They say that every solid, matured for more than one year drink has its own soul! It so happened that their original strong alcoholic drinks exist in many countries of the world. Whiskey, gin, tequila, sake, rum, vodka, cognac - and this is not the whole list of original alcohol, enjoyed with pleasure on holidays and just for a good mood.
Grape chacha
These drinks can be safely attributed to this one. Georgian Chacha has all the possible advantages. It has a unique taste and rightfully takes its rightful place in the list. One of the symbols of Georgian national cuisine and hospitality, of course, is chacha. How many degrees are in it and how can you cook it at home with your own hands, we will describe in this article.
A bit of history
This grape strong alcoholic drink can be attributed to the brandy family (the Italian grappa is an analogue, and the southern Slavs make a similar drink - brandy). Its history goes back to ancient times, and the subtleties of production are passed down by the locals from generation to generation. According to some reports, in Georgia there was a cultivation of grapes already seven thousand years ago! Where vineyards, winemaking developed. And as a result - the production of stronger drinks by distillation of process wastes (squeezing and unripe brushes). Georgians jokingly say that distillation cubes themselves were invented much later than chacha. How many degrees are “standard” in a drink? Usually, traditionally, he is stronger than his "soul mates" who amuse the soul; a fortress can reach 60!
Some more historical facts
- They say that Stalin at the conference in Yalta offered Roosevelt and Churchill this national drink and noted that this is the best vodka of all kinds! True, the leader of the peoples himself preferred dry wines.
- In 2011, khachapuri, suluguni and chacha became Georgian national brands, officially patented.
What is chacha? How many degrees is it?
Some mistakenly consider the drink a kind of moonshine, but this is not so. It is produced without the addition of sugar and yeast, therefore, in essence, it is not moonshine. For production, those grapes clusters that are not suitable for winemaking along with combs are most often taken. The cake left over from the production of wine also goes into business. It is believed that it is unripe grapes that reduce acidity, increasing PH. Due to this, the increased strength of the drink is not so felt, a mild taste appears. They use grapes “Rkatsiteli” (Western Georgia), “Isabella” and “Kachich” (Abkhazia and Adjara). Sometimes chacha is not made from grapes, but cherry plum or figs are used, for example. Such alcoholic drinks usually require strict control of the pulp composition. A mixture of grape varieties is added to some varieties to get a unique bouquet. Sometimes even unpressed grapes.
Do it yourself
Home chacha is usually distilled twice. But there is a product and triple distillation. Traditionally, it is not diluted, no matter how strong it is. And to give a noble cognac color can be used oak bark and tincture of walnut husks. During factory distillation, the resulting alcohol (70-80 degrees) is diluted to the desired consistency, sometimes it is kept in oak containers to obtain a noble taste and bouquet.
Quality checking
An interesting way to check the quality of the drink "in the folk." Finger is dipped into the cup with chacha, pulled out and set on fire. If the chacha burned out, but the finger did not burn, then the quality is considered high.
Recipe
In general, according to the rules, you need to take cake and waste grapes of certain varieties (see above). Moreover, the chacha should ferment on its natural yeast, and alcohol should not be added. The classic recipe does not use sugar either.
Ingredients: waste (cake) grapes and immature substandard clusters with ridges - 25 kilograms, pure spring water - 50 liters.
Do not wash the grapes! Do not remove the bones! But gently knead so that they do not crush.
All the cake and squeezed berries are placed in an appropriate volume container (up to 100 liters). Add spring water, stirring with a wooden spatula. An additional 20 percent of the room for carbon dioxide should remain in the dishes. We put the capacity in a dark warm place (operating temperature - from 22 to 30 degrees). Set the water shutter. Yeast-free fermentation lasts longer than usual. Fermentation sometimes occurs in two to three months. Mix the mash every three days (if this is not done, the surface may become moldy). When carbon dioxide (bubbles) stops coming out - the mash is ready for further processing. At this moment, it tastes slightly bitter, but don’t be alarmed. Subsequently, bitterness will merge with the general smack and leave. After that, some prefer to filter the liquid through the filter. And some do not do this, believing that the solid parts of the mash will give a special taste to the future drink. As a filter, if desired, you can use the most ordinary gauze.
Distilled chacha in a cube, like moonshine. The first grams are separated, as they are considered harmful to health. This is followed by the main fraction, which is constantly checked for strength with an alcohol meter or folk methods (you can drop a few drops in a saucer and set fire to it). When the fortress falls below forty (accordingly, the chacha ceases to burn when set on fire), stop the intake of the drink. The last fraction is collected separately.
After the first distillation, the liquid is diluted and another distillation is carried out according to the same principle. It turns out a clean drink. You can apply additional purification with charcoal or potassium permanganate. So you can make such a delicious homemade grape drink like chacha. How many degrees will be when bottling it, you decide. Some say it’s best not to dilute homemade chacha. Others prefer to dilute to 45 degrees using spring water (we measure the strength with an alcohol meter). In any case, chacha is a soft drink and is used quite easily compared, for example, with moonshine.