Making Traditional rice Wine. Cheap, Fun, and Different

[jak1010]

Bottled mind yesterday. A sweet flavor. Also noticed that it is carbonated too. View attachment 176640

Nice! That was fast. Glad you like it.

It will carb and if I were you, I'd keep an eye on it. There's one person who had a bottle bomb in the fridge and it blew through all the glass shelves. Take a look at the bottom of page 17 of this thread for pics.

 

[kako187]

I need help please I made a small batch 5 days ago and still have no change in the jar. Zero liquid. Yeast still dry. I used 2 cups sushi rice and 2 yeast balls.

 

[troy2000]

I need help please I made a small batch 5 days ago and still have no change in the jar. Zero liquid. Yeast still dry. I used 2 cups sushi rice and 2 yeast balls.

Did you let the rice cool before adding the yeast balls, and did you powder them first?

 

[mjwj12]

I need help please I made a small batch 5 days ago and still have no change in the jar. Zero liquid. Yeast still dry. I used 2 cups sushi rice and 2 yeast balls.

Give it time. It will do something. It did the same for me

 

[MarcusKillion]

Off to making a new batch . rice and ryr . I used 1 cup rice 1.5 cups water after soaking . I am not going to rinse this after cooking to cool it but let it sit . It has plenty of extra water in with it that did not soak in during cooking that is nice and thick and I am leaving that in . going to use 1 yeast ball per 500 grams rice plus 1 extra . going to make it in fridge at 61 degrees . Should have far less fusel alcohols that seem to dominate this stuff at higher temps . that would be the stinging in the throat I think after swallowing . I fixed up the last stuff with a nice 60 proof finish and it tasted pretty good .
I filtered a small jar of the black rice wine . It tasted good . the large jars are still fermenting along with some large jars of white rice . Will let them go till they stop bubbling .

 

[kako187]

Give it time. It will do something. It did the same for me

How long before you see a change

Sent from my HTCONE using Home Brew mobile app

 

[mjwj12]

How long before you see a change

Sent from my HTCONE using Home Brew mobile app

At least five days. Make sure is in a warm place. Keep it up high. Hotter air rises. It needs warmth

 

[pdxal]

Warmth is also more likely to make it sour. Patience is OK too.

 

[mjwj12]

Mine turned out sweet

 

[christobrew]

so i finally went for it. i used 2 lbs of long grain rice [it's what we had], and about 8 cups of water. i didn't rinse/ wash it, as i read that washing it removes starches, and we want those starches to convert to sugars. could be pseduo-science, but it's already done. i used two yeast balls and it's been in my room which is around 70 degrees. the left picture is right after i assembled my 1 gallon jar, and the right picture is about 72 hours in. i'm excited, it looks like i already have about a quart of wine. it smells amazing, and the little bit i tasted was pretty sweet.

 

[troy2000]

I'm digging the traditional nature of that pot. Please post pics when in progress.

OK, put the pot to use this weekend. I soaked 5 cups of Thai jasmine rice overnight, cooked and cooled it, and mixed 3 powdered yeast balls into it.

It's in my fermenter, along with the batch I started a while back. That one's probably ready to bottle; it doesn't seem to be doing anything.

And why is there room in my fermenter? Because the batch of grain I was assured by telephone would definitely be here by Friday at the very latest is apparently going to get here Tuesday instead, according to FedEx tracking. !@#$%^&.....

 

[JuanMoore]

Haven't made any of this stuff in a while. Hopefully I'll remember to bottle these ones before they turn to vinegar.

 

[kako187]

Did you let the rice cool before adding the yeast balls, and did you powder them first?

Yes the rice cooled and I powdered the yeast ball with a hammer. Still nothing this morning

 

[brooklynkayak]

It seems a lot of people make mistakes that sometimes work, but reduce either the quality and reliability of their results.
There are reasons why the Chinese do what they do, they have perfected the process. I have been reading more about how and why they make it the way they do:

1) Always wash your rice thoroughly before and after soaking. This removes a lot of the stuff that can hurt your results, protein, fat, harmful organisms,... Sure you are loosing some starch as well, but not much.

2) Do not make your rice too wet. The water should be fully absorbed by the rice. Wet rice encourages growth of unwanted organisms.

3) Water should be very slightly acidic to discourage mold growth. Many recommend adding lactic acid if the water source is alkaline. Other acids should work as well, but I haven't tested.
If you want to get fancy, test the PH.

 

[SteveDodds]

potato and spaghetti noodle photo update after 11 days

 

[trbig]

Is it just liquifying, or can you smell alcohol in the noodle/potato mix?

 

[samiamsl]

I've tried two asian food stores and have had no luck finding yeast balls...they're Korean food stores so maybe that's why? The yeast balls seem to just be a chinese product. I did however find a bag labeled enzyme. The ingredients just say enzyme and there's a warning that says "It is prohibited to make wine for sale by the law." So I figured I must be able to make something with it, right?? Anyone know if I can use this in place of the yeast balls, how much I would use, and do I still need mold in addition or is just the enzyme necessary?

