Making Traditional rice Wine. Cheap, Fun, and Different

eigua said:

You know, that's an excellent idea. I only make very small batches and no SWMBO to worry about. I will do that with my next batch and report the results here.

Edit: Just put a 2 cup dry batch of jasmine rice in tonight. Thermometer in the fridge says it's 42F.

Edit 2: 6 days later and not a sign of liquefaction.

Click to expand...

So how's it looking? How much yeast did you put in with it?

trbig said:

So how's it looking? How much yeast did you put in with it?

Click to expand...

It looks exactly how it looked on day 1. This is day 7. I'll give it 3 more days. If I see no sign of a change by day 10, I'm going to pull it out of the fridge and let it go at room temp. Edit: Maybe I'll let it go to 2 weeks before I give up.

I used 1 yeast ball. This was the same recipe as my favorite batch:

2 cups broken jasmine rice
3 cups water
1 yeast ball
Cook rice in rice cooker, cool, crush ball, mix

The last time I did it, I actually did 3 cups of dry rice with 1 yeast ball and it turned out great.

It's been 12 days in the fridge with no sign of liquefaction or change whatsoever. I took it out and will let it go at room temp and see if it recovers.

eigua said:

It's been 12 days in the fridge with no sign of liquefaction or change whatsoever. I took it out and will let it go at room temp and see if it recovers.

Click to expand...

I'm placing my bet....the yeast will come alive and make wine as usual. I have faith in the durability of these little buggers. I've put them through freezing temps and what I thought was too hot and they haven't let me down yet.

brewit75 said:

I'm placing my bet....the yeast will come alive and make wine as usual. I have faith in the durability of these little buggers. I've put them through freezing temps and what I thought was too hot and they haven't let me down yet.

Click to expand...

I'm pretty sure you're right, but I figured it would be good to test sooner than let it go even longer. Perhaps the yeast balls weren't viable anymore (about a year old). Doubtful, but possible. If it doesn't recover, I will do a new batch in the fridge with new yeast balls.

eigua said:

I'm pretty sure you're right, but I figured it would be good to test sooner than let it go even longer. Perhaps the yeast balls weren't viable anymore (about a year old). Doubtful, but possible. If it doesn't recover, I will do a new batch in the fridge with new yeast balls.

Click to expand...

Regarding age...I've used yeast balls that were at least 3 years old and still had success. In fact, I'm still trying to find a bag of yeast balls (any brand) with an expiration date.

Anyone here have a bag/brand that lists an actual expiration date?

brewit75 said:

Regarding age...I've used yeast balls that were at least 3 years old and still had success. In fact, I'm still trying to find a bag of yeast balls (any brand) with an expiration date.

Anyone here have a bag/brand that lists an actual expiration date?

Click to expand...

Heh... Good to know. Mine don't have one. They way some of the stores look that I've bought them from, I wouldn't doubt it they're already 3+ years old by the time I get them.

brewit75 said:

Regarding age...I've used yeast balls that were at least 3 years old and still had success. In fact, I'm still trying to find a bag of yeast balls (any brand) with an expiration date.

Anyone here have a bag/brand that lists an actual expiration date?

Click to expand...

Nope, never seen an expiration date and never had any issues with yeast balls that have been sitting a while.

So I started a batch of rice wine on Saturday night using 5 pds sweet rice and 4 rice yeast balls. I placed it in a 2 gallon bucket with a lid and airlock and placed in my bedroom closet. Four days later I have about 1 1/2 inches of liquid already. I couldn't wait to taste it and when I did I was surprised. It's very sweet and taste delicious but there is no alcohol taste at all. Does it turn to alcohol later? Maybe the alcohol taste is hidden in the sweetness?

2pugsrtrble said:

So I started a batch of rice wine on Saturday night using 5 pds sweet rice and 4 rice yeast balls. I placed it in a 2 gallon bucket with a lid and airlock and placed in my bedroom closet. Four days later I have about 1 1/2 inches of liquid already. I couldn't wait to taste it and when I did I was surprised. It's very sweet and taste delicious but there is no alcohol taste at all. Does it turn to alcohol later? Maybe the alcohol taste is hidden in the sweetness?

Click to expand...

The "yeast" ball consists of mold spores and yeast. The mold grows throughout the rice and creates enzymes (amylase) which convert the starches to sugar, hence the liquefaction. The yeast the starts replicating and eats the sugars to create alcohol. The basic concepts are the same as making beer, corn/potato/grain liquor except for how the enzymes get there (mold instead of activating enzymes in the barley or added after the fact for corn/potato, etc.).

