Elwood 5566

I like Recipe 1 despite it being a blend between makgeolli and a dongdong-ju. The drink is refreshing, has a zing, is frothy and slightly thick though it loses the froth and thickness rapidly. As a result, it is a very light drink that dances over your tongue. All scores of 8 and above contain: zing, froth and thickness and are subsequently very light on the palate.

Batch 8, December 2011

Initially, I think my recipe was too sweet and may have been too strong for what Koreans associate with makgeolli. However, Koreans often have no idea about the differences between makgeolli and dongdong-ju and the two terms are almost interchangeable. Traditionally, dongdong-ju is a much stronger drink approaching 14-16% ABV, as this recipe does, if the ratio of 3 cups of rice to 1 litre of water (at inoculation) is adhered to and no water subsequently added.

Recipe 2, dongdong-ju, and Recipe 4, makgeolli, are both based on this recipe.

R – rice. 1 cup = 180ml

N – nu-ruk. 1 cup = 180ml / 100g

Y– yeast. Teaspoon (5ml)

W – Water added at inoculation and at bottling. (liters)

S – sugar. 1 cup = 180ml

G – Glutinous rice (R), SH – Short Grain. N – new season’s rice. All rice is Korean.

TEM/DAYS – temperature in degrees Celsius.

Note – Bolded annotations mark a point of experimentation.

Rationale

18. I’m told my makgeolli is too sweet and that it is too much like soda! This batch sought to reduce both sugar levels and reduce alcohol down to approx 6%ABV. After 36 hours of post-peak fermentation, there is a marginal sweetness (in my opinion), and the alcohol has increased. The matured makgeolli is much better given time to mature. At 48 hours there is little sweetness at all. Conclusion, use 1-2 cups of sugar at bottling and allow maturing for 2 days.

Link: Recipe 1

©Amongst Other Things –  努江虎 – 노강호 2012 Creative Commons Licence.