Oh, and I have a rice cooker...is that the same as a steamer? I'm guessing it's not since the water just gets put in with the rice and then I hit a button.

[/URL][/IMG]

 

[Newsman]

I use a rice cooker. Works for me.

 

[Newsman]

FYI, I have some Korean, Chinese AND Vietnamese yeast balls. China has no monopoly on these.

 

[SteveDodds]

Is it just liquifying, or can you smell alcohol in the noodle/potato mix?

not a mix. 1 jar is noodles, 1 jar is potato. They are both liquefying. The liquid in the noodle jar looks funny. Looks almost like oil. I took the lids off and smelled them. They both smell very alcoholic. The potato one definitely smells better than the noodle.

 

[jak1010]

I've tried two asian food stores and have had no luck finding yeast balls...they're Korean food stores so maybe that's why? The yeast balls seem to just be a chinese product. I did however find a bag labeled enzyme. The ingredients just say enzyme and there's a warning that says "It is prohibited to make wine for sale by the law." So I figured I must be able to make something with it, right?? Anyone know if I can use this in place of the yeast balls, how much I would use, and do I still need mold in addition or is just the enzyme necessary?

Oh, and I have a rice cooker...is that the same as a steamer? I'm guessing it's not since the water just gets put in with the rice and then I hit a button.

[/URL][/IMG]

Not sure what that is but, I'd say give it a try. It's not going to cost that much right? It's worth the couple of $ to try it out. Check out this link. Interesting info on Solid State Fermentation.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/m/pubmed/23223910/

 

[jak1010]

not a mix. 1 jar is noodles, 1 jar is potato. They are both liquefying. The liquid in the noodle jar looks funny. Looks almost like oil. I took the lids off and smelled them. They both smell very alcoholic. The potato one definitely smells better than the noodle.

This sounds very interesting. If they can produce vodka from potatoes, why not wine?

 

[ChefRex]

potato and spaghetti noodle photo update after 11 days

They make vodka out of potatoes don't they, what type did you use?
Please update win or lose but I'm betting on win

 

[jak1010]

I need help please I made a small batch 5 days ago and still have no change in the jar. Zero liquid. Yeast still dry. I used 2 cups sushi rice and 2 yeast balls.

I can't see the very top of the jar but do you have a piece of cheesecloth or some type of spacer on the lid?

How does it look today?

 

[jak1010]

so i finally went for it. i used 2 lbs of long grain rice [it's what we had], and about 8 cups of water. i didn't rinse/ wash it, as i read that washing it removes starches, and we want those starches to convert to sugars. could be pseduo-science, but it's already done. i used two yeast balls and it's been in my room which is around 70 degrees. the left picture is right after i assembled my 1 gallon jar, and the right picture is about 72 hours in. i'm excited, it looks like i already have about a quart of wine. it smells amazing, and the little bit i tasted was pretty sweet.

Am I reading this right? You started it and it's finished at 72hrs? Or is that 72hrs another batch?

 

[JuanMoore]

I need help please I made a small batch 5 days ago and still have no change in the jar. Zero liquid. Yeast still dry. I used 2 cups sushi rice and 2 yeast balls.

Looks from the picture like maybe you didn't mix the crushed yeast balls in with the rice very evenly. I see a huge pocket of what appears to be powdered yeast.

 

[troy2000]

I've tried two asian food stores and have had no luck finding yeast balls...they're Korean food stores so maybe that's why? The yeast balls seem to just be a chinese product. I did however find a bag labeled enzyme. The ingredients just say enzyme and there's a warning that says "It is prohibited to make wine for sale by the law." So I figured I must be able to make something with it, right?? Anyone know if I can use this in place of the yeast balls, how much I would use, and do I still need mold in addition or is just the enzyme necessary?

Oh, and I have a rice cooker...is that the same as a steamer? I'm guessing it's not since the water just gets put in with the rice and then I hit a button.

I'm betting everything you need iS in there. I'd crush up a tablespoon or two of it for two cups of dry rice, and give it a try.

And I used a rice cooker for my first batch; it worked fine. Second batch was too big for it, so after soaking overnight I just rinsed the rice, threw in a pot along with a cup or two of water, and stuck it on a burner. The rice didn't seem to mind....

 

[ChefRex]

My first batches, the white wasn't fully cold and was more evenly mixed, the red I allowed the rice to cool over night and the bottom half didn't get much blended into it but the top has bled down. The red is a day and a half behind the white but both are looking good!

 

[jak1010]

Damn that was fast. You went from wanting to do a batch, to having two batches going, in 3 days. Looking forward to hearing your thoughts on this stuff.

 

[ChefRex]

Damn that was fast. You went from wanting to do a batch, to having two batches going, in 3 days. Looking forward to hearing your thoughts on this stuff.

Looking forward to it!