Making Traditional rice Wine. Cheap, Fun, and Different

[Accidic]

Prostitution is prostitution... Highest bidder is just another form of haggling over price. But then again, I guess so is dating.

And yeah, being in Alabama, I've SCOURED every asian market in the area from Korean to Vietnamese and back to Chinese. No luck. The closest I could find was the base for Nuruk which might be able to be made work but from what I read it isn't exactly ideal. The only way to make it cost effective is what Sara said and buy a couple of each. In hindsight I wish I'd have bought 4 each but the 2 each I bought will probably last me nearly a year.

 

[edds5p0]

I just harvested and tried my batch using RYR with a bit of rice leaven. This is NOT a room temp wine. It was very potent, and the flavors were a bit over powering at RT. This batch was very very dry, a bit tart, and very pink. I got about 5.5 cups, so I am pretty happy with the yield. I went out and bought a 1 gallon cracker jar and I am making a 5 cup batch with RYR only. This time I steamed instead of cooking the rice with an equal volume of water, and I hollowed out a tunnel about 1" in diameter all the way down to the bottom. Then I sprinkled RYR on the top and down the channel. My hope is that it will ferment from the top down, so alcohol doesn't cause any inhibition of the mold growth as the liquid should drain away from the most active part of the jar. I'll keep everyone posted.

 

[TBBrewer]

I am proud to say I had my 3rd batch come out quite tasty! This batch was done with 2lbs of jasmine rice and 5 Vietnamese small rice balls shown below. The final yield was 33oz, or (1) 750ml + 8oz in half a swing top. This was left on my dining room table at about 75 average temp for 19 days in a 2 gallon white small fermentation bucket. Cheers!

 

[Ostomo517]

I am proud to say I had my 3rd batch come out quite tasty! This batch was done with 2lbs of jasmine rice and 5 Vietnamese small rice balls shown below. The final yield was 33oz, or (1) 750ml + 8oz in half a swing top. This was left on my dining room table at about 75 average temp for 19 days in a 2 gallon white small fermentation bucket. Cheers!

I consistently get great rice wine using a ferm bucket and those same yeast balls

 

[TBBrewer]

I consistently get great rice wine using a ferm bucket and those same yeast balls

I have no complaints. There was no black spores on the top either. I wonder if those come from UV light getting to the batch?

 

[dudius]

Thanks for the great walkthrough, I kept seeing the thread on the front page of HBT but yesterday I decided I wanted to learn about sake and rice wine and make something for a group of friends who get together and watch anime. I'll be looking for yeast balls when I go grocery shopping today.

 

[5oBrewing]

I got a sour batch. Used 5 lbs of thai sweet rice, cooled it with a gallon of cold water ( kinda like i do my sake), 4 yeast balls powdered in food processor layered on after it all cooled, stirred it after a week, let it go a full 30 days. On the plus side adding a splash of cherry 7up to it it tastes like a sweet tart, so totally salvageable. I ended up with 5.5 l of sour rice wine.

 

[JFK]

so I laid a batch down on 5/22 and its is already starting to smell very alcoholic. I have an event I am going to on Saturday and was curious can I siphon off a bottle of liquid through the tab on my fermentor and leave the rest? It was 16 cups of rice with 8 yeast balls in a Mr. Beer Fermentor LOL. I just want to bring some with me but if it will mess up the rest of the batch I wont. Any info would be helpful if anyone has harvested early or took the liquid out and left it to go more.

 

[sonofgrok]

so I laid a batch down on 5/22 and its is already starting to smell very alcoholic. I have an event I am going to on Saturday and was curious can I siphon off a bottle of liquid through the tab on my fermentor and leave the rest? It was 16 cups of rice with 8 yeast balls in a Mr. Beer Fermentor LOL. I just want to bring some with me but if it will mess up the rest of the batch I wont. Any info would be helpful if anyone has harvested early or took the liquid out and left it to go more.

5/22? You are such an awesome brewer that you are brewing into the future! :rockin:

 

[Tinhorn]

5/22? You are such an awesome brewer that you are brewing into the future! :rockin:

If you brew in the future is it still 21-28 days and when do you start the timer?

