled” with dyes and flavors, often chemical ones, they are cheaper.

The advantage of making single malt whiskey at home is that you can completely recreate the technology of whiskey production. There are 2 options here: use oak barrels and oak chips. The latter are used both in depleted barrels and in glassware. There is one more plus - without violating the recipe, you get Scotch whiskey in 1-2 months. How is this possible? It's simple, in a container with a volume of 10 or 20 liters, spirits ripen much faster than in huge industrial vats. As a result, you have a young, fragrant and delicious drink, which is 100% prepared without the use of chemicals.

Homemade single malt whiskey recipe

For your convenience, we have compiled a list of all necessary ingredients and fixtures. This should be prepared in advance so as not to be distracted from the process. Would need:

Types of yeast for whiskey

Fermentation, or fermentation, is the process by which yeast converts fructose, sucrose, and glucose into cellular energy, producing by-products such as ethanol and carbon dioxide. It is impossible to cook any kind without yeast. alcoholic products. When distilling grain, sugar or fruit mash, drinks such as vodka, cognac, whiskey are obtained. So, what kind of yeast for making whiskey is used in our time:

Chef's or baker's yeast ("Saf Levure", "Voronezh", "Pakmaya") - they give rapid foamy fermentation in just three days and good smell of bread. However, the quality of the resulting drink leaves much to be desired, as well as the yield of alcohol from the product.
Wine yeast for whiskey ("Primavera", "Maltiflor" and others) - this type of yeast gives slow foamy fermentation from seven to nine days, with a beer smell of mash and an excellent yield of alcohol. In addition to the release of ethyl, they act in a fairly acidic environment, have a good effect on the combination of aromatic and palatability product and have greater resistance to sulfur dioxide.
Brewer's yeast. In addition to making a foamy drink, they are used for whiskey mash. At its core, this is about the same baker's yeast, but they have more suitable strains. Thanks to the latter, fermentation lasts for six to eight days and a large yield occurs. ethyl alcohol. This type of yeast makes a good brew for a drink.
And the last type is spirit yeast for whiskey, or turbo yeast. We will talk about all the intricacies of this product further.

Alcoholic yeast - what is it?

Alcohol yeast, or turbo yeast, is a mixture of nutrients and dry yeast for more efficient fermentation mash before the awaiting distillation. These mixtures contain very strong yeast strains, they are highly ethyl-tolerant, guarantee fast and stable fermentation and, under all conditions, give excellent organoleptic properties. Also in the composition there are nutrients, they provide the necessary level of vitamins, trace elements and nitrogen in the mash to get perfect drink with excellent taste and aroma.

In order to get "clean mash", the composition includes sorbents that exclude large foam formation. There are also special alcoholic yeasts for creating certain drinks - rum, vodka, calvados, cognac, whiskey. Such yeast is initially mixed for the taste and aroma of each of them.

Characteristics of alcohol yeast

Short fermentation period: if you follow all the fermentation rules, you can get mash for distilling the drink in two days. Turbo yeast will allow you to do this in 24 hours.
Alcohol Tolerance: Due to the toxicity of ethanol, the yeast in the mash will "die" when the desired alcohol level is reached. A high content of strains in these yeasts can tolerate up to 20-23% alcohol, while in beer and chef's it is only 12 to 14%, and as for wine - 15% alcohol. In addition, you can control the strength of alcohol yourself using granulated sugar, yeast and temperature.
Fermentation of sugars at a high level: dextrins are a type of sugar found in starchy raw materials and molasses, yeast cannot consume them. Therefore, they contain enzymes that can break down non-fermentable sugars that are able to excrete a large number of side alcohol.
Proper organoleptic and clean drink: real masters of moonshine note that alcohol yeast, or turbo yeast, has a very bad effect on the taste and aroma of whiskey, killing the true organoleptic product of the product. One cannot but agree with them, but production does not stand still and constantly brings yeast closer to the ideal.

Which whiskey yeast to choose? It all depends on your taste preferences, the time to prepare the product, the desired strength of the drink, the temperature regime that you can create, and the way they are prepared. In order to get what you need, it is best to experiment with creating whiskey yourself and choose the best option.

