| | Recession Proof GLP threads ~ Make Your Own Moonshine
| Wasayo
User ID: 436844
5/21/2008 2:17 PM
Report abusive post | Recession Proof GLP threads ~ Make Your Own Moonshine
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Recession Proof GLP threads ~ Make Your Own Moonshine
My Dad was from the hills of West Virginia, and he could spot a still from miles away. My husband Magi's Father made and sold stills... during Prohibition. And Magi makes a mean mesquite beer. So, this article attracted me like a magnet, lol. Wasayo
*******************
Whiskey Geeks Keep Moonshine Tradition Alive
By Renee Davidson
05.17.08 | 12:00 AM
Making moonshine has gone from a backwoods black art to a high-end hobby practiced by "whiskey geeks" with a taste for top-shelf hooch.
Unlike their bootlegging predecessors, who cooked up big batches of white lightning and distributed the illegal booze out of the backs of cars, today's moonshiners focus on quality rather than quantity.
"It took me years, but with practice and dedication you can make any spirit every bit as good as a commercial distiller," says Dave Robison, 42, owner of Pioneer Spirits, a single-batch distillery in Chico, California. "You might not be able to reproduce it exactly, but it will be as good as anything you can buy on the top shelf."
Home distillation of liquor used to be the province of backwoods bootleggers. Up until 1974, when the world price of sugar skyrocketed, commercial moonshiners throughout the Southeastern United States made enough money making hooch that it was worth the risk of getting caught by federal revenuers.
Today, making your own liquor is as illegal as ever, and a lot less lucrative. In fact, it's considerably cheaper to buy it off the shelf.
As a result, today's home distillers are quintessential do-it-yourselfers. Many are engineers and techies, much like the liquor connoisseurs who attend the Whiskies of the World Expo each year in San Francisco. "We have a whole audience that we refer to as the whiskey geek," event founder and organizer Riannon Walsh says. "I think 90 percent of them are techies."
John Spidell misses the moonshine tradition. A former federal revenuer, the 65-year-old spent the first half of the '70s "busting up" illegal stills in North Carolina. His job sometimes required living in a sleeping bag under a piece of canvas for weeks at a time, watching a big still, waiting for the owner to appear. Smaller stills got less attention.
"A five- or six-hundred-gallon outfit wasn't worth wasting time on," he says. "I'd go back to my vehicle, get the C4 explosives and blasting caps, and I'd blow it up. There were only so many of us, and only so much time."
Spidell was blowing up simple pot stills, which were used to distill mash made from sugar, water, yeast and hog "shorts" (corn feed for hogs). After it was fermented, the mash would go into the boiler, where it was heated.
Because alcohol boils at a lower temperature than water, the vapors that rose from the mash contained more alcohol than the mash itself. Those rising vapors traveled through an angled lyne arm to a condenser, traditionally made of copper coil. The condensed spirits were collected and redistilled until they reached a sufficient proof, then bottled in quart-size mason jars or gallon-size plastic milk jugs.
Bootleggers delivered the illicit liquor to "shot houses" in the cities on Wednesdays and Thursdays, ensuring they were stocked for the weekend.
Today's home distillers are more likely to build a small reflux still and hide it in the garage. Unlike a pot still, the vapors rise through a column packed with copper wool or another high-surface-area material before being directed into the condenser. A beer keg makes a good boiler, and a homemade column and condenser are within the reach of anyone with basic welding and soldering skills and access to copper pipe.
The packed column makes the reflux still more efficient than a pot still, so it produces a higher-proof spirit on the first distillation. Still, the average home distiller isn't making any money on the endeavor.
"People are trying to keep a tradition alive," Robison says. "They're not selling it. That's looked down on in the home distilling crowd. Most people I know aren't making more than a gallon at a time. Some people on the forum come from the moonshiner tradition, and we've learned a lot from them. But I've never met anyone who makes it for money."
Robison runs the popular Home Distiller forum with more than 2,000 registered users and 50,000 unique visitors per month. Other online home distilling resources include Smiley's Home Distilling and American Distiller.
Depending on the efficiency of the still, home-distilled alcohol can vary from 120 to 192 proof, or 60 percent to 96 percent pure alcohol.
