The correct division of selection into "heads", "body" and "tails" during distillation (distillation) is the key to successful production of tasty and relatively harmless alcohol. It is likely that this is more important than what equipment the distiller uses. Since the choice of equipment is determined by taste, wallet, ease of use, living conditions. And the division into factions is a rule that is highly undesirable to break.
Why? Because the "heads" and "tails" contain substances that can cause great harm to the body and irreparably spoil the flavor of the product. Well, how incorrigible? Will have to push again.
"Heads", if not all of them are selected, can give moonshine the smell of acetone, because it is contained in them. And the "tails" give a heavy unpleasant smell and, again, heavy intoxication. I am not a supporter of obtaining pure alcohol and I think that it is easier for my body to use moonshine (distillate). It is clear that it contains some part of the "head" and "tail" fractions, but these parts accompany the distillation of the body, and the real "heads" and "tails" go separately.
So, what about "heads"? A bit of history.
I started moonshine brewing even when the Internet was not widely used. All the information at that time was obtained from books. There were books on this topic, but given the fact that the ban on home-brewing had just been lifted, and in the USSR such a culture was subjected to severe obstruction by the state, the information presented there, to put it mildly, was incomplete. Including the selection of "goals". In the books it was said that "heads are from 6 to 10%. It seems not much, but when converted to real volumes, the situation changes. In addition, there is no consensus on whether to select "heads" at each distillation or only at the final one. It was.
I suggest stopping at 10%, since the number is round, and methyl alcohol and acetone are extremely harmful substances for ingestion. But then the question remains with the amount of selection, from which it should be considered because it is directly related to its strength.
Let's say we have sugar mash which contains 6 kg of sugar. And let her win back completely, then we will get 6 liters of moonshine from her and a strength of 40% minus the "heads" and "tails". Then the volume of "heads" should be 600 ml, but any distillation gives moonshine a much greater strength. The fortress of moonshine after a conventional moonshine still will be 60 degrees, and MSD - 80. How to be?
Look, if we take 0.6 liters of “heads” from 6 liters of moonshine with a strength of 40 grams, we will get 5.4 liters of a “headless” body. But that's in theory.
In practice, the selection strength when using a conventional moonshine still gradually decreases from 75% to 40%. about. Next are the tails. And having selected at the beginning 0.6 liters of moonshine with a strength of 75 rpm. %, taking into account the recalculation by 40%, we will already get 4.9 "headless" "body". And when using MSD, its volume will decrease even more.
This is an obvious overkill.
This is already a disadvantage. And I was somehow convinced of this in practice when I was greedy and spoiled oatmeal whiskey with acetone. Therefore, I always make an allowance for the equipment through which I select the "heads".
Let's say these are the same 6 kg of sugar - 6 liters of moonshine with a strength of 40 gr. Sugar mash can be immediately transferred to the MSD to get the finished product at a time. But it is better to always select the heads through the "refrigerator", and then switch to the hot bubblers for the selection of the body.
This means that from 6 liters of moonshine we need to select 600 ml of heads, given that both have a strength of 40 gr. But the first 0.6 liters through a conventional moonshine still will be 75% alcohol by any means, and we need to take this fact into account. 75/40=1.875 and 600/1.875=320 ml. This is the volume of "heads" I will select.
Sometimes there may be a misfire here. Braga came out not very good or something else, so I recommend always selecting a "body" of 0.5 liters. And immediately dilute to 40 g, but do not mix with the first portion immediately, but only after you have made sure that there is no smell of acetone in it.
Calculate the necessary fermentation parameters directly on the site, control the process - the online calculators below will help you with this. If you are missing some calculators, or have doubts about their work, write in the comments.
Dilution of alcohol with water calculator
How much water needs to be added to get alcohol of the required strength.
Fermentation Control Calculator
For refractometer with SG-Wort scale. Calculation of fermentation efficiency.
Sugar Wort Calculator
Calculation of the parameters of mash and alcohol in it after fermentation.