What you are tasting right now is a common east Asian dessert. Put that in the refrigerator now and it won't get to the alcohol stage (quickly) and you can eat it as is. Wait a couple of weeks and you will have rice wine.

Got my first batch going. Two cups sweet glutinous rice and two yeast balls. How bad is it that I overcooked the rice? It wasn't the individual grains I'd hoped for but rather sticky and clumpy.

Tenenet said:

Got my first batch going. Two cups sweet glutinous rice and two yeast balls. How bad is it that I overcooked the rice? It wasn't the individual grains I'd hoped for but rather sticky and clumpy.

Click to expand...

So interestingly, that batch is going strong with lots of liquid. I made another batch that I steamed until the rice was easy to chew. It's been sitting with the yeast for days now without any sign of liquid. Same temperatures and other conditions.

eigua said:

It's been 12 days in the fridge with no sign of liquefaction or change whatsoever. I took it out and will let it go at room temp and see if it recovers.

Click to expand...

It's now been 12 days since I pulled it out of the fridge and only the tiniest hint of liquid can be seen. It may just be residual water. The rice has a strong smell that instantly causes me to want to sneeze. Clearly something has grown in there but apparently not the right stuff. This batch is going in the garbage can. I'll try again, this time two smaller batches, one in the fridge and one out to see if perhaps my yeast balls are at fault.

BeeDeeEff said:

Should be able to see some liquid after 1-2 days, can't tell if it is booze or rice liquifying, probably both (also my first go at this). Didn't see noticeable airlock activity until day 2. Pic below of mine in a 1 gallon wide mouth jar after 3 days:

Click to expand...

Just today I ran the contents through some cheese cloth to get most of the solids out, lots of squeezing to get the liquid out, and a few rice particles slipped by but I got most of em, here's how much liquid I got from it seen in a 1 gallon jar (bottle for scale):


Plan to let it sit and clear, before I poured it out there was a crystal clear middle layer between the two layers of rice remnants. Can definitely smell the alcohol, a light pleasant sweetish smell....a bit lemony, haven't tasted it.

Tenenet said:

So interestingly, that batch is going strong with lots of liquid. I made another batch that I steamed until the rice was easy to chew. It's been sitting with the yeast for days now without any sign of liquid. Same temperatures and other conditions.

Click to expand...

I've run two experimenvts now with steamed rice. It simply doesn't work for me. Boiled rice did. Same kind of rice. Same amount of yeast.

Tenenet said:

I've run two experimenvts now with steamed rice. It simply doesn't work for me. Boiled rice did. Same kind of rice. Same amount of yeast.

Click to expand...

Never tried steaming the rice for a batch of rice wine. Actually, I've never had success steaming rice even for consumption. Just never figured out how to do it right.

I boiled my first batch of sweet rice also. It was a gelatinous sticky glob of something similar to rice but it fermented out great . On my second larger attempt I steamed the rice and though the rice is covered completely in mold there was no liquid after 5 days. It was 4 cups of rice for a larger batch. I washed and soaked overnight too. I just poured in 2 bottled waters... it needed liquid in there. It seems to be doing better for the last 24 hours.

brewit75 said:

Never tried steaming the rice for a batch of rice wine. Actually, I've never had success steaming rice even for consumption. Just never figured out how to do it right.

Click to expand...

PartagasD4 said:

I boiled my first batch of sweet rice also. It was a gelatinous sticky glob of something similar to rice but it fermented out great . On my second larger attempt I steamed the rice and though the rice is covered completely in mold there was no liquid after 5 days. It was 4 cups of rice for a larger batch. I washed and soaked overnight too. I just poured in 2 bottled waters... it needed liquid in there. It seems to be doing better for the last 24 hours.

Click to expand...

Awesome I'm not alone. Wasted some yeast balls and rice but at least I know to go throw out my second attempt at steamed rice before wasting more time.

FYI, if it goes sour. A reason I just found out is a lack of oxygen in primary inoculation (first couple of days) before the yeast takes over. The mold needs oxygen, or it will produce acetic acid.

Thanks chonas! Great info, I didn't realize that. Luckily I was taking the lid of every day and smelling it for rancid smells so I would think it helped with the oxygen.

Served rice wine to friends over the weekend and the feedback was positive. In fact, I now have to brew more since I'm almost out. They enjoyed both regular brew and the batch with RYR.

One friend got so drunk (he was pounding it like beer) that he pretended to be a kung-fu fighter (think old karate movies from the 70s) and almost broke his leg trying to do a flying kick.

Time to make more rice wine and invite them back.

brewit75 said:

Served rice wine to friends over the weekend and the feedback was positive. In fact, I now have to brew more since I'm almost out. They enjoyed both regular brew and the batch with RYR.

