If you’re looking for something sweeter, it’s common for the locals to infuse their rice wine with a variety of herbs such as lemongrass, ginger and honey, or even traditional Chinese medicinal herbs. So, you may be thinking- this super strong alcohol can’t taste very good can it? Well there’s different percentages of alchohol depending on the batch. The feces then produces a large amount of gas which is collected into a bag and fuels the fire- which then cooks the rice wine. Owners, like Hoang, frequently clean the pig pens so that all of their feces are collected into one area. Believe it or not, this ties into the rice wine distilling too. If you see this firsthand, you’ll notice the pigs are extremely happy & lazy- they’ve gotten a little buzz! You’ll also notice that the pigs are extremely clean. This used rice isn’t served at a dinner table, but instead is fed to the pigs. This is because after the distilling process is complete, there is an abundance of used rice.
Rice wine homebrew full#
Most rice wine distilleries in Vietnam are in people’s homes, and you’ll notice that they almost always have a back area full of pigs, both large and small. The small husks from the rice are dried and used as fuel for the fire, along with small chunks of wood to ensure the perfect temperature. Perhaps the most intriguing part of witnessing the rice wine distilling process is the fact that it’s almost zero-waste. The end result is ( very) potent rice wine. Once 3 days have passed, it’s time to add water & transfer to a giant pot to begin the cooking process. These clay pots function as homes to the rice for the next 3 days to allow fermentation. After being thoroughly mixed, the rice is transferred into clay pots. Immediately, a sweet yeast smell arises from the cooling tray. Once cool, Hoang sprinkles yeast on the rice and begins to mix the ingredients with her bare hands. Hoang wakes up at 4:00am to begin cooking sticky rice, which has been harvested by the vibrant rice paddies surrounding her house in the marvellous Mekong Delta.Īfter cooking sticky rice, Hoang lays the clumps of grain on a tray made from thatched palm leaves to cool.
The distilling process is more difficult than you may expect. It’s been in her family for generations, and she will pass it on to future generations, keeping the tradition strong. Her parents were rice wine distillers, and so were her grandparents. Hoang has been making rice wine for 34 years and has perfected her craft. You can find at least one ingredient in most Vietnamese dishes that comes from rice, like My Quang noodlesor Banh Dap Rice crackers. So it comes to no surprise that the locals have found a way to turn this major crop into alcohol. Vietnam’s rice production is massive, and the economy is very dependant on it. The latter of the two is deeply intertwined in Vietnamese history and culture. Most commonly, people are yelling out their cheers and clinking together mugs of beer with ice or small glasses of Vietnamese rice wine. Be careful, because this stuff can be dangerously strong! If you’re at a party, Vietnamese wedding, or just enjoying dinner at a local restaurant, you’ll without a doubt hear this famous phrase yelled out repeatedly. While travelling in Vietnam and meeting the locals, it’s often a sign of friendship when offered a small shot of rice wine. This is the ubiquitous phrase for “1,2,3, Cheers!” in Vietnamese.