Homemade Pear Moonshine

Cooking method

1. Step 1:

   

   Prep the star of this moonshine — the pears. They should be very ripe but never rotten. It's best not to wash them: their skins carry plenty of the wild microorganisms that drive fermentation. If the pears are very dirty, just wipe them with a dry cloth.

2. Step 2:

   

   Now, to make the mash, crush the pears any way that's handy, first removing the seed cores. I grated mine, but you can run them through a blender, or mash very soft pears with a potato masher.

3. Step 3:

   

   Get out a fermentation vessel, ideally a large one — glass or food-grade plastic both work. Add the crushed pears.

4. Step 4:

   

   Dissolve the sugar (all of it except one tablespoon) in warm water and stir well. Use unfiltered water — that again helps fermentation along. Keep the water no warmer than about 105°F (40°C) so you don't kill the yeast.

5. Step 5:

   

   Pour the syrup into the fermentation vessel.

6. Step 6:

   

   Crumble the yeast into pieces along with the reserved tablespoon of sugar. You can swap the fresh yeast for special wine yeast or dry yeast (10 g).

7. Step 7:

   

   Stir the yeast into 100 ml (about 1/2 cup) warm water, wait until a foamy cap forms, then pour it in with everything else.

8. Step 8:

   

   Mix everything together. Don't fill the fermentation vessel more than two-thirds full.

9. Step 9:

   

   Stretch a disposable glove over the opening and set the vessel in a warm spot. It doesn't have to be especially warm — normal room temperature, around 68–75°F (20–24°C), works fine.

10. Step 10:

    

    Once the glove inflates, fermentation has started. It can run anywhere from 10 to 20 days and is finished when the glove deflates.

11. Step 11:

    

    Strain the mash. For a more pronounced pear aroma, some people gather the pulp in cheesecloth and hang it inside the still where the mash goes.

12. Step 12:

    

    Set up the still; if your model allows it, hook up the cold-water hoses, then pour in the mash.

13. Step 13:

    

    Put the still over the heat. As soon as the thermometer hits about 158°F (70°C), turn on the cold water to cool the condenser. Collect the moonshine in a jar, literally drop by drop. The spirit is drinkable after the first distillation, but it has a strong raw smell, so I recommend a second run: dilute the collected spirit down to about 20% ABV (40 proof) and pour it back into the still. To do that, mix 1 liter of moonshine with 500 ml of water.

14. Step 14:

    

    Run the second distillation just like the first, but discard the first 100 ml and the last 100 ml of the run. These are the so-called heads and tails — not safe to drink, since they carry a lot of fusel oils.

15. Step 15:

    

    Bottle the finished moonshine and let it rest for 2–3 days. For a little color, you can tint it with a drop of brewed tea. The strength comes out to around 50% ABV (100 proof). Please drink responsibly!