The concept may be simple, but high-quality home-distilling isn't exactly easy. The moonshine tradition spawned a lot of misinformation, which Robison tries to rectify on the forum. First and foremost, he makes it clear that home distillation of liquor is illegal in all 50 states and just about every country, save New Zealand.
Besides being illicit, white lightning has earned a reputation for blinding and killing people who drink it. Many sources attribute these effects to methanol ("the heads"), which boils off naturally during an early stage of the distillation process.
"The heads will make you blind if you drink it, but I defy you to try to drink it," says microdistiller Michael Heavener, co-owner of Highball Distillery in Portland, Oregon. "If it doesn’t make you wince when you smell it, it's probably not going to make you go blind."
The real culprit in poison moonshine was usually radiators, according to Spidell. "Copper coils are not the most efficient condenser. If you're making 10,000 to 25,000 gallons at a time, you might immerse a truck radiator in the water. Chemicals in the moonshine leach out lead salts from the soldering. As a result of that, here comes the lead poisoning."
Made properly, home-distilled spirits are as safe to drink as any commercial liquor. Still, Heavener warns, "I'd be more concerned with the danger of explosions."
Most stills are heated with propane burners. Purified ethanol is highly flammable, and its clear blue flame can be difficult to see under certain conditions. Open flame plus high-proof alcohol equals one potentially explosive combination.
Even innocent mistakes -- such as using lead soldering or plastic parts in the still - can lead to serious consequences. So Robison encourages would-be home-distillers to do their homework first and make liquor later.
After all, he says, "This ain't stamp collecting."
[link to www.wired.com]
"Every word of God is pure: He is a shield unto them that put their trust in Him." Prov. 30:5 |
| Wasayo
User ID: 436844
5/21/2008 2:25 PM
| | Re: Recession Proof GLP threads ~ Make Your Own Moonshine | Quote |
I just googled "how to make a still" and found this:
*******************
Make a Still out of Common Household Items
InstructionsDifficulty: Moderately Easy
Things You’ll Need:
5 quart pot or larger
A wok or a large glass bowl
a juice glass
Wine or Beer
Ice
Step1 Set-up: Put the pot on the stove. Place the juice glass in the center of the pot. Pour the wine or beer into the pot around (not in) the juice glass. Place the wok or large glass bowl on top of the pot right side up (see diagram below). Fill the wok or bowl with ice.
Step2Distillation: Turn the stove onto the lowest possible heat. If your stove has a low BTU burner, use that one. Set the timer for one hour.
Step3 How it works: Alcohol vaporizes at a much lower temperature than water so if your pot starts to boil, it's too hot.
If the temperature is low enough, all that will vaporize is the alcohol. The alcohol vapor will rise to the top of the pot. Because the wok or bowl is filled with ice, it will cool the vapor and cause it to condense on the bottom side of it. Gravity will cause the condensation to run down the wok or bowl until it reaches the lowest point in the center. At that point the condensed alcohol will drip into the glass.
Step4Alcohol Removal: Remove the wok or bowl and place to the side. Remove the glass with a hot pot holder or towel. Let the alcohol cool. For best results, place the glass of warm alcohol into a ice water bath immediately after removal. If you do this it will stop the vaporization of the alcohol.
Step5Storage: Store the alcohol in a clean, air-tight container. The alcohol is a preservative so there is no need to add anything at this point unless you are concerned that you did not follow the steps accurately. If that is the case, add a very small amount of citric acid to preserve it; lemon or lime juice works well in most cases.
Tips & Warnings
If your ice melts, you may have to add more so watch it. Do not remove the wok or bowl at any time. Just add the extra ice into the melted water.
Check out my other articles on how to make liqueurs or brandies using this type of still! www.ehow.com/members/guitarguy-articles.html
You should produce one to two ounces of liquor per liter of wine or beer you start with depending on the initial alcohol content.
Check your local, state and federal laws regarding alcohol production. This article in no way validates the legality of distillation in the home.
Alcohol fumes can get you drunk! DO NOT distill when children are present and use a well ventilated area, outdoors is best.
Only use copper or stainless metal. Alluminum and tin will cause the liquor to make you sick or blind.
[link to www.ehow.com]
"Every word of God is pure: He is a shield unto them that put their trust in Him." Prov. 30:5 |
| Omega
User ID: 340280
5/21/2008 2:28 PM | | Re: Recession Proof GLP threads ~ Make Your Own Moonshine | Quote |
[link to www.coppermoonshinestills.com]
Handguns are a skill; shotguns an art; rifles a science.
