Reddit mentions of Distillers Yeast (DADY) (1 lb. bulk pack)

It's going to be super fucking yeasty and might make you sick. Adding more yeast can speed along fermentation, but there's a point of diminishing returns that you're far past. IMO tiny batches are never a good idea, especially when your chances for infection are so high. I'd at LEAST use a 2L soda bottle, a better option is a gallon milk jug that you fill about 2/3s so you have enough space for the foam and it can fill a 2L bottle after it's done.

​

If you want the cheapest starting batch, this is my go-to:

(in a gallon milk jug)

2L water

1-2 cup white sugar (2 cups will put it at about 20% ABV max, but it is unlikely you will reach this level without a "real" setup. It will however add some sweetness which could be good or bad depending on your tastes).

Some fruit (Anything really, whatever's cheaply available. You can blend it if you want to go through the effort of straining it, but cutting it into small pieces should work just fine. This is for nutrients more than flavor, but if you add a bunch it will ferment faster and taste more like the fruit.)

1 tsp yeast (You said you have champagne yeast, which should work perfectly. I have some cheap distillers yeast I got off of amazon that will last me just about forever. It can reach ~20%, but the end project tastes like shit.)

A balloon (Pack of ten at the dollar store. These work just as well as normal airlocks, no need to spend anything more.)

​

Simplest way is to just mix everything together in a gallon jug and put a balloon over the top (poke a few tiny holes with a needle).

​

An easy way to decrease the chance of the fermentation stalling is to activate the yeast. Once it foams up about .5 cm you should be good to dump it in with the rest of the ingredients. You can also boil everything first, excluding the yeast (and balloon of course), first and foremost for sanitation, but this will also help extract the sugar from your fruit and make it easier for the yeast to use. It will also make the fruit flavor come through a bit more. None of the steps in this paragraph are required, but if you have some spare time you can experiment a bit.

​

Place it in a cool area (room temperature during late fall / winter is perfectly fine) and KEEP IT AWAY FROM LIGHT! Since you're trying to be discreet in your dorm this shouldn't be an issue, I assume you've already found a place to keep it out of sight. If not, just find an empty box or tub.

​

Finally, you just have to wait. Just try and forget about it, maybe check on it every 5 days or so. Once the balloon deflates completely (probably in about 15 days), it's close to the max ABV and technically drinkable. Pop the cap on, maybe siphon it to a smaller bottle. I personally would let it sit for a week or so to let the yeast settle out, but drinking it at this stage wouldn't hurt you, aside from a bit of indigestion. I'd try to drink it within the month or refrigerate it, since there's a possibility it is infected and could slowly turn to vinegar.

​

I have a moderate tolerance, and 2L is enough to get me completely snoggered. If I left you with any questions don't hesitate to ask.

you will never go back to store bought booze once you can distill a nice shine, if you need tips head on over to hd..

edit if you want to buy more yeast on amazon look into safale-05 or you can buy dady in bulk cheap..if you wanna pay postage i'll send you some turbo yeast so you can make sugar w(h)ine @ 20%abv.... it will taste awful and make you pee out yer butt if you don't distill it, yet its almost free

Yep. Yeast just need water at an optimal temperature (normally around 70 degrees) to breed and an energy source like sugar or starches converted to sugar using enzymes (corn).

I just use C&H sugar cane sugar which works well and they sell at Costo in 25 lbs bags, though if I see other basic sugar for sale in the store for cheaper I buy it.

Here is the bird watcher calculator on which ingredients to use. On that page there is a link to basic instructions as well as the forum post about the recipe with almost 50 pages of people posting about results, changes to recipe, etc.

With those instructions you don't really need to do the heater step, just keep them in a room you have a descent temperature in (kitchen, bed room, where ever). Also invest the money in good fermenting bucket(s) and an air lock. Air lock is like $1.50 but it will keep you from ruining batchs. A good 6 gallon fermenting bucket + lid is like $20 and air tight which again helps keep batches from failing.

http://shuggo.com/birdwatchers/calculator.htm

This is the yeast I use. This stuff lasts me like 6+ months doing weekly 15 gallon batches and it is very inexpensive for the volume you buy it in. It is based off the yeast strain Lalvin EC-1118 which is a very good strain used by many people.

http://www.amazon.com/Distillers-Yeast-DADY-bulk-pack/dp/B00SWXNG8A/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top?ie=UTF8

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00SWXNG8A/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Distiller's yeast is the nuclear option for stuck fermentation. One of my first meads stuck, so I diluted it into a larger batch and re-pitched with distiller's yeast - fermented dry to 16% ABV. But if you're lucky and smart, you can get 20-22% ABV out of it (with nutrient and sugar additions).