Sweet Summer Drink: How To Make Watermelon Moonshine

Watermelons are 92% water, so they’re perfect for hot and humid days. Today we’re making the summer-themed spirit, Watermelon moonshine.

Watermelons are hydrating, improve digestion, and they’re good for your diet because they contain plenty of nutrients for your body to absorb. They’re also a great snack to have after a trip to the gym because they’re known to relieve muscle soreness.

Watermelon moonshine is easy to make; all you need is watermelons, raisins, sugarcane, and yeast. All the ingredients will have to go through the process of standard moonshine making , such as mashing, fermentation, and distillation.

Watermelon Moonshine Recipe

Back then, moonshine was made during the night; that’s why they’re called moonshiners. Watermelon is more of a daytime snack, so why don’t we mix these two contrasting schedules and make a delicious alcoholic drink fit for the summer season .

Ingredients

• 16 oz. Hot water
• 14 g. Yeast
• 5 Watermelons
• 4 lbs. Sugar cane
• 2 lbs. Raisins

How to Make

1. Cut watermelons into chunks and use a blender to puree them.
2. Strain your puree through a cheesecloth as you pour it into a container.
3. Pour the juice into a stainless steel pot and add sugar to the mix.
4. Stir the mix until the sugar is dissolved.
5. Add the raisins and heat the mix to 160 degrees Fahrenheit.
6. Add cold water to reach your desired volume.
7. Let the mix cool down to 70 degrees Fahrenheit using a wort-chiller .
8. Prepare the yeast by adding 2 tsp of sugar and yeast to the water.
9. Using a Brix refractometer , do a gravity reading on your mix. Get a drop from your mix to use. Once it’s around 1.065, that’s when it starts producing alcohol.

Note: If your reading is low, add 100% pure sugar cane until you get the desired reading.

1. Pour your mix into a fermenter bucket to add some air into your mix.
2. After being properly aerated, transfer the mix to a fermenter jug .
3. Pour in the yeast starter to the mix. Close with an airlock and store in a dark and cool area.
4. Let it ferment for a week. If the bubbles in the airlock slow down or stop, do a gravity reading. The gravity reading should read as 1.010 or below for it to be done.
5. Let your concoction settle for 3 days.
6. Using a siphon , funnel it into a copper still .
7. Distill your mix and refrigerate to get some of the flavors back.

Watermelon Moonshine Cocktails

Here are some watermelon cocktail recipes to get you into a beach party mood.

Watermelon Crawl Moonshine

This watermelon moonshine cocktail brings a little sparkle into your outdoor summer barbeque. Friends and family will definitely find this drink luscious.

Ingredients

• 4 oz. Lemonade
• 1.5 oz. Moonshine
• Half a lemon
• Fresh Watermelon (cubed)
• Cherries
• Sprite
• Ice

How To Make

1. Squeeze the lemon into the shaker with ice.
2. Add the lemonade, moonshine, cherries, and a splash of sprite into the shake.
3. Shake and pour into your tumbler.
4. Drop the watermelon into the cocktail and serve.

Watermelon Jalapeño Moonshine

If you prefer a little more spice than sparkle, this drink is for you. It adds that extra heat for those cool breezes at the beach.

Ingredients

• 11 oz. Simple Syrup
• 6 oz. Moonshine
• Watermelon (chopped)
• Jalapeño (sliced)

How to Make

1. Pour your jalapeño and Moonshine into a sealed container and let it steep for 10 minutes.
2. Strain the mix and add the watermelon.
3. Let it steep for 48 hours in a cool, dry place.
4. Strain the mix and add simple syrup.
5. Store in the refrigerator to let the flavors come back.

Watermelon Lime

This watermelon moonshine cocktail will give you that zesty feel you need for those hot days. Fish and lime go hand in hand, making this drink the perfect pair for your catch of the day.

Ingredients

• 160g Sugar
• 12 oz. Water
• 8 oz. Moonshine
• 8 oz. Watermelon Syrup
• 4 oz. Lime Juice
• Watermelon (chunks)

How to Make

1. Pour your watermelon chunks and moonshine into a sealed container and let it steep.
2. Pour the lime juice, sugar, and water into a pot. Heat and stir the pot until all the sugar is dissolved.
3. Take it off the heat and let it cool.
4. Pour the mix into the sealed container.
5. Store it in the refrigerator for 48 hours.
6. Pour the mix into a bowl and mash the watermelons to get all the flavors out.
7. Strain the mixture back into a shaker and add the watermelon syrup. Shake and pour it back into your container.
8. Store the container in the freezer until it’s ready to drink.

Note: If you store it for 4 hours, you can get an instant slushy!

Conclusion

Watermelon moonshine is a unique and fun drink to make, but remember that making your own moonshine is still considered a crime, so tread lightly. But that shouldn’t stop you from trying out other watermelon themed recipes and refreshing fruity cocktails .

Which watermelon moonshine recipe do you want to try? Let us know in the comments below.