_____________________________________
Democracy is two wolves and a sheep voting on whats for dinner.
Disarmament is the precursor to Genocide.
Better to take action now rather than chances later. Your choice. |
| **Scor~Pios**
User ID: 435295
5/21/2008 2:31 PM | | Re: Recession Proof GLP threads ~ Make Your Own Moonshine | Quote |
Scor~Pios -AKA- Pit Viper
'When the people fear their government, there is tyranny;
When the government fears the people, there is liberty.'
Thomas Jefferson
Never underestimate the stupidity of the American people.
"It does not require a majority to prevail, but rather an irate, tireless minority keen to set brush fires in people's minds." - Samuel Adams |
| Wasayo
User ID: 436844
5/21/2008 2:33 PM
| | Re: Recession Proof GLP threads ~ Make Your Own Moonshine | Quote |
Here's as .pdf document on "how to make a still" ~
http:www.instructables.com/id/How-to-make-a-still/
And I just found this:
*******************
How to Build a Still
While many hobbyists choose to make their own beer and wine at home, others dream about making their own alcohol. It should be noted that building a home still is not illegal per say, but using it to distill alcohol is illegal in most countries - specifically the United States. However, if you are lucky enough to live in Italy, Austria or New Zealand, you can enjoy making your own distilled alcoholic beverages.
What is distilling?
The process of distillation is very simple. You are in effect taking a chemical mixture (usually water with other chemical substances such as sugar, etc) and heating it up so that the lowest boiling point atoms leave the other chemical compounds behind. For instance, if you take coca-cola and boil it very gently, the first items to evaporate will be pure water. The water leaves, the sugar and other additives and is sent into another compartment where it cools off and is condensed, creating pure water from coca-cola. Using this method you can make whisky from beer, and brandy from wine. It should be noted that all a still does is separate the original liquid into two different compounds. No new chemicals are created, just separated.
Items You Will Need to Create a Very Simple Still:
One large cooking pot (usually a pot that holds about one gallon of liquid will do the trick)
A mixing bowl with a round bottom. A flat bottom bowl will not work well, due to the fact that you would like the distillate to drip into the collecting jar
One 8 oz drinking glass
One magnet. The magnet is used to keep the collection glass from moving around the pot
One small weight. This weight will be used to keep the round bottom bowl in place. You can use a brick, or a 5lb weight used for weight lifting (you should have something very heavy to keep any alcohol vapor from leaking out)
One cooking thermometer, which is used to measure the temperature of the liquid
1/2 gallon of red table wine
A few ice cubes to cool the vapor
Optional: One proof hydrometer (sometimes called Customs House Hydrometer). This device helps you test the proof of your alcohol
Building Your Simple Still
Step1.
Place your large pot on your stove or burner securely. Pour 2 quarts of your red table wine into your large pot. Now place your 8 ounce collection glass in the center of your pot. You will now place the magnet in the collection glass holding the glass in place once the ingredients start to heat up.
Step2.
Turn on your stove or burner on high, wait for the contents to reach about 120 degrees Fahrenheit, check with your thermometer often. Once at this temperature, turn the burner or stove to a very low temperature. From this point on you will need to control the rise in temperature very slowly.
Step3.
Fill your small rounded bowl with a few ice cubes and place the bowl on top of the large pot. Make sure that your bowl has a good seal over the pot. The better the seal, the better your results will be. Add your brick or weigh to the bowl so that the seal is better at trapping any alcohol vapor.
Step4.
Bring the temperature of your pot up slowly over the course of about a half hour. As your wine heats up slowly, specific chemical compounds will start boiling at different temperatures. Methyl alcohol is the first to evaporate at 148.5 degrees Fahrenheit. Ethyl alcohol evaporates at 173 degrees Fahrenheit and water boils at 212 degrees Fahrenheit. The alcohol as it reaches its boiling point will turn into vapor and once it hits the above bowl, which is filled with ice cubes, will cool down and condensate. As it condensates, it will slowly drip down into the collection glass. For best results make sure that your collection glass is stable and that the cold bowl on top of it has a very tight seal.
Step5.