Whiskey yeast - which is better?

Currently, the number one producer of alcohol yeast is the United Kingdom, which is represented by three well-known companies around the world:

Bragman brand.
Pathfinder is a brand of the well-known company Young's Home Brew.
And the most popular is Alcotec, which is a division of Hambleton Bard Ltd.

Among these three brands, experienced moonshiners prefer the Alcotec brand. Reviews for yeast "Alcotech Whiskey" are only positive, they are called the best yeast to make this drink. They contain a high number of strains that improve and preserve the aroma and taste of the drink. These yeasts are of excellent quality and they have an affordable price - from 300 to 600 rubles.

Cooking features

In order to get a delicious drink, you need to follow certain rules:

First you need to choose the yeast for fermentation.
Next, choose a fermentation vessel for fermenting malt wort - a container for this can be made of glass, metal, wood or plastic. The main thing is that you are comfortable.
Malt and grain brews, is a water seal required? The answer is definitely no, because malt wort is an excellent medium for the growth and reproduction of yeast, which can release alcohol and carbon dioxide in a couple of hours. The most important thing is to maintain hygiene and quickly cool the wort to bring in the yeast.
The right taste and smell of mash - the taste of the right mash should be bitter, sour and brew-beer. As for the smell, it is slightly bread-beer.
Storage of mash before distillation. Until distillation, it can be stored for two months in a dark, cool place and always in a clean sealed container.

Malt is best crushed in a special mill to avoid the consistency of flour.

Someone insists malt in water at a temperature of 65 degrees, tightly wrapping the container, but it is better to boil, because during this process sugars and proteins necessary for yeast are released.
It is important to observe the temperature regime in the flush: the first time the water should be 72 degrees, the second flush ten degrees more.
In order for the fermentation process to go perfectly, the wort must be cooled to 35 degrees.
Before adding yeast, it is imperative to saturate the wort with oxygen. Just pour it from a great height from one container to another.

Aging or aging whiskey

For this you can use:

(it will give floral, caramel and vanilla flavors).
Limousin oak gives a pronounced vanilla taste.
Do you like chocolate notes, vanilla and pepper notes? Then use Hungarian oak.
If you are a fan of cinnamon and light vanilla - then choose French oak.

There are a lot of varieties of oaks, you just need to choose the one that suits your taste.

Online payment

Bank cards
With the Mir card, you can pay a maximum of 5,000 at a time and 15,000 per month. With a Visa, MasterCard or Maestro card - a maximum of 250,000 at a time, per month - 500,000 rubles.
Electronic money
Yandex Money: you can pay up to 250,000 from an identified wallet at a time, up to 15,000 from an anonymous one.

How is the return

- We send a payment order to the bank where the settlement account of our organization is opened.
- The bank transfers the required amount to our personal account for refunds in Yandex.Checkout.
- Yandex Kassa debits money from your personal account and returns it to your bank card or wallet - it depends on how you paid.

Payment on pickup

It is possible after receiving confirmation of the availability of the goods you ordered in the store.
Our manager will inform you about this by calling you by phone after you place an order.
Payment for the order with the selected delivery method "Order pickup" is made in cash at the checkout of our store.

Delivery

Delivery methods in Moscow and the Moscow region

Standard Shipping by courier in Moscow within the Moscow Ring Road:

Delivery of goods worth less than 3,000 rubles. - 400 rubles.
Delivery of goods worth from 3,000 - 5,000 rubles. - 300 rubles .
Delivery of goods: with a total value of more than 5,000 rubles. - IS FREE .

Same day delivery in Moscow within the Moscow Ring Road is from 600 rubles, depending on the size and weight of the order.