 

[sonofgrok]

If you brew in the future is it still 21-28 days and when do you start the timer?

That depends on if you are going BACK to the future or not.

 

[Tinhorn]

That depends on if you are going BACK to the future or not.

Sorry for all the questions but how far from the flux capacitor should you store to avoid skunking?

 

[edds5p0]

BATCH to the Future! Building a pipeline will never be an issue again!

I assume you mean 4/22. If the batch isn't really changing in that time, I would suggest just harvesting it. If not, then try harvesting with some sanitized equipment.

 

[TheHairyHop]

Made two batches the other week. 50-50 sweet rice to jasmine. The color is kind of off putting honestly. Sort of a greenish yellow beige.
Of the two batches, I mushed one up about 2/3rds of the way through the month long process. The other I left completely alone.

My findings: DO NOT touch this thing as it's doing it's own. I ended up with a harsh and strong chemical flavor from the mushed batch. I think oxidation really gives this yeast/fungus combo a kick in the pants that they don't like.

Strong as all hell btw

 

[JFK]

lol. thanks for going all crazy about a typo. I guess I am that good brewing in the future. anyhow yea I laid it down 4/22 and its floating on the rice since day 4. The fluid is up to the top of the rice it smells very alcoholic at this point. I am assuming if I harvest it tomorrow on Friday 5/3 it will be a bit sweeter if I wait until 5/14 which is roughly the 21 day marker. I am curious if I am going to lose a lot of volume harvesting at this point or just more alcohol percentage which I am less concerned with

 

[JFK]

I just found an instrument that can give you a rough calculation of your abv in your finished rice wine. From what I was reading it is less accurate with high residual sugar which rice wine does not have a lot of but I'd test it before you add any fruit or other flavors. It's called a vinometer. They cost about six dollars. They are used for rough abv calculation of dry wine. I found it in a rice wine forum that I've been reading through over the last few days. I'm hoping my local brew store has them.

 

[KegWrangler]

Cool gadget...appears to work based on the capillary effect, viscosity of liquid, and other magic. Not sure how well they work on sugar/starch containing liquids, but here's one for super cheap if found when I googled the term...

http://labelpeelers.com/alla-vinometer-p-3674.html?gclid=CMjR5dea-rYCFWbhQgodkxEAJw&zenid=6f6ja0igjr526fv64khud2ea94

 

[FermentNEthinG]

I have yet found a person who could show me a correct reading on one of those vinometers. You put the wine in it and swing your arm like a pendulum. After 3 or 4 swings you are supposed to hold it out in front of you. As the wine level falls through the glass, it will "hiccup" and at the point of the hiccup is supposed to be the alcohol percentage is. I messed around with one of these for a hour and threw it in the junk drawer! I could not get the wine to register anything and it just dripped all over my floor.

Hopefully more people had better luck than I....

 

[edds5p0]

I am drinking my RYR batch that I used some Angel with for insurance. While it was kinda gross at room temp, the chilled product is awesome. It actually tastes almost like a fruit wine! It's a bit dry, but very drinkable and it doesn't have much alcohol bite when cool. It looks like a fruity mixed drink too.

 

[JFK]

The video I watched he filled the top and let it drop through for a second and then flipped it over and watched it till it stopped and it stayed at the line.

 

[edds5p0]

Also, I just wanted to share that I opened the lid on my all RYR batch to see what was going on at the top. There is a huge ball of mycelium on the very top! I was reminded of my mushroom growing days in my mis-spent youth.

 

[KegWrangler]

OK so I bought a vine-o-meter since I was passing by the HBS today ($4.95)...fill the cup...wait for 6 drops, flip it over and wait until the level stabilizes...

Survey says...23% abv!

The store proprietor said they are only good for ABV-ing dry wines, and I know my FG is like 1.024 so take the above with a grain of salt. I may try playing around with sugar and vodka mixtures to see if I can build a set of tables to account for the other sugars in the solution based on FG and Vinometer readings.

Anyway, another toy for my chest I guess.

 

[sonofgrok]

OK so I bought a vine-o-meter since I was passing by the HBS today ($4.95)...fill the cup...wait for 6 drops, flip it over and wait until the level stabilizes...

Survey says...23% abv!

