vodka grain recipe

[brewster]

can someone please give me or tell me where to look for an easy recipe for making vodka with grain....i found one but it takes ph adjusters ,gypsum, and citric acids...seemed to be pretty confusing....there must be an easier way...please help...thanks, scott

[theholymackerel]

Easy:

1)Malt yer grain.

2)Mash yer grain.

3)Ferment yer grain.

4)Distill yer fermented mash.

See? Easy.

[brewster]

come on bootlegger, im serious.....give me some help....
thanks, scott

[theholymackerel]

I'm not messin' with ya.

If ya want to make vodka from grain ya need to malt and mash the grain, then ferment and distill it.

There is no "easy" grain vodka recipe.

An easy vodka recipe is to make a cheap easy sugar wash and run it through a reflux column. Unless yer potstillin' to make vodka it will taste just about the same.

[Longhairedcountryboy]

Holy is right,
Any fermented sugar will give you vodka if you distill it to 95% abv. If you would like to make it from grain, use any food grain you wish, and follow the simple directions THM suggested. A good guideline for mash amounts is to use 1 1/2 quarts of water per pound of grain and at least 20% malted grain. Use standard mashing procedure to convert starches to sugar. Ferment it out and distill it to 95% abv. That will give you an all grain vodka.

[Big J]

Basically you can just go to the parent site and take any grain recipe you like. Then distill it to 95% ABV and you've got vodka. Or try UJSSMM: http://homedistiller.org/wiki/index.php/Uncle_Jes ... ash_Method" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

Good luck.

-J

[Watershed]

If you have access to cracked or milled grain you could just buy some malt to do the conversion, or use amylase or Koji

[Aidas]

Why bother with grain at all? Obviously the question was asked by a beginner who wants to make a flavorless spirit. That's all vodka is, after all -- a flavorless neutral spirit.

Go with a sugar wash and be done with it. If you want to use grain, make a real drink, like whiskey.

Aidas

[brewster]

why is it then......all commercial vodka is made from some type of grain....can anybody name one good vodka that is made from sugar....
thanks

[theholymackerel]

Brewster, I told ya how to make grain vodka.

If ya don't wanna do it that way, try a sugar vodka, but don't knock the sugar vodka till ya try it.

Sheesh...

[brewster]

i have been using sugar....i wanted a grain recipe because thats what the big boys use....i am not asking for another recipe....i have your (theholymackeral) grain mash fermenting now...i will let you know if any difference in taste...thanks

[Aidas]

The reason thye use grain is that it's cheaper than sugar . I honestly don't think there''s much difference between a sugar vodka and a grain vodka when it's been triple distilled (to something like 97% ABV), filtered, etc. It's neutral spirits, i.e. NO taste, dilluted to 40%.

I say, use the grain for a noble drink.

Aidas

[Harry]

This question of what is a vodka can get you into a lot of heated discussion in many places. Originally the US definition stated that it had to be made from grain, as were all potable spirits. Of course this meant that many overseas vodkas were banned from import because they were often made from other substrates, such as potato starch. Tempers ran hot between the BATF (now TTB) and those overseas makers who wanted to break into the lucrative US vodka market (Vodka is the most popular liquor among Americans, who last year (2005) spent about $10.8 billion on it, according to data from the Distilled Spirits Council, an industry trade group).

Eventually sanity prevailed, and the BATF revised the definition of vodka. It now reads thus...

"Section 21, class 1(a) of Regulations No. 5 defines vodka as neutral spirits distilled from any material at or above 190 degrees of proof, reduced to not more than 110 nor less than 80 degrees of proof, and after such reduction in proof treated by one of the three methods set forth therein so that the resulting product would be without distinctive character, aroma, or taste."
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Note the use of the words "any material". This means that if all the other parts re proof, taste etc. are met, then vodka can be distilled from any substrate, be it grain, cane or beet sugar, or anything that can produce potable spirit.

However you cannot put it in a barrel, as it would pick up colour, and thus would no longer fit the definition. This was tested recently and the ruling by the TTB was this...

"Rev. Ruling 55-552

Grain Neutral Spirits Stored in Wood may not be Labeled as Vodka

Advice has been requested whether grain neutral spirits, which have obtained a light golden color from storage in wood and which are treated with carbon, may be labeled as vodka if, when bottled, the distillate retains all or part of the light golden color.

Section 21, class 1(a) of Regulations No. 5 defines vodka as neutral spirits distilled from any material at or above 190 degrees of proof, reduced to not more than 110 nor less than 80 degrees of proof, and after such reduction in proof treated by one of the three methods set forth therein so that the resulting product would be without distinctive character, aroma, or taste. That section requires that the distillate, after treatment, be stored only in metal, porcelain, or glass containers or paraffin lined tanks.

It is held that a product with a "light golden" color would not conform to the above definition. Accordingly, such a product may not be labeled as vodka.

27 U.S.C. 205; 27 CFR 5.21 (27 CFR 5.22) "
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Another ruling that's been made concerns the so-called "flavored vodkas". It reads thus...

"Rev. Ruling 56-98

Flavored Vodka

Section 21, class 1(a) of the Regulations relating to the Labeling and Advertising of Distilled Spirits, issued pursuant to the Federal Alcohol Administration Act, prescribes the standards of identity for vodka. It provides, in part, that if any flavoring material is added to the distillate it shall be designated "flavored vodka" and may be further classified with the name of the flavoring material used. Held, the use of sugar not exceeding two-tenths of one per cent and a trace amount of citric acid in the production of vodka would not materially affect the taste or change its basic character. Therefore, a product containing such ingredients within the limitations stated may be designated and labeled as vodka. However, if any flavoring ingredients are used, the product must be designated and labeled as "flavored vodka." The addition of any material to the vodka, including sugar or citric acid, will result in taxable rectification through compounding.

27 U.S.C. 205; 27 CFR 5.21 (27 CFR 5.22) "
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We must not forget to cross the taxman's palm with silver.


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