sakebrewing

Sake brewing is the traditional Japanese process of creating sake, an alcoholic beverage made from fermented rice. The fundamental ingredients are rice, water, yeast, and koji. Koji, a mold called Aspergillus oryzae, is crucial as it converts rice starches into fermentable sugars.

The brewing process begins with the selection and polishing of rice. Different sake types use rice polished to varying degrees, with more polished rice generally yielding a smoother flavor. The polished rice is then washed, soaked, and steamed. A portion of the steamed rice is inoculated with koji spores to create koji-mai, the moldy rice essential for saccharification.

Simultaneously, another portion of steamed rice is mixed with water and yeast to create a starter mash called shubo. The koji-mai is then added to the shubo, along with more steamed rice and water, in a multi-stage fermentation process. This process, known as multiple parallel fermentation, allows for both starch conversion and alcohol production to occur concurrently, a unique characteristic of sake brewing.

After fermentation, which typically lasts several weeks, the mixture is pressed to separate the liquid sake from the solid lees. The sake is then filtered, pasteurized, and aged before bottling. Variations in rice varieties, water sources, yeast strains, and brewing techniques contribute to the vast diversity of sake flavors and styles.