The store proprietor said they are only good for ABV-ing dry wines, and I know my FG is like 1.024 so take the above with a grain of salt. I may try playing around with sugar and vodka mixtures to see if I can build a set of tables to account for the other sugars in the solution based on FG and Vinometer readings.

Anyway, another toy for my chest I guess.

Nice! Fun to play with any way you look at it regardless.

 

[Punx Clever]

Latest 6-cup batch of rice wine put out 1.5L of finished product. This one sat in the jar for a few months, mostly because I forgot about it.

Not very sweet, very nutty, and very, very mean.

 

[TBBrewer]

Latest 6-cup batch of rice wine put out 1.5L of finished product. This one sat in the jar for a few months, mostly because I forgot about it.

Not very sweet, very nutty, and very, very mean.

What was your fermentation profile, temp, rice type, yeast origin, temp?

 

[TBBrewer]

Temp twice......just to be sure. Similar to brewing in the future....

 

[edds5p0]

Temp twice......just to be sure. Similar to brewing in the future....

One could mean temperature, the other could be temperament. What mood was the fungus in during the fermentation?

 

[TBBrewer]

One could mean temperature, the other could be temperament. What mood was the fungus in during the fermentation?

You just never know....could be happy yeast.

 

[Punx Clever]

What was your fermentation profile, temp, rice type, yeast origin, temp?

Jasmine rice. Cooked in a rice cooker with about 1.25 cups of water for each cup of rice.

Cooled on an sheet of aluminum foil, sprinkled 4 smashed up yeast balls from Ranch 44 on top. Placed in 1 gallon glass jar (filled up the entire jar) with cheesecloth under the lid.

Set in the bottom of my pantry for a few months... so between 70 and 75 degrees.

 

[OG_IBU_Bunghole]

...Maybe I need to make a large batch of rice and split it between a bunch of jars using a different yeast in each to compare...

If you do, please let us know what happens. A lot of us are poking around in the dark a bit here. Most of the really good information on these processes is in languages I can't read, and as far as I can tell, hasn't been translated...

I had the same idea since I found three yeast ball brands. Harvested today (day 22). Hopefully this helps.

Constants: 2 cups rinsed dry rice/2 yeast balls (over-pitched). 1:1 water ratio. Pressure cooker @3 min low pressure (meant to use high). Ambient temps consistently low-mid 70s in cabinet above stove away from light.

Hang Loong (Chinese) yeast balls, Heng Lung (Chinese) yeast balls, Vientnamese yeast balls
(Far right is a big batch of Hang Loong that was cooked 3min high pressure)

Hang Loong 11.5floz, Heng Lung 16floz, Vietnamese 15floz
(The big batch is over 1 quart. But I don't know how much rice I used. I cooked 8 cups but it didn't all fit.) This time I used a small homemade cotton bread bag and felt I got a better yield, though it was still the most labor intensive part of making this amazing stuff.

Tasting impressions
Hang Loong was nice and fruity and balanced. I can't imagine anyone not liking this.

Heng Lung was sharper, more tart, slightly more alcohol, and slightly yeasty.

The Vietnamese was more bland (still good) with probably the most alcohol (they were all in the same ballpark).

My takeaway
I will continue to make all of these. I'd say the Hang Loong would be best for sharing with the average person, I'll give the Heng Lung to friends who like strong flavors, and the Vietnamese for when I'm in the mood for something a little more like whiskey than a cordial (esp if I use Vietnamese yeast balls but with long grain sweet rice instead of Thai jasmine). The only batch I haven't liked was calrose rice.

 

[OG_IBU_Bunghole]

At the risk of confusing the (yeast ball) issue above, the following picture is from another experiment

I previously made side by side batches using Vietnamese yeast balls in both with long grain sweet rice (left) & Thai jasmine (right) and ambient temps in low to mid 60s - mentioned I was going to try this in a previous post because I was told it wouldn't work with Thai jasmine, though I'd told her I already made it . The long grain sweet rice had even hotter alcohol, less fruitiness, and significantly better yield.

 

[OG_IBU_Bunghole]

There has been talk of eating the rice on day 3, which I'd like to try next. Has anyone found any recipes you liked? i.e. can you please save me a ton of googling over the next three days? Sorry if I missed that, but I've read every post and can't recall any specifics.

