Is moonshine pure ethanol?

After fermentation, moonshine is distilled to concentrate the ethanol and other volatile flavor ingredients. However, ethanol boils at 173.1 degrees Fahrenheit (78.37 degrees Celsius), while methanol boils at 148.5 degrees F (64.7 degrees C).

Is ethanol and moonshine the same thing?

Ethanol, a fuel derived from corn, is essentially alcohol. Not coincidentally, moonshine is distilled from corn, too. E85 fuel, which some cars are built to run on, is 85 percent ethanol [source: Harris].

What percentage ethanol is moonshine?

Moonshine usually has an ABV of 40% but can sometimes be as high as 60%-80% ABV. Alcohol content can be converted to proof by multiplying it by two. So, 40% ABV is 80-proof. The distilling process is the key to a spirit's alcohol content.

What type of alcohol is moonshine?

Moonshine purists define the spirit as a homemade, unaged whiskey, marked by its clear color, corn base and high alcohol content—sometimes peaking as high as 190 proof. Traditionally, it was produced in a homemade still and bottled in a mason jar.

Is moonshine a 99% alcohol?

Moonshine is usually distilled to 40% ABV, and seldom above 66% based on 48 samples. For example, a conventional pot stills commonly produce 40% ABV, and top out between 60 and 80% ABV after multiple distillations. However, ethanol can be dried to 95% ABV by heating 3A molecular sieves such as 3A zeolite.

Can You Drive a Car on Moonshine? | MythBusters

Can you drink 100% ethanol?

While ethanol is consumed when drinking alcoholic beverages, consuming ethanol alone can cause coma and death. Ethanol may also be a carcinogenic; studies are still being done to determine this. However, ethanol is a toxic chemical and should be treated and handled as such, whether at work or in the home.

What is the purest alcohol?

Methyl is the purest form of alcohol. It is produced synthetically by a multi-step process involving natural gas and a process called “steam reforming.”

Is ethanol and alcohol the same thing?

Ethanol is a combustible, toxic compound. It has many names, including ethyl, drinking, or grain alcohol. It is best known as simply alcohol and is found in drinks. Ethanol is a colorless, flammable chemical compound that is best known for its use in alcoholic beverages.

Is moonshine just unaged whiskey?

Moonshine purists define the spirit as a homemade, unaged whiskey, marked by its clear color, corn base, and high alcohol content—sometimes peaking as high as 190 proof. Traditionally, it was produced in a homemade still and bottled in a mason jar.

How is moonshine different from other liquor?

The difference with moonshine is it's from a mash of corn and grains. These distilled spirits are practically unaged whiskey. It makes these drinks flavorful yet strong.

Is Everclear the same as moonshine?

Both Everclear and Moonshine are unaged spirits; however, Everclear is made from grain and Moonshine from corn. Everclear is a brand name of a neutral-tasting, very potent grain alcohol. Moonshine is a general term used to describe illegally produced corn whiskey.

Can I run my car on moonshine?

Can cars really run on moonshine? Only if it's really strong stuff. To power a car, moonshine—in this case, illicit homemade whiskey—must have an extremely high alcohol content, at minimum 150 proof (or 75 percent alcohol by volume), or 190 proof for best results.

What is real moonshine?

“Moonshine, by definition, is any high proof spirit that's illegally distilled,” says Nicole Pearlman of Ole Smoky Distillery in Gatlinburg, Tennessee — the first legal moonshine distillery in a state known for its history of moonshine production.

How do you make pure ethanol?

Since alcohol boils at a lower temperature than water, it boils first. Our distillation process produces 95% pure alcohol or 190 proof. To produce pure, 200 proof alcohol, we use a molecular sieve, so extract the last 5% of the water. The pure alcohol is transferred to storage tanks and ready to be shipped.

Is Everclear ethanol?

The 190-proof variation of Everclear is 92.4% ethanol by weight and is thus produced at approximately the practical limit of distillation purity.

Can you drink ethanol alcohol?

The only type of alcohol that humans can safely drink is ethanol. We use the other two types of alcohol for cleaning and manufacturing, not for making drinks. For example, methanol (or methyl alcohol) is a component in fuel for cars and boats.

Is moonshine worse than whiskey?

The short answer? Absolutely nothing. Both whiskey and moonshine have the same production process – give or take a few variables. “Moonshine” came to be distinguished from whiskey for its illegal nature rather than it being a different type of alcohol – moonshine is just whiskey that hasn't been taxed.

Is white dog the same as moonshine?

White Dog is the name for unaged American whiskeys. They might also be referred to as "Moonshine", and are a throwback to the days of yore, before American whiskey was aged.

Is bourbon the same as moonshine?

Moonshine is most similar to bourbon in flavor but is rougher and less complex as it hasn't been aged. The two drinks are very different and are not meant to be mixed together. Even though many people compare moonshine and vodka, they are very different drinks.

What is pure alcohol called?

Isopropyl alcohol is pure alcohol and is a colorless liquid with a musty, sharp odor. There are no other ingredients in a bottle of isopropyl alcohol.

Is vodka an ethanol?

Distilled spirits (whisky, gin, vodka) usually contain 40–50% ethanol; wines contain 10–12% ethanol and beer ranges from 2–6% ethanol, while standard lager contains about 4% ethanol.

Which alcohol has the most ethanol?

Is Bourbon an ethyl alcohol?

Unlike vodka, whiskeys are aged, often in oak barrels, which add even more flavor compounds. At that point, the whiskey is somewhere between 55% and 65% ethanol, water making up most the rest. Most whiskey makers will add more water to bring the ethanol concentration down to 40%—80 proof in liquor lingo.

Why is moonshine illegal?

So why is moonshine still illegal? Because the liquor is worth more to the government than beer or wine. Uncle Sam takes an excise tax of $2.14 for each 750-milliliter bottle of 80-proof spirits, compared with 21 cents for a bottle of wine (of 14 percent alcohol or less) and 5 cents for a can of beer.

What alcohol is least damaging to liver?

According to a new study published in Oxford's Alcohol and Alcoholism journal, scientists discovered that hoppy beer is significantly less harmful to the liver than liquor and even beer without hops.