Chapter 265: Freshly Made Liquor
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
The way movies portrayed America’s love for authentic Chinese food was over exaggerated. When Li Du made some diced honey chicken, and sweet and sour ribs, they weren’t exactly authentic Chinese dishes.
He also made General Tso's chicken, which was a dish he discovered after coming to America. For some reason, Americans loved it, so he went and learned how to make it.
Hannah was grilling apples, and said, "This time, I’m going to make a few varieties. Ice-cream grilled apples, olio grilled apples, and grilled apple smoothies. I think they’ll turn out pretty good."
Li Du patted her on the shoulder and said, "Of course—that’s the best dessert in Flagstaff."
Stephen, who was grilling the meat, turned his head toward them and said, "No, Li, that’s not the best dessert in Flagstaff. You should try the rainbow rolls that my grandma makes. I swear, you’ll fall in love…"
As he spoke, his voice became softer, as the look that Hannah was giving him was getting sterner.
Li Du laughed loudly, and patted Stephen on the shoulder too. "Buddy, you’re blessed with a great a girlfriend."
Stephen gave an awkward chuckle.
Outside, Hans and Godzilla started brewing the alcohol. A bonfire was lit, and the boiler was hung on top of it. It started pumping out hot steam.
"What did you guys use to make it?" Li Du asked.
"Cornstarch and pig’s feed," Hans said.
Li Du glared at him. "Huh? This better not be a joke!"
"Buddy, that’s where you need to learn more about this," Hans said. "Corn starch is one of the ingredients for making whiskey. Pig’s feed has the same effect because pigs mainly eat corn. Their feet are also much easier to get."
"And, the ingredients don’t attract attention," Godzilla added.
As making moonshine was illegal, at one point in time, people had to be careful when buying corn, because they might have been listed as trying to purchase ingredients for making it.
What they were doing now was considered illegal.
Still, if it were just for personal consumption and not for sale, the cops would leave them alone. This was the kind of thing that, as long as no one reported anything, the cops wouldn’t pursue.
Li Du sucked in a breath of air and said, "You guys really bought pig’s feed to make the alcohol?"
Hans saw that Li had taken him seriously, and cracked up. "For me, it's not so easy to get pig’s feed. Alright, I’ll tell you the truth. I used a mix of corn starch and malt."
When Americans made their moonshine, they tended to soak the cornflour in the hot waters of the boiler. Sometimes, sugar was added, and they might even use sugar to replace some of the cereal. This would make the fermentation process quicker.
However, traditional moonshine makers would add in corn to convert the starch in the cornflour to sugar. Then, yeast would be added to begin the fermentation process.
The corn pulp that Hans was using was one the most common ingredients for fermenting alcohol. It was an after-product of converting corn into a sugary mix, followed by the addition of yeast.
The flames below the boiler were burning turbulently, but Hans was still unsatisfied with the heat. "We’re not prepared enough. We should have used propane as fuel."
"No need to be impatient—we have enough time to evaporate the alcohol."
Ordinary brewing was simple. All that was needed was to put the mixture of ingredients into the boiler, and to let the alcohol evaporate.
Alcohol was a volatile substance. With the increase in temperature, the pressure in the boiler would increase, which would increase the volatility of the alcohol.
With that, the alcohol vapor was compressed through the columns, and the first few drops of alcohol formed.
Li Du was curiously observing the process until he received a call. Sophie had arrived.
He walked out of the small forested area, and spotted the female doctor at the roadside.
As the weather was warm, Sophie was wearing a Bardot dress that had a spotted design and ruffled sleeves—it brought out a refreshing, sweet side of her.
As the dress had a tight waist, it emphasized Sophie’s stunning figure. To prevent herself from getting sunburned, she paired her outfit with a flowery sun hat, making her look like a sweet girl on vacation.
Seeing Li Du, the female doctor exclaimed, "Woah! Where did you come from? I thought I was going to be robbed!"
Li Du made a welcoming gesture, and said, "Our cabin is like the homes of the Hobbits or like Hogwarts. It’s hidden very well."
The two entered the property. Hans stood up and shouted, "Welcome, welcome. We are pleased by the arrival of the most beautiful woman in Flagstaff."
Sophie covered her mouth and said, "Oh Hans, you’re still such a sweet-talker."
Hans threw his hands up and acted as if he were innocent. "Oh gosh, I’m just stating the truth! By the way, how did you get here? I didn’t hear any cars coming."
Sophie shrugged, "I hailed a cab. It dropped me off somewhere nearby, and I walked over. So that’s probably why you didn’t hear any cars."
"You didn’t drive?" Li Du asked casually.
Embarrassed, Sophie said, "I don’t have a license, so I can’t drive."
Li Du was surprised. All the adult Americans he knew could drive!
Hannah came out and greeted Sophie. Both of them knew each other, and seeing that Hannah was busy making desserts, Sophie took off her hat and went to help. Li Du stayed behind with Hans to make the alcohol.
Then, the columns started making thumping noises. Li Du was taken aback, and asked, "What’s that?"
"Oh, its normal, no worries," Hans said. "The alcohol is being compressed into the container, but some stuff from the mixture will be forced out with the vapor. When it drops into the container, that’s the sound it makes."
Hans told Li Du that this container was called a thump keg; it evaporated the alcohol once again to filter out any residue.
As he introduced, he kept pouring more corn mash in.
"What’s that for?" Li Du asked.
"These are fillers," Hans said. "By adding unpurified mash or some alcohol into the keg, when the vapor flows into the spiral cooling pipes, there will be more alcohol vapor, which will make the final product stronger."
"We don’t need to make such hard liquor, do we?" Li Du said.
"It’s okay if you don’t want to drink hard liquor. There’s beer and juice in the fridge," Hans said.
Li Du scoffed, "I’m concerned for you! You might not be able to drink it if it’s too strong."
The vapor left the thumping keg and flowed into the spiral pipes, which were also made of silver.
Outside of the pipes was a crate. In it was cold water drawn from the well. The water was there to cool down the alcohol vapor.
At the end of the pipes, was a nozzle. That was the place for the final filtering, where the product that came out would be clear and concentrated moonshine. Once it was poured into bottles, it could be sold.
The first bottle of whiskey was made. They were about to celebrate, when a police vehicle suddenly drove by.
With the sirens blaring, Hans instinctively threw the bottle into the fire and shouted, "Quick! Pour it out!"