Making Traditional rice Wine. Cheap, Fun, and Different

lakeslad said:

...and im still here!!

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Lol. I not only don't clear and decant, I actually shake mine before pouring and I'm still kicking around.

So I was reading a write up about this wine. And says this. Rice Beer. Take the fermented sweet rice but in a 600ml coke squeeze out some air screw top tight and ferment until hard in the fridge. Says do not filter the rice out. full of nutrients.

I ended up chucking my first batch because it didn't taste quite right (sour and yeasty). In hindsight I think it may have had to do with my choice of rice which was gluten free and was what we had in the cupboard. Started a new batch using Thai jasmine and after two days it is smelling, and tasting better.

Just racked mine of the rice. Regardless of the earlier bad vinegar taste it now tastes amazing. I got just shy of a gallon from 11 cups of jasmine rice cooked on the stove top. I poured one glass I'm drinking now and the rest is cold crashing.

lakeslad said:

that looks great mate, just what mine looks like after standing, i didn't decant mine as i found even tipping the bottle up to pour a shot disturbs the sediment so i usually drank some with the wine...and im still here!!

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sonofgrok said:

Lol. I not only don't clear and decant, I actually shake mine before pouring and I'm still kicking around.

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Oh, I don't think it will hurt me. I do have a "yeasty" or "bready" aftertaste I don't really care for is all. In pretty much everything else I've brewed that has been due to yeast particles suspended in the brew.

I'm trying to reduce the particulates to see if it that changes the flavor profile. I'm not worried about getting a crystal clear brew. The nice thing about this stuff is that it definitely doesn't need to age, even though it's clearly very high in alcohol. No "hot" alcohol at all. That means that I don't really want to just let the stuff sit in the bottle for a month or more while the yeasty flavor goes away.

Also I dropped my alcometer into it and it read just under 20 proof. No way of telling exactly how high it is because the alcometer starts at 20

Cant wait to start tomorrow, found the yeast balls .99 cents for 12. The older lady behind the counter at the Asian market when she rang me up said "Ohhhh you make some good stuff huh? Bring me sample sometime." Lol

Hopper77 said:

Also I dropped my alcometer into it and it read just under 20 proof. No way of telling exactly how high it is because the alcometer starts at 20

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Since there is unfermented sugar in the mix, I don't think an alcoholometer is capable of taking an accurate reading. Those things are designed to measure distilled spirits, which contain only alcohol and water is large amounts. I'm pretty sure the presence of the dissolved sugar would completely screw up the reading.

GunnyB said:

I ended up chucking my first batch because it didn't taste quite right (sour and yeasty). In hindsight I think it may have had to do with my choice of rice which was gluten free and was what we had in the cupboard. Started a new batch using Thai jasmine and after two days it is smelling, and tasting better.

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Gunny,

All rice is gluten free. When a rice is "glutinous", they're describing its stickiness as similar to gluten. The problem is more likely that something got into your brew. As others have said, this wine is susceptible to infection.

I do think the flavor of the rice has a lot to do with the flavor of the final product as well though. Mine being thai jasimine which I find very sweet and pleasant to eat as rice gives me a sweet pleasant drink that I think tastes a lot like thai jasmine. I could imagine getting a pretty bleh wine using like a pilaf style rice. yuck.

I'm sure someone has done it. So what spices or fruits have been infused successfully ie blueberries vanilla beans etc. for good flavors and what have failed also what is the best way to infuse, add them in the beginning with the rice so they can take part in the break down and fermentation Or infuse in the finished product after draining/straining it? Also how are you guys cleaning the fruits of wild yeasts? Boiling, rinsing in spirits, or is the alcohol content of this high enough to do that on its own?

3 days now and mine has released enough liquid that it's almost covered the top of the rice. I opened it and took a whiff, it smelled delicious in a very yeasty way, and made my eyes and nose burn assuring me that it's releasing a ton of Co2. Also, I think what some people may be thinking is mold is actually just hydrated yeast ball. I know I had a lot of yeast ball mixture on the top of mine, and it has hydrated and resembles fuzzy mold but there's no way mold could have developed this soon.

