The moment has come when the process of distilling the mash is over. Moonshine is filtered and brought to perfect condition. And now, to complement the visual aesthetics that will go with the drink, you should think about a suitable container into which the homemade moonshine will be bottled. And this is not an easy step, since it is important not only to choose bottles and stickers in the form of labels that will look interesting and sometimes cool. You also need to think about ensuring that the packaging is of high quality and does not harm your health.
Storage conditions
It is important to understand that moonshine must be stored under suitable conditions and in appropriate containers. Also, each type of drink has its own shelf life:
- The shelf life of moonshine in its pure form without additives is 10 years.
- If berries were added to the tincture, such a drink will be stored for exactly 1 year. The same period will apply to liquor.
- In this case, it is advisable that the drinks should be kept in a cool, dark place and should not be exposed to direct sunlight.
- You need to pay attention to the strength level of the drink, which is determined by the glass parrot. The higher it is, the longer the drink is stored.
Oak barrels
Oak barrels are more suitable for infusing moonshine than for storing it.
In such a container, the product will change its aroma and taste, but will not be dangerous for consumption. The longer you plan to store moonshine in a barrel, the larger its volume should be. In a small container, the taste, color and smell of the distillate quickly changes.
Moonshine can spoil if the barrel you are using was just purchased and an alcohol-containing product was immediately poured into it. An oak barrel must be properly prepared. This process may take 7-10 days.
Barrels that are equipped with special taps to drain the contents are not suitable for storage. Such containers are used for dispensing drinks, i.e. as a “beautiful bottle”. Moonshine is collected into it before being poured for tasting, feasting, etc.
Container for moonshine
The second point to be decided is suitable bottles for moonshine. It is important to understand that not every bottle can contain alcohol. This occurs due to the fact that the alcohol component enters into a chemical reaction with the material to form an inappropriate impurity. In some cases, such components can harm human health. It is for this reason that glass bottles are most often chosen, believing that they are the most environmentally friendly. But what other options are possible, we’ll talk in detail below.
Plastic containers
Storing types of alcoholic beverages in plastic bottles is not a good idea. This can only be done in exceptionally high-quality containers, which are difficult to find on the market. For this reason, they try to avoid such containers.
But there is one feature of such containers. Most often, transportation is carried out in a plastic bottle. This is done due to the tightly screwed cap, which ensures the safety of the liquid from overflowing.
Glass bottles
Glass containers are the most suitable for storing moonshine and other types of homemade alcoholic drinks.
This is due to a number of factors:
- Glass surfaces do not react chemically with alcohols.
- Assortment - use 1, 2, 3 and 10 liter jars. Original luxury bottles are also available, which can easily be equipped with gift images or any other inscriptions.
- In addition, 3-liter bottles are easy to roll up with a lid. This is how alcohol is stored for a long period of time. It is important not to add alcohol to the top so that it does not come into contact with the inner surface of the lid.
- Whereas bottles with a narrow neck are equipped with a stopper that seals the container.
- If there is such a need, you can choose dark glass containers in which liqueurs and tinctures are stored.
Oak barrels
Oak and other wooden barrels are suitable for making this or that tincture. This material absorbs some of the harmful impurities from alcohol. Wood also gives the desired color to the drink.
But storing in oak barrels is not recommended.
Stainless steel containers
Stainless steel is used to make the still of a moonshine still. But storing homemade alcoholic beverages in such containers is not recommended. True, if an emergency arises, it can be stored within the expiration date only in steel containers made of food-grade metal.
Stainless steel containers
Stainless steel containers are well suited for long-term storage of moonshine.
Cans with tight lids or other containers will only be safe if they are made of metal that is intended for use in the food industry. Stainless steel does not oxidize and is easy to care for (wash). Such a metal container can be used not only for storing the finished distillate, but also during the preparation of moonshine, i.e. mash.
Containers made of technical stainless steel are not suitable, because... the alloy may contain impurities hazardous to health. All seams of the alcohol storage container must be welded. Soldered cookware is not recommended if a material containing a high lead content is used.
Cold storage
When the question arises about whether moonshine can be stored in the cold, the answer is unequivocally yes. After all, this liquid freezes only at temperatures below -80°C. But such climatic conditions are not observed in our latitudes. The only thing that can happen to alcohol if it is kept at low temperatures for long enough is a change in its texture. It becomes sticky. But, as soon as alcohol is brought into a room where the usual room temperature is set, it quickly returns to its fluidity level. Most often, alcohol produced at home is stored in the cold in villages. It is better to leave glass containers in a dark, cool basement - this is the best option to preserve the drink.
How long does moonshine last?
If the drink contains additives, such as herbs, spices, fruits, flavor concentrates, its shelf life is up to a year.