Make sure that the wine rises in temperature very slowly. Do not allow the wine to boil. As the water approaches 212 degrees Fahrenheit, shut off the heat and remove the collection glass. You can throw away the wine. In the collection glass, you will find about 2 to 4 ounces of water for about every 2 quarts of wine you cook. You can use your hygrometer to test the proof of the alcohol. Most novices can easily get above 20 proof, however it does take a good setup and some skill to reach anywhere around 80 proof which is 40% alcohol by volume. Please note; while not poisonous, the alcohol should not be created for consumption. And remember that in many countries it is illegal to create alcohol using a still.
While this is an extremely simple still set up, you can build much more complex stills. There are plenty of blueprints available online and many companies do offer still kits that fit together rather nicely.
[link to www.monsterguide.net]
"Every word of God is pure: He is a shield unto them that put their trust in Him." Prov. 30:5 |
| Wasayo
User ID: 436844
5/21/2008 2:35 PM
| | Re: Recession Proof GLP threads ~ Make Your Own Moonshine | Quote |
Oh Lordy, Omega!
I just went to that website ~ outstanding! Those are real beauties! Thanks! Wasayo
"Every word of God is pure: He is a shield unto them that put their trust in Him." Prov. 30:5 |
| markusmaximus
User ID: 148742
5/21/2008 2:36 PM
 | | Re: Recession Proof GLP threads ~ Make Your Own Moonshine | Quote |
 for PIN |
| Wasayo
User ID: 436844
5/21/2008 2:45 PM
| | Re: Recession Proof GLP threads ~ Make Your Own Moonshine | Quote |
Hi there, Scor~Pios... heh heh...
Yup, what triggered this wild "GLP Recession Proof" thread was that I saw someone yesterday or so had posted on "entertainment" ~ how to entertain yourself with very little money, no lights... oops, I'm in "Scorpio hot water" on that one, hahaha...
I can see it now: "Recession Proof GLP threads ~ cheap sex" or something like that, lol. (wink)
So, I saw this article on making your own booze on Reddit, and thought... "why not"?
It's a kick that some of the articles say "check your local laws" ~ gotta put in that disclaimer, lol. Like you could say, "I'm suddenly illiterate" or "I can't find my reading glasses" (to see the laws), heh heh.
There used to be an old saying during the Great Depression in the thirties: "Necessity is the mother of invention". Wasayo
"Every word of God is pure: He is a shield unto them that put their trust in Him." Prov. 30:5 |
| Wasayo
User ID: 436844
5/21/2008 2:47 PM
| | Re: Recession Proof GLP threads ~ Make Your Own Moonshine | Quote |
for PIN
Heya, markusmaximus!
Thanks for askin' for a pin here. This is SERIOUS research, lol. Got any ideas? Wasayo
"Every word of God is pure: He is a shield unto them that put their trust in Him." Prov. 30:5 |
| SouthernLight 
User ID: 421424
5/21/2008 8:25 PM
 | | Re: Recession Proof GLP threads ~ Make Your Own Moonshine | Quote |
for one of the best all around trade items in seriously hard times!
"Well behaved women rarely make history." |
| Nothing Is True
User ID: 420954
5/21/2008 8:36 PM
 | | Re: Recession Proof GLP threads ~ Make Your Own Moonshine | Quote |
I think we should add any and all homebrew methods here!
Let's face it, it's a comfort in the hard times!
Nettle beer, Dandelion wine, all the lot! Let's have it!! lol xxx
Everything is permitted.. |
| Anonymous Coward
User ID: 113248
5/21/2008 8:44 PM | | Re: Recession Proof GLP threads ~ Make Your Own Moonshine | Quote |
Kirk's Muscadine Wine.
(Can be made with muscadines, blackberries, and apples.)
INGREDIENTS:1 quart mashed fruit
3 quarts water
6 cups sugar
yeast
PREPARATION:Dissolve sugar in water put mashed fruit in with water and sprinkle yeast on top. Do not stir till the next day then stir every day for a week. Strain off liquid and place in a container with an air lock of some type for 6 weeks to allow fermentation to complete itself.
Strain off again and bottle; cap lightly for 3 days to allow for any more fermentation to cease. Cap and store in a cool place. This recipe works with muscadines, blackberries, even apples.....makes a good tasting old fashion type wine with less alcohol than the vodka mixture.