A squeeze of a lemon into a small glass of rice wine was very nice two nights ago.

bknifefight said:

A squeeze of a lemon into a small glass of rice wine was very nice two nights ago.

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Glad to hear citrus went well. I thought about adding a squeeze of juice from a fresh orange, and tossing a vanilla bean into the jar to soak, or I could use dried sweet orange peel like what is used in some witbier? (I've heard OJ ferments awful)

Marauder said:

Glad to hear citrus went well. I thought about adding a squeeze of juice from a fresh orange, and tossing a vanilla bean into the jar to soak, or I could use dried sweet orange peel like what is used in some witbier? (I've heard OJ ferments awful)

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I always add fruit juice but always after fermentation. I have done fresh squeezed pomegranate and blueberry both with great success.

bottlebomber said:

3 days now and mine has released enough liquid that it's almost covered the top of the rice. I opened it and took a whiff, it smelled delicious in a very yeasty way, and made my eyes and nose burn assuring me that it's releasing a ton of Co2. Also, I think what some people may be thinking is mold is actually just hydrated yeast ball. I know I had a lot of yeast ball mixture on the top of mine, and it has hydrated and resembles fuzzy mold but there's no way mold could have developed this soon.

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Rice doesn't have any diastatic power to self convert, though. So, the enzymes must be coming from somewhere.

wooda2008 said:

Gunny,

All rice is gluten free. When a rice is "glutinous", they're describing its stickiness as similar to gluten. The problem is more likely that something got into your brew. As others have said, this wine is susceptible to infection.

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Oh, I thought the gluten free was some kind of fat free/ diet thing. Anyhoo...the Thai jasmine is coming along swimmingly. I probably should have worked with the first batch more but straining it turned into a total disaster.

weirdboy said:

Rice doesn't have any diastatic power to self convert, though. So, the enzymes must be coming from somewhere.

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Right, the "yeast ball" must have some sort of enzyme in it. I would actually really like to learn more about what is in those things.

GunnyB said:

Oh, I thought the gluten free was some kind of fat free/ diet thing. Anyhoo...the Thai jasmine is coming along swimmingly. I probably should have worked with the first batch more but straining it turned into a total disaster.

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What "gluten free" rice means is that it is certified to have not been harvested or processed on equipment that is shared with wheat. It doesn't matter for most people, but some folks are literally one bagel away from death so it is a concern for them.

What final gravity are you guys bottling at? I realize an o.g. cannot be taken, but Ive reasoned vinegar has a gravity of its own so perhaps by doing a reading every few days that transformation could be avoided. I am on day 10 of two batches, a 4 gallon that I've kept at 90 degrees which has a reading of 1.038 and a 3 gallon kept around 72 which is still to thick to get a reading. Perhaps my logic is flawed. Has anyone that has bottled taken readings? (I assume bottle around .990-1.050) Thanks

I haven't been taking readings. I'll get some from the big batch this weekend. Based on the taste, I'd guess my small batch was around 1.010 - 1.015. Though that's just a guess.

What percentage would you estimate it was? And do you think it was too sweet at that final gravity? I've bottled 600ml at 1.060 and 1.050 so far and will bottle my next at 1.025. Cold crashed both of what I bottled already. Figure I'll trial and error heat, duration and recipe on my first go at this. Obviously my first 2 bottles were to soon, but it will help gauge the taste evolution.

If I was to guess, about 20%. The burn is similar to a wine I made that is 18.7%, this does seem to be a touch stronger. I don't think it was to sweet. Actually, it was slightly tangy, so there was a little acetic acid present. Honestly, I think that actually adds to the flavor at this point. Actually, it was a little on the dry side. It smelled mostly of plum. It did have a yeasty aftertaste.