This is because these ingredients can oxidize and produce harmful substances. For example, cherry pits eventually release hydrocyanic acid, which is life-threatening. If the composition does not contain chemicals, oils and fusel, then the shelf life of the drink increases several times. Plastic container for storing moonshine
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vd7nSACrOwo
One of the most important storage conditions is container. It could be as follows:
- glass;
- plastic;
- wooden;
- made of stainless steel.
Basic requirements for the appearance of the label
Of course, if we talk directly about external aesthetics, then the label and bottle are an important part of serving moonshine. Many moonshiners pay enough attention to this. And, as experience shows, this has a special effect. After all, cool self-adhesive labels that are attached to moonshine bottles bring a smile and lift your spirits even before you try the drink. But not everyone knows where and how they can be found. We have compiled a selection of a wide variety of pictures, templates, and moonshine labels, which we offer to our readers for free. You need to save and print a suitable picture.
To suit the occasion, we have selected a variety of moonshine bottle labels. They are suitable for a wedding, birthday, for any funny occasion and occasion (for this purpose, we have selected options for bottle labels with jokes).
You can also use the option of printed photographs with memorable or funny images, which can act as stickers for bottles of moonshine given at wedding events. In this case, it is worth considering the presence of a self-adhesive base, which will securely fix the label on the bottle and will not allow it to slide off over time or when placed in the refrigerator to cool the container.
Selecting the optimal volume
It is well known that the mash container should be one third larger in volume than the liquid poured into it. Beginners usually use plastic or glass containers from 10 to 30 liters. Smaller containers (3 l, 5 l) can be taken for drinking mash and other homemade alcohol. These volumes are not enough for distilling and preparing strong homemade alcohol. It is convenient to use large-volume fermenters and with a wide neck it is convenient to pour, drain and wash containers into it.
Experienced distillers have at their disposal large stainless steel tanks for mash or TsKT (cylindrical-conical tank), their volume can be from 30 to 500 liters. It is impossible to carry them, and therefore such containers are equipped with everything necessary: a tap, a water seal, a heating and mixing system.
Another important characteristic of containers is tightness. Wort fermentation is an anaerobic process, that is, it does not require the presence of oxygen. But the development of harmful microflora in the wort occurs if there is air in the container
To suppress unwanted bacteria, it is important to limit the entry of outside air. The lid should be perfectly lapped, there should be no chips on the glass or cracks on the plastic
When purchasing a stainless steel container, check the tightness of the seams.
Buy a container for mash based on your needs and capabilities. If you are an experienced moonshiner and confident in the quality of your product, stainless steel is the best choice for you. If you are a beginner or do occasional distilling, then use glass bottles.
Of course, the capacity must be large. It has long been proven that the larger the volume of the fermenter, the better the wine fermentation process. How big depends on your capabilities and needs. Do not forget that the fermentation container should be at least relatively transportable - in everyday life there is often a need to move or rearrange it without breaking your back.
Your humble servant in a city apartment is content with two or three 20-liter bottles and several 10-liter cans. In my opinion, twenties are ideal for vigorous fermentation, and tens for quiet fermentation, but this is a matter of personal preference.
To correctly select the volume of a fermentation tank for wine, beer, mash, you need to consider the following nuances:
- The container in which wine or beer undergoes primary “rapid” fermentation should be filled to a maximum of 3/4, or better yet, 2/3 of its volume. It is better to fill the cylinder with mash only halfway, otherwise the rising foam may flood the water seal.
- During quiet fermentation, on the contrary, it is better to fill the vessel almost to the neck. For example, if you ferment 15 liters of wort in a 20-liter bottle, after all the removal from the sediment you will get 13 liters of young wine. Ten of them can be poured into a 10-liter jar, part of it will be used for tasting and other drying, a liter and a half should be left in reserve to top up the jar after each decanting.
- The volume of the fermenter for the mash must be selected in accordance with the volume of your moonshine still - so as to distill the entire mash in one (two, three) times, without running the distiller in vain and without filling it more than 3/4.
- The beer fermenter should also be proportional in volume to the wort kettle.
Remember that preparing 3 or 30 liters of drink takes almost the same time and amount of labor. So it’s better to let the volume of your fermentation tank be a little larger than necessary!
Type of vodka
Vodka can be different: simple and special. Simple - it is called one that does not contain additional impurities and flavorings, only water and ethyl alcohol. These include: Stolichnaya, Moskovskaya and other inexpensive brands, vessels that also include high-quality moonshine, well purified from fusel oils. Such vodka can really be stored for a very long time, practically unlimited, if the conditions and containers are appropriate, but more on that later. If you are planning to buy a bottle and store it, so to speak, just in case, then it is better to buy just this one.