Glucose-sucrose calculator
How much glucose should be taken to replace sucrose.
Alcohol mixing calculator
Calculates the final strength of a liquid when mixing two liquids of different degrees.
Theoretical Information
For a beginner moonshiner, distilling moonshine seems like a very simple and exciting process. Only when you start to act, you will realize that you do not know about many things. You can find an experienced moonshiner and ask. It is more accessible to turn to Internet sources, and use a calculator for calculations.
Selection and preparation of raw materials for moonshine
The quality parameters of moonshine include the strength of the drink in percent and its purity. Purity refers to the absence of foreign matter. Most dangerous? methanol has an alcohol smell.
The main classic products for moonshine are: sugar, yeast and water. To determine their number, you need to find out how much drink is required to exit. If you make moonshine with a strength of 40 °, 1.2 liters of liquid come out per 1 kg of sugar. For example, using a calculator, you can calculate that to get 5 liters of moonshine 40 ° you need 5 x 1.2 \u003d 6 kg of sugar.
The rest of the products are calculated in relation to sugar. The formula for the calculation is simple: for 1 part of sugar - 0.1 yeast - 3 parts of water. In our example, 6 x 3 = 18 liters of water and 6 kg x 0.1 = 0.6 kg = 600 g of yeast. A calculator is not required for this simple calculation.
It must be taken into account that the distillation of moonshine gives a real yield of the final product, less than the calculated one. It depends on the quality of the raw materials, the temperature and the speed of the process. Therefore, the formula will be as follows: multiply the resulting amount of product by 1.2. Using a calculator, we get 7.2 kg of sugar - 800 g of yeast - 21.6 liters of water.
Moonshine can be made from different fruits, berries and other products. It all depends on the availability of sugar and its cost in your area. The calculation correction factors take into account sugar content and moisture content in the mixture. If you need a liqueur, then use fruits and berries.
Fermentation
Fermentation of the must occurs at temperatures from 18 to 24 °. Why is that 
is it important to maintain a certain temperature? Alcohol is formed during the fermentation of yeast. If the strength of the mash is more than 15 °, most of the yeast dies. Sugar does not have time to ferment. The solution is to make the temperature in the fermentation room constant.
As a result of the oxidation of alcohol, harmful products are formed. These include:
- acetaldehyde
- methanol
- acetic acid
- tails
Methanol is extremely dangerous. It also contributes to the formation of acetaldehyde. Methanol causes severe forms of poisoning. There are frequent deaths. If methanol has entered the body in high concentrations, then no snack will help. Poisoning can result in complete blindness. Remember - do not relax. Even after reading that in the manufacture of moonshine from sugar, methanol is practically not formed.
The wort must be adjusted for acidity with citric acid. The optimal acidity for fermentation is 4.0 - 4.5 pH. Formula for calculation
the amount of citric acid contains integral expressions. You need to use a special calculator. But you can just take on the tip of a knife for 5 liters of wort.
They say that they also drank fermented mash if there was a good snack on the table. But mash cannot be compared with the final product, which gives out distillation of moonshine.
The beer column gives good distillation performance. The column has a condenser cooler, a thermometer, a dephlegmator and a tap for precise liquid dosing. In the factory, what height the column has determines the performance and quality of separation into fractions. At home, the height is determined in proportion to the diameter. The column must have a diameter that you can put on heat.
Distillation of moonshine from large volumes of mash is possible if a continuous mash column is used. This type of distillation is used in industry.
Additional step when receiving moonshine
Novice moonshiners ask the question: "Why do we need a second stage of distillation?". The answer is simple? to get a quality product.
The moonshine still looks like a factory column, but with one stage 
distillation. Therefore, for double distillation, the liquid must be drained into a separate container.
In order to prevent methanol and other tailings in moonshine, the product must be cooled to room temperature before secondary distillation. Due to the high strength of the drink after the first distillation, harmful substances are poorly removed. The liquid obtained at the exit after the first stage is diluted with drinking water until a strength of 40 ° is obtained.
