What is the brewing process of liquor?

Liquor is rich in aroma, mellow and soft, and has various flavors. China famous wine has a long history and is unparalleled in the world.

Liquor, commonly known as shochu, is a high-concentration alcoholic beverage, generally 50 ~ 65 degrees. According to the different saccharification, fermentation strains and brewing technology, it can be divided into three categories: Daqu liquor, Xiaoqu liquor and bran koji liquor, among which bran koji liquor can be divided into solid fermented liquor and liquid fermented liquor.

Raw material formula All raw materials containing starch and sugar can be used to brew liquor, but the liquor brewed by different raw materials has different flavors. Grain sorghum, corn and barley; Potatoes such as sweet potato and cassava; Sugar-containing raw materials, such as sugar cane and beet residue and waste molasses, can be used to make wine. In addition, sorghum bran, rice bran, bran, rice washing water, starch residue, sweet potato outreach, beet head and tail, etc. Can be used as alternative raw materials. Wild plants, such as acorn, Jerusalem artichoke, pear and Rosa laevigata, can also be used as alternative raw materials.

The traditional Chinese liquor brewing technology is solid-state fermentation. During the fermentation process, some auxiliary materials need to be added to adjust the starch concentration, keep the softness of fermented grains and keep the slurry water. Commonly used accessories are rice husk, chaff, corncob, sorghum husk, peanut skin and so on.

Besides raw materials and auxiliary materials, distiller's yeast and yeast also need distiller's yeast. When using starch as raw material to produce liquor, starch needs to be hydrolyzed by various amylases to produce fermentable sugar before it can be used by yeast. This process is called saccharification, and the saccharifying agent used is called koji (or koji, saccharifying koji). Daqu is a kind of crude enzyme preparation, which uses starch as culture medium to cultivate a variety of molds and accumulate a large amount of amylase. At present, commonly used saccharifying koji includes Daqu (producing famous wine and high-quality wine), Xiaoqu (producing Xiaoqu wine) and bran koji (producing bran koji wine). Bran koji is the most widely used in production.

In addition, sugar is converted into alcohol and other substances by alcoholase secreted by yeast, which is called alcohol fermentation. The starter used in this process is called yeast. Saccharomyces cerevisiae is a kind of yeast proliferation culture liquid which is obtained by using sugary substances as culture medium and expanding yeast culture quite purely. In production, vats of distiller's yeast are mostly used.

Equipment used

1. Raw material processing and transportation equipment. There are pulverizers, belt conveyors, bucket elevators, screw conveyors, air supply equipment, etc.

2. Mixing, cooking and cooling equipment. There are moistening tank, stirring tank, auger, continuous digester (for large factories), dry distillation furnace (for small factories), slag dryer and ventilation slag drying equipment.

3. Fermentation equipment. Cement fermenter (for large factories), clay pot (for small factories), etc.

4. Steam equipment. Steamer (for large factories), retort (for small factories), etc.

There are two kinds of liquor production in China: solid fermentation and liquid fermentation. In solid-state fermentation Daqu, Xiaoqu and bran koji, bran koji wine occupies a large proportion in production. Here, the technology of bran koji wine is simply described.

manufacturing method

1. raw materials are crushed. The purpose of crushing raw materials is to facilitate cooking and make full use of starch. According to the characteristics of raw materials, the fineness requirements of crushing are also different. More than 60% of raw materials such as dried potatoes and corn pass through a 20-hole sieve.

2. Ingredients. Mix new materials, distiller's grains, auxiliary materials and water together to lay the foundation for saccharification and fermentation. The ingredients should be determined according to the size of retort, starch content of raw materials, temperature, production technology and fermentation time. The specific performance of appropriate ingredients depends on the starch concentration, acidity and looseness of fermented grains in the pool. Generally speaking, the starch concentration is 14 ~ 16% and the acidity is 0.6 ~ 0.8.

3. Cooking and gelatinization. Starch is gelatinized by cooking. It is beneficial to the action of amylase and can kill miscellaneous bacteria. The temperature and time of cooking depend on the kind of raw materials and the degree of crushing. Ordinary materials are steamed at normal pressure for 20 ~ 30 minutes. The requirement of cooking is that the appearance is steamed thoroughly, cooked but not sticky, and there is no heart inside.

Mixing raw materials with fermented grains, steamed wine and steamed materials at the same time is called "mixed steaming and mixed burning". In the early stage, steaming was the main method, and the temperature in retort was required to be 85 ~ 90℃. After steaming wine, gelatinization should be maintained for a period of time.

If steaming wine and steaming materials are carried out separately, it is called "steaming".

Calm down. The cooked raw materials should be cooled quickly by slag extraction or air drying to reach a temperature suitable for microbial growth. If the temperature is 5 ~ 10℃, the product temperature should be reduced to 30 ~ 32℃; if the temperature is 10 ~ 15℃, the product temperature should be reduced to 25 ~ 28℃ in summer. Slag extraction or drying can also play a role in volatilizing odor and absorbing oxygen.

5. Stir the paste. Solid state fermentation of bran koji liquor is a two-way fermentation process of saccharification and fermentation. After slag extraction, add koji and yeast at the same time. The amount of distiller's yeast depends on its saccharifying power, which is generally 8 ~ 10% of the brewing main material, and the amount of distiller's yeast is generally 4 ~ 6% of the total feeding amount (that is, 4 ~ 6% of the main material is used to cultivate distiller's yeast). In order to facilitate the normal enzymatic reaction, water should be added when the fermented grains are stirred (called pulping in the factory), and the water content of the fermented grains should be controlled at 58 ~ 62% when entering the pool.

