Zombie Research Society
Red Star Active Dry Wine Yeast and Orange Juice
Summary: As I’ve said before, the zombie apocalypse doesn’t have to be fire and brimstone all the time. If you can find a safe place to stay, you can still have a good time. Of course, you might wonder what a good time looks like since it may have been awhile since you’ve actually had one. Well, that is where the Brew-pocalyse comes in!
Review: This simple brew is made out of fresh squeezed orange juice and yeast… that’s it! If you’d like to make your own brew, simply watch the video and then try it out yourself. Feel free to use any other type of fruit that you’d like. And if you don’t have any packaged yeast, the video explains that you can also use wild yeast by letting it sit uncovered for a day or two before covering to create the fermentation needed. The brew featured in the video is somewhat bitter and/or sour due to the fact that I included some pith from the orange itself, but it definitely has alcohol in it. Just think of this as an orange flavored beer. Anyway, this type of brew was done to show that you could use almost anything you find in the wild as long as it contains some type of sugar in it so fermentation can occur.
Conclusion: If you’re looking for a simple way to make an alcoholic drink to hold you over during the zombie apocalypse, then this is what you need! Try different combinations of fruit to find what you like best and go from there! Also, please be responsible: If you are under 21, or your state prohibits the production of alcohol in your home, be smart and don’t attempt this. Thanks for reading and remember; what you don’t know can eat you!
The Zombie Files is a new video review column from ZRS Board Member Cameron Carlson. Feel free to leave any questions or suggestions in the comments below!
HEALTH WARNING
It should be noted that, while it would be perfectly safe to drink fermented orange juice (in moderation, of course), attempting to distill this beverage, especially in a simple pot or reflux still, could result toxic concentrations of methanol (methyl alcohol). Though methanol is present in orange wine as a product of fermentation, it is very dilute, and buffered by the presence of ethanol. However, it evaporates more readily than ethanol, and so is significantly concentrated in distillate.
Methanol is produced by the fermentation of any juice containing pectin. Therefore, as a rule of thumb, you should not consume the “brandy” of any fruit from which you can normally make jam. Additionally, the juice of apples and pears naturally contains methanol. In theory, methanol has use as a fuel, but since it evaporates readily, and burns without a visible flame, its uses are very limited.
Thanks for this!
The drink is called sturm. It can be made with any juice. Usually is 6-8 percent alcohol.