Then it is poured into a distillation vessel and heated over high heat to 60?65°. The first fraction obtained at the exit is used only for non-food purposes or poured out. The volume of the fraction is approximately 1-2% of the total volume. These are the so-called heads. It contains low-boiling impurities. Heads should be collected at a reduced boiling point.
The second fraction is obtained after accelerated heating with a maximum temperature of 85-95°. You can select the main part. For her tasting 
an appetizer must be prepared. The third fraction entering the outlet contains a very small percentage of alcohol. But the content of fusel oils (tails) is high. Tails are inappropriate. They, like heads, are best not to be used at all. Capacities for heads and tails occupy from 3 to 7% of the total volume. We take a calculator and count again.
Heads and tails are poured into the sewer. A snack awaits on the table. Friends who have come to the light will help evaluate the quality of the product.
Rules for breeding moonshine
At the factory, the column is equipped with various sensors. In the arsenal of a home moonshiner, there should be at least a calculator and a hydrometer to determine the strength.
The formula for determining the amount of water for diluting moonshine contains 
the following parameters: Ki - the strength of the available liquid; Kv - a fortress that you need to get to the exit; Vo is the total volume of the product.
The formula looks like: the amount of water \u003d (Ki / Kv) * Vo - Vo. For example, 2 liters with a strength of 85 degrees. You need to get 40°. We take the calculator again. Calculation of the volume of water \u003d (85/40) * 2-2 \u003d 2.25 liters.
Water is poured into moonshine, and not vice versa. It is necessary to carry out the process without haste and in one go.
Additional purification of moonshine by charcoal
For cleaning in factories, a distillation column with so-called plates is used. They separate out individual impurities. A separate column is sometimes installed to take methanol. But we make moonshine from sugar, and methanol is not terrible for us.,
It is important to allow the liquid to cool to room temperature. At elevated temperatures, many impurities are not released by any purification method.
distillation process
An old method of chemical cleaning of the finished product is charcoal cleaning or carbonization. As a way out, activated charcoal purchased at a pharmacy is most often used. But it is much more effective to carry out carbonization with charcoal.
You don't need a calculator here, just follow the ratio. For 6 liters of moonshine take 200 g of charcoal and insist. The coals are put into the container and the liquid is poured. The coals float. When they all settle to the bottom, shake the container. This operation must be done twice.
The way out of finding charcoal is to make your own charcoal. Kindle a fire, preferably from birch branches and bark. Take a clay pot and stack the burnt, but not cooled firewood. Wood ash must be blown off. Close the pot tightly and leave to cool completely. Chop the resulting pieces a little. You can carry out charcoal.
For an experienced moonshiner, it is no secret how to store moonshine. But it usually doesn't last long. To get full satisfaction from the moonshine process, a snack is very important. The appetizer is prepared in advance, as all attention is focused on the process.
The scope of moonshine in everyday life is wide. Pouring made from moonshine may have a lower degree. Use a dilution calculator especially for women. Pouring is a matter of taste. Hence the variety of products for moonshine tincture.
It is quite simple to imagine the process of distilling moonshine in a conventional distiller - when the mash is heated, its components turn into steam, then pass through the coil, cool and turn into condensate. The latter flows freely into the substituted container, into which the distillation product is collected. But it should be noted that the mash contains not only ethyl alcohol, but also impurities such as acetone, formic acid, aldehyde and wood alcohol. Some of these substances simply spoil moonshine, while other impurities, such as methyl alcohol, can literally kill a person. Therefore, in the manufacture of home-made alcohol, each moonshiner begins to separate ethyl alcohol from other impurities, which are conditionally called "heads" and "tails". How to separate "heads" and "tails" in moonshine and what is needed for this?
Separation of moonshine into fractions
In fact, this task requires a responsible approach, since its safety for health depends on the quality of purification of moonshine.
What are factions?
