Pages: 1 2
Sake tips, anyone?
@ Taylor-madeak
Thanks for the advice. I've attempted koji cultivation 5 times at this point and every time has been a failure.
My biggest problem is the rice drying out and getting a crunchy texture (reminded me of fish tank gravel) . I also started slacking on the time schedule for mixing it up...
I finally lost my patience with the dratted process and decided that I'd try again this autumn (spring and summer are busy season for me at work and it's not unheard of for me to work 7 day weeks of 10 hour days). Since the mold is so particular at the beginning of the process and I can't guarantee my presence at the correct times, I figured I'd take a long weekend vacation and give it a shot when things cool off a bit.
If the offer's still open come October-ish, I'd love to hear more tips, advice and other from you!
The best way I've found to keep the culture from drying out is to use a small picnic cooler as an incubator, keep the lid on, and keep a small cup of water inside on top of the heating pad. The heating pad will evaporate the water, which will in turn raise the humidity inside the closed incubator and keep the rice from drying out. High humidity for the first 24 hours is key.
I'm always happy to help, and you can reach me any time via e-mail through my web site. 
I'm also watching this topic (though not the forum in general, my attention is already spread very thin as it is) for replies.
I understand about waiting until autumn to start your sake, as that is the way I do it myself. I'm a seasonal brewer: I observe the Japanese tradition of brewing sake from September/October through March/April and brew beer during the other half of the year.
Thanks!
I have to be doing something wrong then...
I had it in a styrofoam cooler with a cover which is close to airtight with a cup of water on the heating pad. (Heavy duty with 2" thick walls - I got it when my inlaws shipped me steaks from Omaha Steaks for Christmas). I had the cooler on a low table to keep it off the concrete floor in the garage to make sure it stayed warm. I did manage to maintain the correct temp range. The water did evaporate, but not sufficiently to keep the rice moist. I never found the cup dried out. I tried using a wider shallow dish instead thinking that a larger surface area would mean better evaporation, but I got the same results.
Like I said, I'll be grateful for any tips, hints, pointers etc.
What is the rice stored in while inside the cooler?
Shallow plastic tray... it's the top off an old tupperware sheet cake cover.
It could be that you're keeping it too shallow. When I make koji I generally keep the bed at least an inch thick, sometimes as much as an inch and a half.
Pages: 1 2
Search Home Brewing Knowledge Base
Custom Search
|