I just tasted the clear layer from the green bottle. No more yeast taste, but a slightly earthy aftertaste. It reminds me of mushrooms. Very smooth. My sample really isn't big enough to get a gravity reading without wasting more of it then I'm willing to from this batch. My guess at the gravity is based on the lack of sweetness in the liquid, so it is just a guess. I'll get you better data from the large batch that will be harvested this weekend. Both batches have been made from cheap long grain rice, which I believe will also greatly influence the flavor.

I already posted these, but...
Pic 1 Day 25, day before harvesting.
Pic 2 What I yielded after harvesting.
Pic 3 What it looked like after 2 days in the fridge.

I hope that helps.

kosciel4 said:

What final gravity are you guys bottling at? I realize an o.g. cannot be taken, but Ive reasoned vinegar has a gravity of its own so perhaps by doing a reading every few days that transformation could be avoided. (I assume bottle around .990-1.050) Thanks

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The gravity of vinegar has nothing to do with formation of vinegar...acetobacter aceti is the reason it forms. The specific gravity ("Sp.G.") of a liquid tells you how much more or less dense the liquid is than water. Water has a specific gravity of 1.000 (near 4°C). If a liquid is more dense than water, then its specific gravity is greater than 1. If it is less dense than water, then the specific gravity is less than 1.

Since we start with solids for this ferment there really is no reliable home method to determine the ACV. You can try a vinometer but those seem to be hit or miss. The history of this wine has indicated that pasteurization is the way to stabilize for consumption. So if you bottle and have any residual sugar, ie SG greater than 1.000, you really need to consider pasteurization, or keep it cold but realize it will still ferment at a snail's pace.

Marauder said:

I'm sure someone has done it. So what spices or fruits have been infused successfully ie blueberries vanilla beans etc. for good flavors and what have failed also what is the best way to infuse, add them in the beginning with the rice so they can take part in the break down and fermentation Or infuse in the finished product after draining/straining it? Also how are you guys cleaning the fruits of wild yeasts? Boiling, rinsing in spirits, or is the alcohol content of this high enough to do that on its own?

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As far as how to deal with any potential wild yeast from your fruit you need to look at your source. If you are using fresh/frozen you can dose with k-meta just like winemaking, if you are using canned fruit/fruit juice you do not need to do anything--but you can always dose with k-meta if you want to. If you add the fruit after the wine is harvested I would think the alcohol content is high enough to prevent a wild ferment from taking over.
I am tempted to add some apple juice around Day 20 of a 30 day ferment, just to see how that turns out.
As far as what I have flavored with..I am hooked on vanilla bean and Bosc pears, and Asian pear with strawberry. Thinking blueberry with ginger will be pleasant. All added after cold shocking, fill jar with fruit, add wine, leave at room temp for 36 hours and then move to refrig. I remove the fruit once it has served its purpose and I notice the beginning of loss of color, typically no longer than eight days.

Saramc

Thank you, not a lot of knowledge about wine making, and haven't done many fruit beers. This is my first experiment into wine actually, and I guess is almost closer to brewing with the starch conversion etc. thanks for the info.

I was thinking about using a hydrometer and a refractometer to divine the final alcohol content. I've done this with beers in the past when I forget to take an OG reading.

I'm only a week into my test batches (below) so results will have to wait until mid-Feb.

Batch #1 is 2 cups (dry) jasmine + a 10g yeast ball
Batch #2 is 2 cups (dry) sticky rice + a yeast ball

KegWrangler said:

I was thinking about using a hydrometer and a refractometer to divine the final alcohol content. I've done this with beers in the past when I forget to take an OG reading.

I'm only a week into my test batches (below) so results will have to wait until mid-March.