Moonshine is a product that consists of components that evaporate at different temperatures. The so-called “heads” have the lowest temperature - impurities represented by methyl alcohol, acetone, acetaldehyde, etc. “Heads” (their part is 5% of 100% of the feedstock) during primary distillation due to the fact that they they boil at a temperature of 75 degrees, it is possible to separate them first, but the main thing is that they do not get into the product. Still "heads" are called pervach, and there was a time when pervach was considered high-quality alcohol with a strong taste. However, the use of "heads" actually leads to severe poisoning, which is accompanied not only by severe nausea, vomiting and dizziness, but also by damage to the nervous system, which can lead to death. Many distillers pour out "heads" because they have an unbearably pungent smell.
The separation of the "body", that is, ethyl alcohol, occurs when the heating temperature of the mash rises to 80-85 degrees. The "body" is 80% of the mash, and this fraction of moonshine is usable. The correct separation of the "heads" from the raw materials makes it possible to obtain at a temperature of 80-85 degrees not a pure "body", but a "body" containing fusel oils.
Fusel oils are impurities, the presence of which in small quantities in moonshine gives the drink a special taste and smell. If there are too many fusel oils, drinking such alcohol is not only unhealthy, but also unpleasant. But there is also another opinion regarding fusel oils. It turns out that when a person consumes alcohol, such impurities activate the production of liver enzymes, and even before ethyl alcohol begins to act on this organ.
As for fusel oils, or "tails", in moonshine they should be cut off at a temperature exceeding 85 degrees. Since fusel oils have the highest boiling point, they must be cut off at temperatures above 85 degrees.
Selection of "heads" and "tails": how to cut off?
Before proceeding with the procedure for selecting "heads", it does not hurt to study at what temperatures the moonshine components boil. So, acetaldehyde, which is a component of toxic impurities, will begin to boil at a temperature of 20.8 degrees Celsius. For formic ethyl alcohol, the boiling point is 54 degrees, for acetic methyl ether - 57.1 degrees, for wood alcohol - 64 degrees, etc. At a temperature of 78.3, ethyl evaporates, it is also a "body". When the temperature rises above 85 degrees, fusel oils begin to turn into steam.
It is possible to select "heads" and "tails" only from raw alcohol diluted to 40 degrees.
How to select the "heads" and "tails"?
- When heating the mash, the fire must be maintained at the same intensity level as soon as the raw material is heated to 60 degrees Celsius. After that, the fire should be weakened and bring the mash to 75 degrees. At this temperature, the output will be represented by "heads". How many to take? For example, if there is 1 liter of raw alcohol, then the number of “heads” will be only 20 milliliters in it. Nevertheless, this faction must be disposed of, otherwise moonshine will be a real poison.
- Selection of the “body”: the body must be removed from raw alcohol on high heat, but the temperature should not approach 90 degrees. If you violate this rule, then ethyl alcohol will boil away along with fusel oils. When distilling the "body", you should control the speed of moonshine. For example, if the fortress drops to 40 degrees, the distillation of ethyl should be stopped.
- Removing moonshine from the "tails" will make the taste of moonshine softer, and the smell - not so intense. If there is no excess of fusel oils in the drink, then after drinking it, a person will not feel the symptoms of a severe hangover. Also, an excess of fusel oil in the distillate gives the drink an undesirable turbidity, which worsens its appearance. Where to put the cut-off "tails"? It's simple: such a fraction can be used to increase the strength of a new portion of mash. How much to select "tails" in moonshine? Usually the content of this fraction in raw alcohol is not more than 3-5%.
The output, purified from unwanted impurities, requires additional purification with activated carbon or potassium permanganate. This will allow for additional purification of the product and improve its characteristics, which could not be achieved during the first distillation.
Along with water and alcohol, Braga contains other substances, many of which are harmful to the body. Fortunately, their boiling point is higher or lower than that of ethyl alcohol, so fractional distillation (separation into fractions) can prevent most of the dangerous impurities from entering the finished product. We will consider methods that allow you to select the correct amount of tails and heads of moonshine, which will positively affect the quality of the distillate.