Standard delivery by courier in the Moscow region:

Delivery in the Moscow region up to 5 km. from Moscow Ring Road - 600 rubles.
Delivery in the Moscow region from 5 km. up to 10 km. from Moscow Ring Road - 700 rubles.
Delivery in the Moscow region from 10 km. up to 20 km. from Moscow Ring Road - 800 rubles.
Delivery in the Moscow region from 20 km. up to 30 km. from Moscow Ring Road - 900 rubles.
Delivery in the Moscow region from 30 km. up to 40 km. from Moscow Ring Road - 1100 rubles.
Delivery in the Moscow region from 40 km. up to 50 km. from Moscow Ring Road - 1200 rubles.
Delivery in the Moscow region from 50 km from the Moscow Ring Road -1200 rubles. + 25 rub. per kilometer.

Pickup from retail stores website

After placing an order, the ShopBarn manager will contact you to confirm the availability of all ordered items and agree on the date of order pickup. Order processing takes place during the store's working hours, order assembly takes from several hours to several days, depending on the availability of the ordered items in the warehouse of the pickup store. After agreeing on the order, the order is placed in reserve for 3 days.

As you know, the shades of taste of "living water" strongly depend on the place of manufacture, however, the general technology for the production of whiskey remains approximately the same in all countries. In this article, we will figure out what and how whiskey is made from, take a closer look at all the stages and touch a little characteristic features individual regions.

Whiskey composition. The basic ingredients are always the same: malt (sprouted grain), yeast and water. Sometimes a little sugar or caramel is added to the finished drink, but this applies more to cheap varieties. Flavorings, dyes and other chemical additives in this whiskey can not be.

Step by step manufacturing technology

Malting

Whiskey is made from pure barley or a mixture of grains, for example, bourbon (American whiskey) is at least 51% corn, and the rest is other cereals (barley, rye, etc.), pure rye or wheat varieties are also possible . Rarely, but there are whiskeys made from rice, buckwheat, and other cereals.

Malt is the main component of whiskey.

Dried in a sunny, well-ventilated room, the grains are poured with water and left to germinate, periodically changing the water - this is how enzymes that break down starch into grains are activated in cereals. simple sugars. Sprouted grain is called malt. The whole process takes up to two weeks. The main thing is to stop the malting of the grains in time so that the sprouts do not “eat up” all the starch that will be needed in the next stages.

Whiskey made from unmalted (unsprouted) raw materials is called "grain". In fact, it is a barrel-aged ordinary spirit with a rough taste and almost no aromatic bouquet. Grain whiskey is not sold as a separate drink, but is only mixed into blends with "noble" distillates.

Drying malt

The finished malt is removed from the water and dried in a special chamber. In Scotland, on the Isle of Islay and in Japan, the smoke of marsh peat is additionally used to make the drink acquire a characteristic "smoked" taste and smoky aroma.

Wort preparation

Wooden fermentation tank with wort

Grinding is poured into a wort kettle, poured with water and gradually heated, not forgetting to stir. The future wort successively goes through several temperature regimes with sustained temperature pauses:

38-40 ° C - flour and water turn into a homogeneous mass;
52-55°C - protein is broken down;
61-72 ° C - starch is saccharified (turns into sugar suitable for yeast);
76-78°C - the final sugary substances are formed.

Fermentation

The wort is poured into wooden or steel vats and mixed with special alcoholic yeast (each reputable enterprise tries to have its own unique strain). In many distilleries, yeast is taken from a previous batch of mash, as a result, the process becomes cyclical and lasts for tens, and sometimes hundreds of years.

Fermentation takes 2-3 days at a temperature of about 37 degrees. Yeast actively multiply, feeding on oxygen, but when the oxygen in the mash ends, the breakdown of sugar obtained from starch in the grain begins.

At the end of this phase comes the time of malolactic fermentation - the fermentation of the wort due to lactic acid bacteria, and not yeast. Ready-to-distill mash with a strength of 5% tastes like beer, but without hops.

Distillation

The mash that has won back is subjected to double or triple distillation (depending on the manufacturer) in copper pot stills- alambikah. The material of the equipment is very important: copper eliminates the “sulphurous” taste of alcohol and provokes chemical reactions, as a result of which vanilla, chocolate and nutty tones appear in the whiskey bouquet. However, stainless steel equipment is sometimes installed in new industries.