Notes:The recipe for the one gallon jug will actually make three quarts unless after initial fermentation...when racked off to the air lock...you add the additional liquid to make the full gallon. What we used to do was use a 3 1/2 gallon pickle jug for initial fermentation and put a little extra liquid in it and rack to three one gallon jugs with air locks for final fermentation.
Makes 1 gallon of muscadine wine.
[link to southernfood.about.com] |
| Nothing Is True
User ID: 420954
5/21/2008 8:46 PM
| | Re: Recession Proof GLP threads ~ Make Your Own Moonshine | Quote |
ps. Where do we get yeast from when TSHTF??
Everything is permitted.. |
| Enaid
User ID: 310721
5/21/2008 8:47 PM
 | | Re: Recession Proof GLP threads ~ Make Your Own Moonshine | Quote |
We used to brew our own beer. I brewed a mean stout once. Yum. Sorry no recipes handy now. But you can save your old beer bottles and use them. Recycle. LOL |
| Grower
User ID: 436906
5/21/2008 9:50 PM | | Re: Recession Proof GLP threads ~ Make Your Own Moonshine | Quote |
ps. Where do we get yeast from when TSHTF??
When i make wine my yeast comes from the grape skins. I add nothing but sugar when the natural sugars from the grapes are finished cooking.
When incarcerated we would make "spud" with any juice we could get. Stick it all in a big 5 gallon bucket and let her cook for a few weeks. |
| Redheaded Stepchild
User ID: 431954
5/22/2008 11:49 PM
 | | Re: Recession Proof GLP threads ~ Make Your Own Moonshine | Quote |
Kirk's Muscadine Wine.
(Can be made with muscadines, blackberries, and apples.)
INGREDIENTS:1 quart mashed fruit
3 quarts water
6 cups sugar
yeast
PREPARATION:Dissolve sugar in water put mashed fruit in with water and sprinkle yeast on top. Do not stir till the next day then stir every day for a week. Strain off liquid and place in a container with an air lock of some type for 6 weeks to allow fermentation to complete itself.
Strain off again and bottle; cap lightly for 3 days to allow for any more fermentation to cease. Cap and store in a cool place. This recipe works with muscadines, blackberries, even apples.....makes a good tasting old fashion type wine with less alcohol than the vodka mixture.
Notes:The recipe for the one gallon jug will actually make three quarts unless after initial fermentation...when racked off to the air lock...you add the additional liquid to make the full gallon. What we used to do was use a 3 1/2 gallon pickle jug for initial fermentation and put a little extra liquid in it and rack to three one gallon jugs with air locks for final fermentation.
Makes 1 gallon of muscadine wine.
[ link to southernfood.about.com]
I used to get apple wine, raspberry wine, strawberry wine, and peach wine when we lived in Germany. That was some DELICIOUS stuff!
Would this recipe work for just apples? Strawberries?
"Until you are willing to organize your friends and neighbors and literally shut down cities - drive at 5mph through the streets of major cities on the freeway and stop commerce, refuse to show up for work, refuse to borrow and spend more than you make, show up in Washington DC with a million of your neighbors and literally shut down The Capitol you WILL be bent over the table on a daily basis." Karl Denninger
Don't blame me; I voted for Ron Paul.
Silence is consent. |
| Anonymous Coward
User ID: 437561
5/23/2008 12:56 AM | | Redheaded Stepchild
User ID: 431954
5/24/2008 12:41 PM
| | Re: Recession Proof GLP threads ~ Make Your Own Moonshine | Quote |
My dad used to make his own "hooch" at home; it was a strong 'wine.' I wish I had his recipe. He used the big glass water bottles, grape juice, raisins, sugar, etc. I was young enough not to wonder what he used as a "balloon" on the top of each bottle, but it sure was "shiek-y."
"Until you are willing to organize your friends and neighbors and literally shut down cities - drive at 5mph through the streets of major cities on the freeway and stop commerce, refuse to show up for work, refuse to borrow and spend more than you make, show up in Washington DC with a million of your neighbors and literally shut down The Capitol you WILL be bent over the table on a daily basis." Karl Denninger
Don't blame me; I voted for Ron Paul.
Silence is consent. |
| Joe Six Pack
User ID: 349786
12/9/2008 5:56 PM
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