Attention! The information is relevant only for a conventional moonshine still, consisting of a distillation cube and a refrigerator in the form of a coil, it is also possible to have a steamer. For devices with dephlegmators and other devices that simulate the operation of a distillation column, the parameters for selecting tails and heads may differ from those described here. I advise you to clarify this point with the designers of the circuit, manufacturers or equipment sellers. I do not consult on commercial models of devices.
The amount of harmful impurities depends on the raw materials, water, yeast, temperature, fermentation duration, design of the moonshine still and distillation technology. Even in mash according to the same recipe, the concentration of harmful substances can change every time, but at home, analysis of the composition of the mash is impossible, so you have to take approximate values as a basis.
"Head" moonshine(also called "pervach" or "pervak") - the initial fraction with a sharp unpleasant odor. Contains the most dangerous impurities: methyl alcohol (many in grain and fruit mash), acetone, acetaldehyde and others. Due to the fact that the boiling point of harmful substances is lower than that of ethyl alcohol, they come out first during distillation, therefore, it is possible to prevent them from entering the main product.
In everyday life, pervach is considered the highest quality moonshine, because it is strong and quickly intoxicates. In fact, this is a poison in its purest form, its use causes toxic poisoning, which is often confused with intoxication.
Heads are the strongest The moonshine head should not be drunk or used for rubbing. This fraction can go exclusively for technical needs, but because of the unpleasant smell, in most cases it is simply poured out.
"Body"- drinking part, the main goal of the moonshiner (the second name is "heart"). In theory, it contains only ethyl alcohol and water, but in practice there are always other impurities in the “body”, since during distillation it is purely physically impossible to divide the output into clear fractions, to one degree or another, different substances with close boiling points are always mixed, the output is obtained " lubricated."
For complete decomposition into fractions, rectification is needed, thanks to which pure ethyl alcohol can be obtained. The disadvantage of the method is that, along with harmful impurities, substances responsible for the organoleptic properties of the drink are removed.
This means that after rectification, the taste and smell of moonshine from different raw materials (sugar, grains and fruits) will be the same, since only ethyl alcohol will remain in the drink.
It should be remembered that the harm and benefits of many substances in the distillate are relative. For example, fusel oils cause the liver to activate before alcohol begins to act, this protects the body from the harmful effects of alcohol.
A study by Vladimir Pavlovich, a professor at the Narcology Research Institute of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, proved that rectified alcohol (vodka) causes alcohol addiction many times faster than distillates - whiskey, cognac, tequila, etc. About 70% of dependent people are vodka alcoholics. The purer the poison (in our case, ethyl alcohol), the faster the addiction develops.
The correct separation of moonshine into fractions during distillation on a classic moonshine still allows you to remove almost all harmful substances, but leave those that are responsible for the aroma and taste of the drink, which cannot be done during rectification.
"Tail" moonshine- the third fraction, in addition to ethyl alcohol, contains fusel oils, which give an unpleasant odor, taste and cloudy color. The boiling point of fusel oil is higher than that of ethyl alcohol, therefore, in order to separate the tail of moonshine, it is enough to stop collecting the main product - the “body” in time.
Although after distillation a lot of ethyl alcohol remains in the “tails” (up to 40%), the ingress of other substances along with it spoils the quality of moonshine, which is why it is so important to finish the distillation on time.
Tailings can be recycled, but usually not worth the energy spent. Unlike "heads", "tails" are recyclable, they can be added to a new batch of mash (immediately before distillation) or cleaned in a distillation column. Distilling the “tails” a second time on a moonshine is useless, this will not improve the quality!
The question of how much to select "heads" and "tails" is a compromise between the quantity and quality of moonshine. Further, we will use the "golden mean" - parameters that have been tested by more than one generation of moonshiners. You can change them at your discretion both in one direction and in the other. Further, I will pay attention not to specific numbers, but to methods of calculation.
