Mashing converts the starches found in malted grains into fermentable sugars. If you’re new to mashing, you’ll need to learn about the different mashing methods for making moonshine. Most importantly, you’ll first need to select the best moonshine mash.
In a Hurry? Here are Our Top Choices
The 5 Best Moonshine Mashes
We’re going to tell you about the various grains you can use for moonshine mash, followed by the various ways you can mash your grains. You’ll also find a buyer’s guide, which you can use to help you select the grains you need to use for mashing.
1. Genuine North Georgia Still Company Complete Corn Mash
Genuine North Georgia Still Company Complete Corn Mash is a kit that includes all the ingredients you need for mashing. Spring water isn’t included in the kit. You can create five gallons of mash using the grains. The kit includes five pounds of cracked corn, five pounds of dextrose corn sugar, Fermaxyeast nutrient, Red Star yeast, and BSG amylase. The manufacturer has also added one packet of one-step sanitizing powder, which you can use to clean and sterilize all the equipment you’ll for mashing.
The sanitizing powder prevents your mash from becoming contaminated. Even though corn is commonly used for making whiskeys and bourbons, you can use it to create moonshine. Cracked corn will give your moonshine a rich and sweet taste. Your moonshine can taste like vanilla, maple syrup, cotton candy, or white sugar. If you don’t like the sweetness, you can age your moonshine in oak barrels.
Pros
- Reliable and trustworthy company selling genuine products
- Can pull through robust flavors such as vanilla, white sugar, cotton candy, and maple syrup
- Comes with a sanitizing powder to ensure your mashing equipment doesn’t contaminate your mash
- Creates five gallons of moonshine mash
Cons
- Doesn’t come with spring water
2. Home-Brew Flaked Maize
Home-Brew Flaked Maize is a beer brewing grain that gives your moonshine a beautiful golden color. The manufacturer has gelatinized the flaked maize during the manufacturing using heat, moisture, and the flaking method. You can mill it and add it directly into your mash.
If you want, you can precook it before you move on to the mashing process to increase starch and extraction reduction. You receive ten pounds of mash, which allows you to make a lot of mash. The flaked maize comes packaged in a clear and sealed bag.
Pros
- Get 10 pounds of mash
- Gelantinized flaked maize
- Beautiful golden color
- Can precook flaked maize before mashing for increased starch and extraction reduction
Cons
- Slightly expensive than other grains
3. Organic Complete Corn Whiskey Mash and Fermentation Kit
Organic Complete Corn Whiskey Mash and Fermentation Kit comes with five pounds of cracked corn, five pounds of sugar, yeast nutrient, yeast, and amylase, but no spring water and sanitizer. You can make five gallons of mash using the cracked corn. Some sweet flavors you can pull through include vanilla, maple syrup, cotton candy, and white sugar.
If you don’t want your mash to be too sweet, you can mature the moonshine in an oak barrel. The mash doesn’t contain any pesticides. It’s an organic and non-GMO cracked corn. The manufacturer states that their product doesn’t contain any harmful chemicals, as they’ve organically grown it at a farm in Arkansas.
Pros
- Produces five gallons of mash
- Organically grown cracked corn
- Non-GMO cracked corn doesn’t contain any chemicals and pesticides
- Can age in oak barrels to reduce sweetness
Cons
- Spring water and sanitizer not include
4. Briess Rye Malt
Briess Rye Malt can make five pounds of mash. Rye malt has a unique spicy and fruity flavor with a slight haze. If your moonshine recipe calls for unmilled and malted rye grain, you can use this rye grain, as the sugar hasn’t been extracted from it.
You can use rye malt to create your moonshine. If you don’t want to use barley because you don’t want your moonshine to have a bitter taste, you can use rye to give it a sweeter taste and smell. You’ll need to mill the rye malt, and you can combine cracked corn with rye malt to enhance the flavor of your moonshine.
Pros
- Can extract sugar from it, as it’s unmilled
- Rye malt gives moonshine a sweet taste and smell
- Has a unique fruity and spicy taste
- Makes five gallons of moonshine
Cons
- Will need to be milled before you and if using for a recipe that needs milled corn
5. Southern Boy Stills. Moonshiners Blend
Southern Boy Stills Moonshiners Blend is yellow, and the 10-pound bag produces 5 gallons of mash. The fresh milled cracked corn contains 80% of cracked corn, 10% of rye, and 10% of whole and malted barley. You need to add sugar to the mash. The manufacturer recommends adding one pound of sugar to one gallon of water.
The mash is reusable, which means if there’s some leftover, you can use it to feed cows and chickens. However, doing so will cause the mash to lose the alcohol, as you’d be running it through the still. If you want, the manufacturer states you can add the additional yeast to it and let it ferment, but even then, it’ll not increase the alcohol content level.
Pros
- Blend of rye, cracked corn, and barley
- Beautiful yellow in color
- Produces 5 gallons of mash
Cons
- Alcohol level doesn’t increase by a lot after adding extra yeast if you’ve put it through the still
- Users complained that the ratio of the ingredients was off due to them being mixed and inaccurately measured
Mashing Methods
You can use one of the following mashing methods to create your moonshine:
- Single or basic infusion mashing infuses the grain in the water at a constant temperature for an hour to let the enzymes that occur naturally in the malt change starch into sugar.
- Step mashing or multi-step washing increases the temperature to reach certain temperatures. The brewer calculates the resting temperatures based on the type of moonshine and ingredients used.
- Decoction mashing takes a quarter or third portions of the mash, heating and stirring it as it boils and then adding it to the primary mash. You’ll boil parts of the mash two to three times until your mash reaches its final temperature.
What to Look for When Picking the Best Moonshine Mash
If you’re looking for the best moonshine mash, here’s what you need to consider before you buy one:
1. The Amount of Moonshine You Want to Make
If you want to make a lot of moonshine, you need to order grain to produce up to 10 gallons of mash. In the market, you’ll usually find five-pounds or ten-pounds of grain for mash. You can choose the amount you need depending on how much moonshine you plan to make.
2. The Process of Harvesting and Picking the Grain for Mash
The manufacturer should tell you the method they harvested and picked the grain for mash. You want to ensure the grain is organically grown, is non-GMO, and free of pesticides.
3. The Kit Comes with a Sanitizer
You should buy a kit if you don’t want to buy the other things you need separately. If you’re buying a kit, ensure it comes with a sanitizer. The sanitizer ensures the machine you’re using for creating moonshine doesn’t contaminate it.
Our Final Thoughts
In your book, what is the best moonshine mash to buy to create moonshine at home? If you’re new to making moonshine, you need to learn more about the various methods to mash the grain. You also need to know whether you need to use unmilled or milled grain. You can buy the grain according to your recipe and ensure you get the right amount. You can go for a kit to make things easier for yourself, as it comes with all the essentials needed to create moonshine.
