Sweet Mash and Sour Mash from 1818
Posted: Mon Apr 16, 2007 5:53 pm
I have here a transcript of recipes for sweet mash and sour mash methods of distilling from the Catherine Carpenter Family Papers of the Kentucky Historical Society.
“Receipt for Distilling Corn Meal Sweet Mash, 1818
To a hundred gallon tub put in a bushel and a half of hot water then a half a bushel
of meal Stir it well then one bushel of water & then a half bushel of meal;
so no untill (sic) you have mashed one bushel and a half of corn meal - Stir it all
effectively then sprinkle a double handful of meal over the mash let it stand two
hours then pour over the mash 2 gallons of warm water put in a half gallon of malt
stir that well into the mash then stir in a half a bushel of Rye or wheat meal. Stir
it well for 15 minutes put in another half gallon of malt. Stir it well and very
frequently untill (sic) you can bear your hand in the mash up to your wrist then
put in three bushels of cold slop or one gallon of good yeast then fill up with cold
water. If you use yeast put in the cold water first and then the yeast. If you have
neither yeast or Slop put in three peck of Beer from the bottom of a tub.”
On back of paper -
“Receipt for Distilling by a Sour Mash
Put into the mash tub Six busheles (sic) of very hot slop then put in one Bushel
of corn meal ground pretty course Stir well then sprinkle a little meal over the
mash let it stand 5 days that is 3 full days betwist the Day you mash and the day
you cool off - on the fifth day put in 3 gallons of warm water then put in one gallon
of rye meal and one gallon of malt work it well into the malt and stir for 3 quarters of
an hour then fill the tub half full of Luke warm water. Stir it well and with a fine sieve
or otherwise Break all the lumps fine then let stand for three hours then fill up the
tub with luke warm water.
For warm weather - five bushels of slop instead of six let it stand an hour and a half
Instead of three hours and cold water instead of warm.
A Receipt for Destilling (sic)
By Sweet and Sour Mash May 18, 1818"
These recipes are interesting to me because it seems to me that in the sour mash they are simply making it as close to the conditions of the previous batch to catch the same type of yeast. The yeast would of course all be dead from the slop since the heat of the pot still would kill the yeast in the beer.
I am also wondering about the sweet mash where she states that you should take three peck of beer from the bottom of the tub - does this indicate a bottom fermenting yeast?
“Receipt for Distilling Corn Meal Sweet Mash, 1818
To a hundred gallon tub put in a bushel and a half of hot water then a half a bushel
of meal Stir it well then one bushel of water & then a half bushel of meal;
so no untill (sic) you have mashed one bushel and a half of corn meal - Stir it all
effectively then sprinkle a double handful of meal over the mash let it stand two
hours then pour over the mash 2 gallons of warm water put in a half gallon of malt
stir that well into the mash then stir in a half a bushel of Rye or wheat meal. Stir
it well for 15 minutes put in another half gallon of malt. Stir it well and very
frequently untill (sic) you can bear your hand in the mash up to your wrist then
put in three bushels of cold slop or one gallon of good yeast then fill up with cold
water. If you use yeast put in the cold water first and then the yeast. If you have
neither yeast or Slop put in three peck of Beer from the bottom of a tub.”
On back of paper -
“Receipt for Distilling by a Sour Mash
Put into the mash tub Six busheles (sic) of very hot slop then put in one Bushel
of corn meal ground pretty course Stir well then sprinkle a little meal over the
mash let it stand 5 days that is 3 full days betwist the Day you mash and the day
you cool off - on the fifth day put in 3 gallons of warm water then put in one gallon
of rye meal and one gallon of malt work it well into the malt and stir for 3 quarters of
an hour then fill the tub half full of Luke warm water. Stir it well and with a fine sieve
or otherwise Break all the lumps fine then let stand for three hours then fill up the
tub with luke warm water.
For warm weather - five bushels of slop instead of six let it stand an hour and a half
Instead of three hours and cold water instead of warm.
A Receipt for Destilling (sic)
By Sweet and Sour Mash May 18, 1818"
These recipes are interesting to me because it seems to me that in the sour mash they are simply making it as close to the conditions of the previous batch to catch the same type of yeast. The yeast would of course all be dead from the slop since the heat of the pot still would kill the yeast in the beer.
I am also wondering about the sweet mash where she states that you should take three peck of beer from the bottom of the tub - does this indicate a bottom fermenting yeast?