Knowra Rice wine Rice wine Rice wine is an alcoholic beverage made by fermenting rice, often with the help of molds that convert rice starch into fermentable sugars. Sake, huangjiu, and makgeolli are distinct examples.
Saccharification : The enzymatic conversion of complex carbohydrates, such as starch, into simpler sugars. Molds and their enzymes make rice starch available for yeast or other fermenting microbes.
Sake : A Japanese alcoholic beverage brewed from rice, water, koji mold, and yeast. Sake is a prominent rice wine made through parallel fermentation and usually filtered before bottling.
Beer : An alcoholic beverage made by fermenting sugars extracted from cereal grains, usually flavored with hops. Beer generally uses malt enzymes to make grain sugars, unlike many rice wines that use molds for saccharification.
Jomon period : A prehistoric period in Japanese history, conventionally dated from about 14,000 to 300 BCE. Proposed early traces of Japanese rice-based alcohol are associated with practices predating mature sake brewing.
Food pairing : The practice of matching foods and drinks to create complementary or contrasting flavors. Rice wines accompany regional foods, and their acidity, sweetness, and umami shape pairing choices.
Aspergillus oryzae : A filamentous fungus used in food production to make enzymes that break down starches and proteins. In koji production, this mold supplies enzymes that release fermentable sugars from rice.
Huangjiu : A Chinese fermented rice wine, commonly amber-colored and served warm or at room temperature. Huangjiu is a major rice-wine tradition with methods and flavor profiles distinct from sake.
Rice beer : A fermented alcoholic beverage made with rice, often alongside malted grain or other ingredients. The boundary between rice beer and rice wine varies by tradition, recipe, and naming convention.
Yayoi period : A period in Japanese history marked by wet-rice agriculture, conventionally dated from about 300 BCE to 300 CE. The spread of rice cultivation created the agricultural basis for later Japanese rice-alcohol traditions.
Culinary wine : Wine used as an ingredient in cooking to add aroma, acidity, sweetness, or savory depth. Huangjiu and sake are used in cooking as well as served as beverages.
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