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.