How to select the head of moonshine
First, the mash is brought to a boil. When the first drops appear, the power is reduced to a minimum, then the heating is gradually increased again so that the device enters the operating mode. Performance depends on the design and power of the stove, there are no average parameters here. It is considered normal when the moonshine comes out cold (the temperature is approximately equal to the temperature of the cooling water). This is what you should strive for.
Head separation methods:
1. By sugar. The simplest, but at the same time effective method. Suitable if the sugar content of the mash or the amount of added sugar is known. In fruit or grain mash, sugar content is determined by a special device - a vinometer (hydrometer-saccharometer) before adding yeast.
For example, there are 5 liters of mash with a sugar content of 20%, which means that the total sugar content is 1 kg (5 * 0.2 = 1). The calculation assumes that 1 liter of solution by weight is equal to 1 kilogram, in practice this is not the case, but the error itself has little effect on the result, and the calculation simplifies significantly, so I advise you not to "bother".
60-100 ml heads are taken from 1 kg of sugar. It is advisable to divide this amount into two distillations, taking 30-50 ml of yield during the first distillation and the same amount during the second.
2. For pure alcohol. It is not always possible to find out the sugar content before fermentation begins. In this case, the first distillation is done without cutting off the “heads”, then the amount of absolute alcohol is measured. For example, if you get 6 liters of distillate with a total strength of 63%, then it contains 3.78 liters of pure alcohol (6 * 0.63 = 3.78). To simplify the calculations, we take the ethyl strength as 100%, although absolute alcohol can only be obtained in laboratory conditions.
During the second distillation, the head fraction is cut off at the rate of 8-15% of the amount of pure alcohol. In our example, this is 0.567 liters (3.78 * 0.15 = 0.567).
One of the varieties of this method is the selection of 1% of the heads of the mash volume, but due to various reasons related to fermentation and sugar concentration, this method cannot be considered accurate, it is better to focus on absolute ethyl.
3. By smell. Suitable for experienced distillers who can identify moonshine heads by an unpleasant odor.
The distillate leaving the apparatus is periodically sniffed, rubbing a couple of drops in the palms, when the pungent smell disappears, they begin to select the “body”. In this way, it is good to check the correctness of calculations based on sugar or alcohol.
4. By temperature. Due to the design features of moonshine stills and the different composition of impurities, this method does not always work well in practice. I recommend using it only as a last resort. I bring it for review.
The evaporation temperature of the “heads” is 65-68 ° C. During distillation, when the temperature reaches 63°C (the thermometer must be at the inlet to the refrigerator), the heating power is sharply reduced in order to smoothly reach the above temperature range. Then the “heads” are taken away while drops come out of the apparatus. When the output stops, raise the temperature to 78°C and select the "body" to a temperature of 85°C. The values are approximate and may differ depending on the device!
How to separate tails in moonshine
Evidence of the appearance of tails is the fall of the fortress in the jet to 30-45 degrees. In order not to miss this moment, it is desirable towards the end of the distillation to collect the moonshine coming out of the apparatus into a flask or a small jar, in which it is easy to measure with an alcohol meter (the liquid temperature must be 20 ° C). If the strength is high enough, pour the distillate into a common container and substitute the jar again.
During the first distillation (especially fruit and grain brews), you can collect the "body" until the degree of distillate falls below 30%. At the same time, moonshine sometimes becomes cloudy, but that's okay, the second distillation, in which the beginning of the tails is considered to be 40% fortress, will fix the problem.
Most moonshiners prefer to consider everything that has a fortress below 40 degrees as tails of moonshine. If there is no alcohol meter, moonshine is taken until it burns in a spoon.
When the strength of the output falls below the minimum, the distillation is stopped by stopping the heating, or they continue to collect tailings up to 15-20%, but this wastes energy and time, which in most cases does not justify itself.
Today's approach to home brewing is strikingly different from that of thirty years ago. Although many even now do not understand why moonshine should be distilled twice, and even part of the strong distillate should be removed from it. Therefore, we will consider why a separate selection of heads and tails is needed and why waste time on a fractional haul.