One friend got so drunk (he was pounding it like beer) that he pretended to be a kung-fu fighter (think old karate movies from the 70s) and almost broke his leg trying to do a flying kick.

Time to make more rice wine and invite them back.

Click to expand...

Yeah, check page 572, Trbig had some tested at 19-20%, and I believe it.
Sake is diluted to be sold at ~15%.
Hits my friends and I like 19-20% too. To make it taste like commercial sake as well as to cut the burn and decrease the alcohol content I usually dilute it by about 1/4 with filtered water.

pdxal said:

Yeah, check page 572, Trbig had some tested at 19-20%, and I believe it.
Sake is diluted to be sold at ~15%.
Hits my friends and I like 19-20% too. To make it taste like commercial sake as well as to cut the burn and decrease the alcohol content I usually dilute it by about 1/4 with filtered water.

Click to expand...

I have to remember the dilution trick next time I'm sharing with friends. Although, I did tell them multiple times that this should be carefully sipped and treated like a spirit rather than beer/wine.

On second thought, the comedy value of warning them and then watching the drunken action was well worth it. These friends are manly masculine men who drink beer like they're in college and aren't intimidated by "wine". Which, makes it all the more funny to see them hammered by it.

I hear ya.

BeeDeeEff said:

Just today I ran the contents through some cheese cloth to get most of the solids out, lots of squeezing to get the liquid out, and a few rice particles slipped by but I got most of em, here's how much liquid I got from it seen in a 1 gallon jar (bottle for scale):

Plan to let it sit and clear, before I poured it out there was a crystal clear middle layer between the two layers of rice remnants. Can definitely smell the alcohol, a light pleasant sweetish smell....a bit lemony, haven't tasted it.

Click to expand...

Bottled today, it separated quite well with just gravity and time, though there was a lot of loss in a very loose solids layer, so I just accepted it and saved my self the work of trying to extract any more out of it. Running it through a cheese cloth before the secondary was hard enough, so I just siphoned the clear:



Came out quite nice tasting, I let it go dry, closest thing I could imagine to a flavorless fermented beverage. I bet it would taste pretty good with some lime peel, ginger, and hot peppers macerating in it. Future project me thinks.

BeeDeeEff said:

Bottled today, it separated quite well with just gravity and time, though there was a lot of loss in a very loose solids layer, so I just accepted it and saved my self the work of trying to extract any more out of it. Running it through a cheese cloth before the secondary was hard enough, so I just siphoned the clear:

Click to expand...

It's pretty much impossible to filter it anywhere close to clear in my experience. Even a paint strainer bag lets through a tremendous amount of fine solids. Coffee filters just get clogged. Gravity is the only solution. You can still drink the cloudy solids though. It's a different experience because of the distinct rice taste and the slight texture, but still good.

Interestingly, I've found that the solids settle out much, much faster and stay settled out for the most part when pasteurized vs unpasteurized.

eigua said:

Interestingly, I've found that the solids settle out much, much faster and stay settled out for the most part when pasteurized vs unpasteurized.

Click to expand...

I wonder if the heat is an effective way of just degassing whatever stuff may be still trapped in the solids that can't get released by agitation alone, allowing it to finally fall.

I wouldn't have even strained the first batch if it wasn't for a top layer of floating solids and particles with the clear layer in the middle rather than on top.

BeeDeeEff said:

I wonder if the heat is an effective way of just degassing whatever stuff may be still trapped in the solids that can't get released by agitation alone, allowing it to finally fall.

Click to expand...

That would make sense except I pasteurized in sealed bottles.

BeeDeeEff said:

Bottled today, it separated quite well with just gravity and time, though there was a lot of loss in a very loose solids layer, so I just accepted it and saved my self the work of trying to extract any more out of it. Running it through a cheese cloth before the secondary was hard enough, so I just siphoned the clear:

Came out quite nice tasting, I let it go dry, closest thing I could imagine to a flavorless fermented beverage. I bet it would taste pretty good with some lime peel, ginger, and hot peppers macerating in it. Future project me thinks.

Click to expand...

WOW! That is some clear stuff. I can't stop looking at that picture. I must have opened it 15 times.

I'll admit that I always want to try and get it clear but, I usually just strain through the cheesecloth and then bottle it. When in the bottle, it separates but, I usually just shake it up prior to pouring and then drink. When I drink it, it looks like the color of milk. Just like the picture you posted in the large jug with the bottle next to it.

eigua is right, the taste profile changes considerably when you clarify it. I prefer mine clear. Have you tried "cold crashing" in the frig, then racking? Couldn't tell from posts.