But often, in order to mask the unpleasant taste and flavor of alcohol, manufacturers of alcoholic beverages add various additives; in this case, it is better to focus on the information written on the bottle label, because depending on a particular additive, oxidation processes that render the product unusable can proceed differently. As a rule, it is better not to store such vodka for more than one year. Poorly purified moonshine or infused with herbs or other spices also falls into this category.
Plastic containers
Is it possible to store moonshine in plastic bottles? Plastic packaging is the most unsafe container for storing a drink. Alcohol reacts with plastic and corrodes it. Cloudiness of the liquid, the presence of flakes and sediment at the bottom of the container indicate spoilage of the contents. The absence of these external signs does not guarantee the safety of storage in plastic, since the carcinogen released when alcohol reacts with such containers may not have a characteristic taste and smell.
An exception is special plastic labeled PET and HDPE. But manufacturers of plastic containers advise not to reuse PET bottles after using the first contents. LDPE, on the other hand, is one of the safest plastics and can be reused. Such containers can also be used for short-term storage, for example, during short transportation.
Why glass containers are best for storing moonshine
There are several objective reasons why glass is preferred:
- No chemical reactions with the surface . Only food-grade plastic in good mineral water can boast of this property, but there are few such bottles on our market. Moonshine remains exactly the way you put it in storage.
- Various container volumes . You have bottles, carboys and cans to choose from.
- Darkened color . To ensure that the liquid reacts to the sun's rays to a minimum, the glass is tinted in a dark color (usually green shades). This is additional protection for the drink.
It’s not just that before all the liquid was poured into glass. Such packaging is now more expensive than PET, but is ideal for storage.
Many people still have large Soviet glass bottles of 5–20 liters in their households. There are many advertisements for their sale on the Internet, so you can save money on their purchase. In specialized stores such containers are relatively expensive.
Disadvantages of plastic, oak and stainless containers
To finally put an end to the issue of choosing containers, I propose to consider the shortcomings of the containers on the market and draw a general conclusion.
- Plastic . Finding good bottles will be quite problematic, and most of the rest react with the surface of the plastic. Even triple layers and special coatings of this packaging do not solve this problem.
- Oak _ Wood absorbs some of the alcohol and harmful impurities of moonshine, but in turn gives off color and aroma. Such containers are used for tinctures, but not for storage. You will never be able to get the same moonshine at the end; the drink almost instantly changes its organoleptic properties.
- Stainless steel . This metal is used to make excellent stills and fermentation tanks. It is not suitable for us as a container for storing moonshine.
As you can see, none of the presented materials are suitable for our task.
That is why we recommend not reinventing the wheel, but using a ready-made solution - glass containers.
Storing moonshine in a glass jar
What is the shelf life of vodka in a glass bottle? What is the shelf life of vodka?
Aging and storing homemade wine
DEATH IN A PLASTIC BOTTLE! Attention - Important!
Alcohol and plastic. Good morning. Fragment of the release dated June 20, 2016
Glass bottles for spirits, moonshine, wine, whiskey and cognac in sets.
Bottle for moonshine. Handle and braid with your own hands.
Freezing mash, moonshine, the old (grandfather’s) method.
Vacuum lids for preservation. VAX. Good, but can also jerk. Vacuum cover.
Treasure bottle of moonshine
Broke a 20 liter bottle of wine in the kitchen. Winemaker from God
Bottle for moonshine. Handle and braid with your own hands.
How to store moonshine at home
Try to provide shade at home: the sun's rays negatively affect the taste and color of alcohol. Place bottles in a dark cabinet. It’s not for nothing that connoisseurs prefer special cellars.
Tip from Miss Clean magazine: to protect moonshine in a clear glass bottle, wrap the container in foil or thick paper.
Alcohol stores well at room temperature and does not require refrigeration. If the apartment is too warm (above 20 degrees), you can avoid cluttering the household appliance and place the bottles in a cool cellar. You can use a refrigerator, but it is not necessary. But the freezer is not recommended for storage.
Advice Try to avoid sudden temperature changes in the place where the moonshine is standing.
How long does homemade moonshine last? In suitable conditions, a strong drink will last up to five years, moonshine-based drinks - two years.
Wooden container
A wooden barrel is quite suitable for storage, but it requires more preparation before use than other containers. It is important to purchase a high-quality barrel, preferably oak, without gaps or cracks, with strong hoops, well dried, fired from the inside. Next, you need to steam the inside of the product yourself, then fill the barrel with warm water and leave for up to two weeks, changing the water daily. Wood contains tannin, a tannin substance, so it is important to soak it with water. After this, fumigate with sulfur and ventilate.
Moonshine can be stored in oak barrels
In a wooden barrel, the drink will not retain its original aroma, but will acquire a new individual taste due to the oxidation of alcohol, because air constantly penetrates into such a container. It is important to treat the barrel before use, otherwise it will have the opposite effect and the taste will deteriorate. Maturation occurs quickly in small barrels.