Moonshine is divided into three fractions, each of which is collected in a separate bowl. How do they differ from each other?
heads
These are the very first drops of moonshine, which are also called. They should be selected drop by drop, at the lowest temperature, avoiding jets. The heads begin to come out of the cube when the temperature of the mash is about 68°C. That's when the heat should be reduced.
Even without conducting special research, one can understand that this is poison. The first fractions have a sharp smell of acetone. And it is no coincidence, because "heads" are composed of acetone, methyl alcohol and other components that are equally unacceptable to the human body. This is all that boils at lower temperatures than ethyl () alcohol. And to be destroyed.
Carefully. Pervach is sometimes associated with strong and high-quality alcohol.
But it's not. It causes toxic poisoning, which is mistaken for intoxication. He has a severe hangover. It is especially dangerous because it quickly makes an alcoholic out of a person.
Body
Ethyl alcohol begins to evaporate when the temperature in the cube reaches 78 ° C. Everything that managed to leak out before that is not ethanol and you can’t drink it.
Reference. The boiling point of alcohol is 78.39 ° C, but this applies specifically to pure ethanol, with almost no water content.
In the distillation cube, the vapors break away from the mash and begin to go into the cooler coil at about a temperature close to 78 ° C.
The body is the fluid that we will ingest. It cannot be said that it does not contain fusel oils at all, but their percentage ratio is several times less than in other fractions. However, it can be almost completely freed from fusel oils only after industrial purification in coal columns. But it has no taste either, the organoleptics for which elite types of alcohol are valued.
However, it is very important to stop the selection of the body in time, due to the fact that the lower the alcohol strength falls, the more, together with alcohol vapors, foreign impurities, called fusel oils, penetrate into it.
In addition to spoiling the taste and aroma, they can also make moonshine cloudy, as we see in films when they want to emphasize that moonshine is on the table. Moreover, such a “phenomenon” may not appear immediately, but after a few days.
Tails
The last low-alcohol and unpleasantly smelling alcohol-containing residues in the mash. Very rich in fusel oils. They are taken away after the body (some distillers even “disdain” them, pouring them along with the stillage). But this liquid is not useless.
As a rule, it has a total strength of 20-30 °, depending on how completely the moonshiner wants to “squeeze out” alcohol from the mash or the first stage. After cleaning with oil, then with coal or potassium permanganate (to remove the smell, and with it - parts of the fusel oil), it can be added to the cube with mash during subsequent distillation. Tailings will increase the yield of strong distillate. The addition of the last fractions to the subsequent haul is called "tail ringing".
Note. Usually the "heads" are taken from the re-distillation.
But you can do this during the first distillation, if you want to preserve the taste and aroma of the original raw materials (fruits, berries, grains, etc.) as much as possible. Tails are taken away in grain mash only on the second run, moreover, when the fortress in the jet falls below 30°C. In such moonshine, more fusel oils will remain, but its organoleptics, which form the taste of grain moonshine, will be more pleasant.
How to select heads?
Disputes over how many heads to take away do not subside. The most commonly used number is - from 8 to 12% from the expected output of moonshine.
So, for example, from 5 kg of sugar in Braga, it is expected to get 6 liters of moonshine with a strength of 45 °. Therefore, 480 - 720 ml heads should be selected?
Yes, not a single moonshiner will agree to such a “translation” of the product. Then how do you count?
By sugar
However, in no classification is there a figure less than 50 ml per kilogram of sugar. That is, from the mentioned 5 kg of sugar during distillation, it will not be possible to select less than 250 ml of the first fractions. But preferably more - 350-400 ml., That is, 60-80 ml per 1 kg of sugar.
Advice. It is believed that it is better not to select all the heads at once, but to divide them into two hauls: for the first time, select 30-40 ml per kilogram of sugar and the same amount in the second.