 

[sonofgrok]

I had the same idea since I found three yeast ball brands. Harvested today (day 22). Hopefully this helps.

My takeaway
I will continue to make all of these. I'd say the Hang Loong would be best for sharing with the average person, I'll give the Heng Lung to friends who like strong flavors, and the Vietnamese for when I'm in the mood for something a little more like whiskey than a cordial (esp if I use Vietnamese yeast balls but with long grain sweet rice instead of Thai jasmine). The only batch I haven't liked was calrose rice.

Very nice. I think you are the first to truly test and support the difference in flavor the yeast ball makes. This may explain for a lot of the varying results. I have only ever used Happy Panda balls and the results are my sweet consistent product.

 

[OG_IBU_Bunghole]

Only Hang Loong has been producing the small black mold spots on the top. This seems to support the idea that the mold is largely dependent on your balls.

I gotta get a sack of happy panda balls now that I know how important my balls are.

 

[Tinhorn]

Only Hang Loong has been producing the small black mold spots on the top. This seems to support the idea that the mold is largely dependent on your balls.

I gotta get a sack of happy panda balls now that I know how important my balls are.

That is so funny on so many levels

 

[captainskinnybeard]

From reading about half of the posts on this thread I think there is something that is being missed. I believe the "yeast balls" are made of a small amount of yeast, which of course multiplies, and some quantity of food grade fungal amylase. There should never be any mold on your rice. The creation of the amylase by mold has been done for you by the yeast ball manufacturer.

The optimum temperature for amylase to change starch to sugars is 122 degrees Fahrenheit. If you don't get the temperature up at the beginning you are going to run the risk of having something undesirable growing before there is enough alcohol to discourage it. You should smell yeast and alcohol at least by 36 hours.

I don't rinse my rice, I cook it in the microwave 1 part rice to 2 parts water. I add a little more water on the second day if it looks dry. I open it up and taste it often. I don't put cheesecloth on it. I leave the lid loose. I shake it up good once it starts to liquify. I have a place that keeps the rice about 80 degrees although I expect warmer would be better.

This stuff is made all over Asia and every recipe is different. It's not rocket surgery. But it's not ale either. It needs to be warm.

 

[Leadgolem]

Um. No. If the amylase was already present in it's entirety, then the experiment I did reusing the remaining starch mass from a prior batch would have been a complete failure. That batch displayed typical saccharification and mold growth characteristics. If the enzyme was not produced in the batch the amount of amylase available after the starch mass had it's liquid removed would have been inadequate to produce that result.

 

[JuanMoore]

From reading about half of the posts on this thread I think there is something that is being missed. I believe the "yeast balls" are made of a small amount of yeast, which of course multiplies, and some quantity of food grade fungal amylase. There should never be any mold on your rice. The creation of the amylase by mold has been done for you by the yeast ball manufacturer.

Maybe, but I doubt it. One of the yeast ball packages I've seen lists koji rice flour and yeast as the ingredients. I think it's more likely that the yeast balls are made by inoculating cooked rice with koji or another mold, and then drying and milling it into a flour, and mixing in some dried yeast, and then forming it into balls. The translation for the ingredients of other yeast balls I have is rice flour, yeast, and spices. My guess is that the rice flour is from moldy rice.

 

[Ostomo517]

Maybe, but I doubt it. One of the yeast ball packages I've seen lists koji rice flour and yeast as the ingredients. I think it's more likely that the yeast balls are made by inoculating cooked rice with koji or another mold, and then drying and milling it into a flour, and mixing in some dried yeast, and then forming it into balls. The translation for the ingredients of other yeast balls I have is rice flour, yeast, and spices. My guess is that the rice flour is from moldy rice.

Yup pretty sure your wrong captain, been told by store owner the balls I use contain mold and its a good sign to see the white mold on top

 

[captainskinnybeard]

Amylase is used commercially in quantities measured in parts per million. You probably still had enough for starch conversion. There is no telling how much is in these yeast balls.

I have never seen any indication of mold and since I shake mine often it would be hard for mold to grow as mold needs to grow undisturbed on the surface.