Copper alambik for whiskey

After the first distillation, the mash turns into a “weak wine” with a strength of ~ 30 degrees. To get a 70-degree whiskey, you need to carry out a second distillation.

For further production of whiskey, only the middle portion (“heart”) is used, the first and last fractions (“heads” and “tails”) are drained or sent to distillation column to obtain pure alcohol. The division into fractions is due to the fact that at the beginning and end of the distillation process, a lot of harmful substances enter the finished drink.

Even the shape of the alambic matters: each notch on the copper side affects the taste of the distillate. Therefore, when equipment is changed at old distilleries, the new one is cast exactly according to the patterns of the former, retaining all defects, “bends” and dents.

For the production of grain whiskey and bourbon, the Coffey continuous distillation apparatus is often used instead of the traditional two-chamber alambique. This device distills the mash not in portions, but constantly. This method of production saves time and distillation costs, but degrades the quality of the whisky.

The finished distillate is diluted with soft spring water to 50-60 degrees. Some distilleries prefer hard water with a high content of trace elements, such whiskey acquires a characteristic mineral flavor.

Excerpt

Traditionally, whiskey is aged in oak sherry casks, but for cheap varieties, sometimes they take bourbon containers (American whiskey “ages” in new, charred casks) or even completely new, unused casks.

Most whiskey barrels are sourced from Spain, the producer of sherry (fortified wine)

At this stage, the bouquet of the drink is finally formed, a noble caramel shade and aroma appears. At the same time, 6 main processes take place:

Extraction (“pulling out” of wood aroma, tannins).
Evaporation (barrels are not closed hermetically, alcohol gradually evaporates).
Oxidation (of aldehydes when interacting with the barrel material).
Concentration (the smaller the volume of the liquid, the richer the aroma).
Filtration (through membrane filters, immediately before blending or bottling).
Colorization (using caramel to make the drink look “nobler”).

The average aging period is 3-5 years, but there are varieties that spend 30 years or more in barrels. The longer the whiskey is aged, the greater the "angel's share" - the amount of alcohol evaporated - and the higher the price. Over time, oak wood absorbs most of the fusel oils from alcohol, saturates the drink with lactones, coumarin and tannin, but if overexposed, the whiskey will acquire a “woody” flavor.

Blending

It is a process of mixing distillates (sometimes grain alcohols are also added to the composition) of different aging periods and (or) from different distilleries. There is no single recipe: each brand has its own secrets. The number of mixed varieties can reach up to 50, and all of them will differ in taste and aging. The proportions are selected by an experienced master of production - a blender. Typically, such a person has been working at the enterprise for decades and, long before retirement, prepares a replacement for himself from among other employees, gradually passing on secrets and best practices.

The workplace of a master blender is very similar to a chemical laboratory

The point of blending is to guarantee the buyer the same taste of their favorite brand from year to year, regardless of the characteristics of the crop or technology. Also, mixing allows you to create new whiskey with a unique taste (will expand the range of products) from distillates available to the company, changing only the proportions.

Blending is not a mandatory step: many connoisseurs prefer to drink pure single malt whiskey produced by one distillery, this category is called “single malt”, and blended whiskey is labeled “blended”. Arguments about the superiority of one category over another do not make sense, it is more a matter of taste and philosophy than the real impact of production technology on quality.

Blended whiskey is kept in oak barrels for several more months, so that mixed varieties “marry” - turn into one harmonious drink, and not a cocktail of flavors.

Bottling

After the final aging, the whiskey is filtered (mechanically, to separate the liquid from particles of wood, other solid fractions), sometimes the drink is again diluted with water until the fortress required by the regulations is obtained. Only after that finished product bottled and sent to stores.

After cold filtration, the whiskey does not become cloudy when mixed with water, but some of the unique taste is lost.

Cheap distilleries sometimes practice the dubious method of cold filtration, where the whiskey is chilled to about -2°C. As a result fatty acid float to the surface and are easily removed mechanically. After cold filtration, whiskey loses some of its organoleptic properties (aroma and taste), but it looks more presentable - it does not become cloudy in a glass when ice is added, it seems amber and transparent.