Batch #1 is 2 cups (dry) jasmine + a 10g yeast ball
Batch #2 is 2 cups (dry) sticky rice + a yeast ball

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Mid march? You want a 3 week ferment. Not a 3 month! Lol

How much end product is everybody getting? I see a lot of 2 cup batches as well as varying sizes. I did a 11 cup batch and got just under a gallon. That was the batch I made on the stove top. How much wine are people getting from steamed rice?

sonofgrok said:

Mid march? You want a 3 week ferment. Not a 3 month! Lol

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Wait, what month are we in??? OK, make that Mid-Feb...

Ok so the glass I had the other night was awesome. Now after it has cold crashes and cleared it tastes different. Not necessarily bad per say.....just not as good as it was. I sweetened a glass with some sugar and it kind of helped. I'm going to being it back to room temp and taste again then stir it up to get the white stuff back into it to see if that brings it back. If all else fails ill flavor with pears

Hopper77 said:

Ok so the glass I had the other night was awesome. Now after it has cold crashes and cleared it tastes different. Not necessarily bad per say.....just not as good as it was. I sweetened a glass with some sugar and it kind of helped. I'm going to being it back to room temp and taste again then stir it up to get the white stuff back into it to see if that brings it back. If all else fails ill flavor with pears

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Like I said, I always shake mine prior to pouring and its always delicious. Clearing may not be the answer!

sonofgrok said:

Like I said, I always shake mine prior to pouring and its always delicious. Clearing may not be the answer!

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I live in China （my wife is Chinese）and although rice wine drinking has died out quite a bit, my wife's great aunt is still an avid rice wine fan, drinks the stuff every meal of every day. Hers is cloudy, and sometimes still has a grain or two of rice in it.

Ive seen clear rice wine of various colors, but she prefers the cloudy stuff.

Also there is an awesome porridge that can be made by starting this wine and pulling it after 3 days to a week and eating it as is. Yummm boozy rice soup!

ezzellca said:

I live in China （my wife is Chinese）and although rice wine drinking has died out quite a bit, my wife's great aunt is still an avid rice wine fan, drinks the stuff every meal of every day.

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Thanks for the post. I'm sure if you could glean any tips from great auntie we would be happy to hear them.

bottlebomber said:

Thanks for the post. I'm sure if you could glean any tips from great auntie we would be happy to hear them.

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Absolutely!

I think I should get some jasmine rice. I thought the flavor improved after the solids dropped out of solution. That's probably because I used a pretty flavorless long grain rice though.

bottlebomber said:

Thanks for the post. I'm sure if you could glean any tips from great auntie we would be happy to hear them.

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Def. want to pick her brain for a bit. I can't go to my wifes hometown for spring festival （next week）because of visa issues. However, since I will be missing such a huge holiday I will need to visit pretty soon after, most likely April. If y'all have any questions you are interested in I can pass then along. I know I personally want to ask what type of rice she finds best, and more importantly... why.

Leadgolem said:

I'm going to try using the starch mass that was left over from my 1 quart batch to start another batch.

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How did you go with this???? I tired using the mash to a new batch and so far nothing, not even a gas bubble. Very unexpected considering how warm the room is.

jadedev said:

How did you go with this???? I tired using the mash to a new batch and so far nothing, not even a gas bubble. Very unexpected considering how warm the room is.

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I haven't gotten anything yet. It's early though. I didn't see much with the yeast balls for over a week either. Lots of yeast smell, much less plum aroma using the leftover starch mass.

I'll give it 2 weeks before I declare it a failure.

I can't see mine needing a whole 3 weeks.. It's been 4 days now, and it is already almost 1/3 wine. I tasted a little, and it was delicious. I don't think it has much alcohol yet, or none that I can taste, but it is pleasantly sweet with a tart note and amazingly aromatic. I am excited because I think the wife may actually drink this too.

Much of the alcohol conversion happens around the 20-30 day mark, from what I've read.

my first batch is an utter failure. Not much alcohol flavour at all and very yeasty smell. Not sure where I went wrong.

Perhaps I should not have so much water when I cook the rice. I used almost 3 to 1 ratio, coz the rice was very dry, so I added more water.

What sort of water to rice ratio did you guys use?