For absolute alcohol
But after all, mash is not only sugar, and sometimes it is difficult to accurately determine the indications of sugar content. It is easier to do this by the content of pure alcohol in the distillate. Alcohol with a conditional strength of 100 °, the so-called anhydrous, is taken for calculation.
And the number of heads is calculated from it, based on the amount and strength of moonshine obtained after the first stage, without division into fractions. The generally accepted number of heads according to this technique is 8-15% . We will take, for example, 10% and 3 liters of moonshine with a strength of 50 °. We calculate the amount of pure alcohol: 3x0.50 \u003d 1.5. The number of heads, respectively, is 150 ml.
One of the varieties of the same method is 1% of the heads of the total amount of mash. But since different types of wort have different concentrations of sugar, we are not talking about exact indicators.
By temperature
The temperature method is not always effective in practice, since both the design of the moonshine still and the composition of the mash play a role. You can not discount the possible errors of the thermometer. In general, thermometers show the temperature in the distillation cube, but the readings before the vapor enters the cooler coil are more accurate.
We will give average indicators, and you can already check in your own practice whether they require adjustment.
Upon reaching 63 ° C, it is necessary to sharply reduce the heating to a minimum. Soon heads will start to drip (just drip, and slowly). When the temperature gradually rises to 68°C, it happens that the output stops altogether, the dishes with the head fractions are removed, a clean one is put in its place, the heating temperature is increased to 78°C and the body is taken away.
By smell
Experienced moonshiners, when dividing moonshine into fractions, are guided by their own scent. When the first drops of distillate first appear, they always have an unpleasant odor, in which acetone and other chemical impurities are clearly felt.
By the disappearance of the stench of the “heads”, they determine that it is time to take away the body. And by the reappeared smell of fuselage - that it's time to drive the tails. But for these experiments practice required.
To what extent to separate the tails in moonshine?
When collecting the body, periodically, especially if the temperature in the cube is already 85 degrees, check. If it falls to 40 ° and below, then the tails have begun to go, which are collected separately. In order to prevent the final fractions from getting into the part that you will use inside, at 85 ° C the main jar with the body is removed, a tall glass or jar is substituted in its place and the distillate is collected there. Then the fortress is checked.
Important. To correctly determine the degree, alcohol must have a temperature of 20 ° C, which almost never happens during the distillation.
Outgoing distillate has a temperature of 25-35°C. This factor overestimates the strength indicator on the alcoholometer. Therefore, for a quick conversion to the correct degree, use the moonshiner calculator, which can be downloaded on the Internet or viewed online.
If the strength is still around 40 °, this distillate is added to the main container with the body and the selection is continued. But keep in mind that the body does not need moonshine, the strength of which is below this limit. These are already tails that will spoil the main product.
Reference. In the absence of a thermometer in the cube and / or an alcohol meter, the average drinking fraction is taken while the liquid leaving the outlet tube burns.
Tailings are harvested until the strength of the distillate drops to 30° (maximum 20°). Further selection is inexpedient, it is only an extra waste of time and energy.
Selection of fractions for subsequent hauls
When distilling sugar, grain, fruit moonshine, knowledgeable distillers recommend selecting fractions during two distillations. Goals - 50% for the first and the same for the second. Tailings at the first distillation can be taken "dry", then cleaned and added to the second stage. The second time the tail fractions are taken when the fortress in the jet falls below 40-45°.
But it is better to distill moonshine from beets, potatoes, Jerusalem artichoke not two, but three times in order to get rid of a specific aftertaste. The first time - direct-flow method, without separation and almost dry. The second and third - with the selection of 50% of the heads, and tails - as in the distillation of sugar distillate.
So, we decided that it is possible to sacrifice some (not so much) part of the alcohol for the sake of its quality. You yourself will use it, put it on the table for dear guests. So why do we need a “shmurdyak”, which is unpleasant to drink, if not impossible for a person who knows a lot about homemade alcohol.
In addition, a huge amount of fusel oils hits the liver and brain cells. Drink high-quality moonshine and like the article, as well as recommend it on social networks.