6. Fermentation in the cellar. When entering the cellar, the temperature of fermented grains should be 18 ~ 20℃ (not more than 26℃ in summer), and the fermented grains should not be pressed too tightly or too loosely, and it is generally appropriate to pack about 630 ~ 640 kg per cubic meter. After canning, cover the fermented grains with a layer of bran, seal them with pit mud, and add a layer of bran.

The fermentation process is mainly to master the product temperature and analyze the changes of moisture, acidity, alcohol consumption and starch residue at any time. The length of fermentation time depends on various factors, ranging from 3 days to 4 ~ 5 days. Generally, when the temperature of the product in the cellar rises to 36 ~ 37℃, the fermentation can be finished.

7. Steamed wine. Fermented grains are called fragrant grains and contain extremely complex ingredients. The effective components such as alcohol, water, higher alcohols and acids in fermented grains are evaporated into steam by steaming wine, and then cooled to obtain liquor. During distillation, alcohol, aromatic substances and sweet substances should be extracted as much as possible, and impurities should be removed by pinching the head and tail as much as possible.

Equipment used

1. Raw material processing and transportation equipment. There are pulverizers, belt conveyors, bucket elevators, screw conveyors, air supply equipment, etc.

2. Mixing, cooking and cooling equipment. There are moistening tank, stirring tank, auger, continuous digester (for large factories), dry distillation furnace (for small factories), slag dryer and ventilation slag drying equipment.

3. Fermentation equipment. Cement fermenter (for large factories), clay pot (for small factories), etc.

4. Steam equipment. Steamer (for large factories), retort (for small factories), etc.

There are two kinds of liquor production in China: solid fermentation and liquid fermentation. In solid-state fermentation Daqu, Xiaoqu and bran koji, bran koji wine occupies a large proportion in production. Here, the technology of bran koji wine is simply described.

manufacturing method

1. raw materials are crushed. The purpose of crushing raw materials is to facilitate cooking and make full use of starch. According to the characteristics of raw materials, the fineness requirements of crushing are also different. More than 60% of raw materials such as dried potatoes and corn pass through a 20-hole sieve.

2. Ingredients. Mix new materials, distiller's grains, auxiliary materials and water together to lay the foundation for saccharification and fermentation. The ingredients should be determined according to the size of retort, starch content of raw materials, temperature, production technology and fermentation time. The specific performance of appropriate ingredients depends on the starch concentration, acidity and looseness of fermented grains in the pool. Generally speaking, the starch concentration is 14 ~ 16% and the acidity is 0.6 ~ 0.8.

3. Cooking and gelatinization. Starch is gelatinized by cooking. It is beneficial to the action of amylase and can kill miscellaneous bacteria. The temperature and time of cooking depend on the kind of raw materials and the degree of crushing. Ordinary materials are steamed at normal pressure for 20 ~ 30 minutes. The requirement of cooking is that the appearance is steamed thoroughly, cooked but not sticky, and there is no heart inside.

Mixing raw materials with fermented grains, steamed wine and steamed materials at the same time is called "mixed steaming and mixed burning". In the early stage, steaming was the main method, and the temperature in retort was required to be 85 ~ 90℃. After steaming wine, gelatinization should be maintained for a period of time.

If steaming wine and steaming materials are carried out separately, it is called "steaming".

Calm down. The cooked raw materials should be cooled quickly by slag extraction or air drying to reach a temperature suitable for microbial growth. If the temperature is 5 ~ 10℃, the product temperature should be reduced to 30 ~ 32℃; if the temperature is 10 ~ 15℃, the product temperature should be reduced to 25 ~ 28℃ in summer. Slag extraction or drying can also play a role in volatilizing odor and absorbing oxygen.

5. Stir the paste. Solid state fermentation of bran koji liquor is a two-way fermentation process of saccharification and fermentation. After slag extraction, add koji and yeast at the same time. The amount of distiller's yeast depends on its saccharifying power, which is generally 8 ~ 10% of the brewing main material, and the amount of distiller's yeast is generally 4 ~ 6% of the total feeding amount (that is, 4 ~ 6% of the main material is used to cultivate distiller's yeast). In order to facilitate the normal enzymatic reaction, water should be added when the fermented grains are stirred (called pulping in the factory), and the water content of the fermented grains should be controlled at 58 ~ 62% when entering the pool.

6. Fermentation in the cellar. When entering the cellar, the temperature of fermented grains should be 18 ~ 20℃ (not more than 26℃ in summer), and the fermented grains should not be pressed too tightly or too loosely, and it is generally appropriate to pack about 630 ~ 640 kg per cubic meter. After canning, cover the fermented grains with a layer of bran, seal them with pit mud, and add a layer of bran.

The fermentation process is mainly to master the product temperature and analyze the changes of moisture, acidity, alcohol consumption and starch residue at any time. The length of fermentation time depends on various factors, ranging from 3 days to 4 ~ 5 days. Generally, when the temperature of the product in the cellar rises to 36 ~ 37℃, the fermentation can be finished.

7. Steamed wine. Fermented grains are called fragrant grains and contain extremely complex ingredients. The effective components such as alcohol, water, higher alcohols and acids in fermented grains are evaporated into steam by steaming wine, and then cooled to obtain liquor. During distillation, alcohol, aromatic substances and sweet substances should be extracted as much as possible, and impurities should be removed by pinching the head and tail as much as possible.