Kodava Homemade rice and raisin wine
This recipe for a Kodava rice wine and images have been sourced from and shared by community members. Fermentation fact check kindly done by Payal at Kobo Fermentary. Measurements are approximate, and you can use any raw rice you like, though our story of this wine has been framed by a quest to find boliya, a rice varietal once used to make this and other brews.
- 1 cup raw rice washed thoroughly
- 100 g raisins or black currants soaked in a little water to rehydrate
- Juice of one lime
- 3 cups sugar
- 1 tsp yeast
- 3 liters water
In a clean and sanitized bharani or glass jar, add the washed rice, rehydrated raisins, yeast and water. Stir well with a wooden spoon.
Cover the mouth of the bharani /glass jar with a muslin cloth and fasten. Place the lid on top. Stir daily for approximately 3 weeks.
The resulting liquid will be translucent with some grain and grape residue.
Strain and transfer to a sterilized glass bottle.
Allow the wine to rest for a week, additional residues will settle then consume.
Wondering about what bathasarai is and how it's different from this home made rice wine? Here’s what separates Bathasarai from homemade wine:
- There is no added sugar, yeast or raisins and other ingredients to influence the fermentation process. Technically, this is closer to brews like Shochu (Japan), Baiju (China) and Soju (Korea).
- Bathasarai is made by placing whole paddy in a distillation container, with little water, and allowing this to ferment for 30 days. The fermented liquid builds and collects drip by drip. The liquid is then distilled. 30 days distillation gives 1 liter, apprximately. Ideally this is stored in a traditional paddy storage area, the “Pathaya.”
- Note that this is a rough outline of the process for informational purposes only! Home distillation is illegal, and it is not advised or encouraged to try this at home.