I steam sticky rice, cool, and then put into a bowl and add 1.5 ltrs of non chlorinated water, if I started with 2.5 kgs of dry rice. Work the rice to separate the grains and then pitch starter. Works for me. Since I make large batches, I try to get a little more control by using Angel brand "Rice Leaven" (rhizopus orzae) and Red Star "Premier Blanc" yeast, instead of yeast balls. The packets are available on line and cheap.

brewit75 said:

WOW! That is some clear stuff. I can't stop looking at that picture. I must have opened it 15 times.

I'll admit that I always want to try and get it clear but, I usually just strain through the cheesecloth and then bottle it. When in the bottle, it separates but, I usually just shake it up prior to pouring and then drink. When I drink it, it looks like the color of milk. Just like the picture you posted in the large jug with the bottle next to it.

Click to expand...

Definitely makes me feel proud, but in this case it was a matter of waiting (being busy) and accepting loss of liquid. I'm sure you could do it as well.

That being said, does anyone know if this stuff changes character when aging at all? is it worth hiding this bottle away or is it just gonna be what it is from now until I open it later?

BeeDeeEff said:

Definitely makes me feel proud, but in this case it was a matter of waiting (being busy) and accepting loss of liquid. I'm sure you could do it as well.

That being said, does anyone know if this stuff changes character when aging at all? is it worth hiding this bottle away or is it just gonna be what it is from now until I open it later?

Click to expand...

It does change over time according to what I've read. Some have said that it will sour, essentially turning to vinegar, others have said it will darken and the flavors will change, while others have said it can continue to ferment making a sealed bottle potentially dangerous. I can't say from experience because I've always pasteurized mine and the oldest batch I have is only about a year old. This wikipedia page on Huangjiu has some interesting information on the various varieties and how they differ.

Aging
Unlike in the production of Japanese sake, saccharification and fermentation usually happen in the same mash concurrently, as the seed mash and starter act on the cooked rice. The mixture is then left to mature in earthenware jars for a length of time from several months to several decades before being bottled and sold.

Click to expand...

BeeDeeEff said:

Definitely makes me feel proud, but in this case it was a matter of waiting (being busy) and accepting loss of liquid. I'm sure you could do it as well.

That being said, does anyone know if this stuff changes character when aging at all? is it worth hiding this bottle away or is it just gonna be what it is from now until I open it later?

Click to expand...

They certainly age rice wine in China, but not in the bottle. The official age of the wine is defined as the number of years that the finished wine is aged in pottery. I have found only one study of bottle aging out of the Philippines. They bottled the raw product, aged it between 1 week and 3 months. They racked off the clear liquid and then tested. "Length of aging time had no significant effect on the physico-chemical properties of the wine," or taste/aroma. Couldn't hurt to try one bottle though.

Has someone solved the harvesting problem? Last time I made this I had it in a net bag in a close-topped (airlocked) 2g brew bucket and I'd just have to harvest by pouring some out once in a while.

It was an awful mess.

madwilliamflint said:

Has someone solved the harvesting problem? Last time I made this I had it in a net bag in a close-topped (airlocked) 2g brew bucket and I'd just have to harvest by pouring some out once in a while.

It was an awful mess.

Click to expand...

A paint strainer bag and a lot of squeezing.

eigua said:

A paint strainer bag and a lot of squeezing.

Click to expand...

Damn.

Unacceptable.

Alright. Getting out the graph paper. I've gotta solve this.

madwilliamflint said:

Damn.

Unacceptable.

Alright. Getting out the graph paper. I've gotta solve this.

Click to expand...

Depends on how much loss you're ok accepting. Even before I once strained my batch there was a crystal clear middle layer between floating solids on top and loose stuff underneath. You could always just siphon that off, though you're going to lose a LOT of liquid.

Filtering off solids at least once (and squeezing through a bag or something) made the clear layer once separated very easy to siphon off. Not sure if you can make this stuff without it getting messy at some point.

Though I look forward to seeing ideas on how to.

BeeDeeEff said:

Though I look forward to seeing ideas on how to.

Click to expand...

I'll come up with something. It'll be a few iterations of insanity. But I'll get it.

I just haven't done it in years and remember what an awful mess it was, massaging and churning that thing to get it to fall out.

Doesn't all that handling create an oxygenation problem?

madwilliamflint said:

Damn.

Unacceptable.

Alright. Getting out the graph paper. I've gotta solve this.

Click to expand...

Without resorting to absurdity like vacuum evaporation, the easiest thing I can imagine is putting a weight on a filter bag full of liquid in a strainer suspended over a bowl or something overnight. Basically the same method for making yogurt cheese.