5 Drinks from Japan derived from rice

In this article, we will get to know some Japanese beverages made from rice. Japanese people really like rice; they eat rice for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

Japanese people also drink a lot of rice. There are thousands of different types of sake, rice milk, rice tea, etc. Today we will learn about 6 rice-based beverages: sake, amazake, genmaicha, nigorizake, shochu, and awamori.

Sake

I think most people know what Sake [酒] (or Saquê) is, an alcoholic beverage made from fermented rice. Sake is consumed hot during large celebrations, such as New Year and Shinto ceremonies, and it usually has 16% alcohol.

The best temperature to consume sake is 25º C; it is considered a wine and is made only from rice and water. There are thousands of varieties of sake and other ways to prepare it. To learn more, we recommend reading our article about sake, rice liquor.

Amazake

Amazake is a sweet sake (甘酒) with little or no alcohol content. To produce it, you need: Aspergillus oryzae (a fungus), heat, moisture, and a cereal that is usually rice.

The process of creating amazake allows for the production of a type of natural sweetener that can accompany your desserts and other dishes in a natural way. Its use is also present in ceremonies and festivals, such as on Children’s Day.

Genmaicha

Genmaicha (玄米茶) is a green tea combined with roasted brown rice. Sometimes this tea is called “popcorn tea” because some grains of rice pop when roasted.

The tea obtained from these leaves has a light yellow color. Its flavor is mild and combines the taste of green tea with the aroma of roasted rice. This tea was consumed by the poor, who added roasted rice to fill and reduce the price of the tea.

Nigorizake

Nigorizake (濁り酒) or doburoku (濁酒) or simply nigori is a type of sake (wine) from Japan made from rice. Nigori is usually the sweetest of the sakes, with a fruity smell and a smooth taste.

Unlike regular sake, it is not filtered during fermentation, resulting in a drink with a cloudier appearance (not transparent).

Shochu and Awamori

Shochu (焼酎) is a distilled beverage made from barley, sweet potato, or rice, and has about 25% alcohol. Awamori (泡盛), like Shochu, is also a distilled beverage made from rice, but it is made on the island of Okinawa, using rice from Thailand and a different fermentation mold, and has about 25% to 43% alcohol.

There are many other beverages made from rice, such as milk, various types of wine, cachaça, and sweet drinks. Many of these beverages are made in the same way, using different techniques and flavors. I hope you enjoyed the article; see you next time!