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Malt vs. Koji (ep. 27)

January 10, 2022 · Leave a Comment

EPISODE INTRO

In the 27th and first episode of season two of the Japan Distilled podcast, your hosts Christopher Pellegrini and Stephen Lyman tackle the sticky topic of the difference between malt vs. koji when it comes to breaking grains down into fermentable sugars.

CREDITS

Theme Song: Begin Anywhere by Tomoko Miyata (http://tomokomiyata.net/)

Mixing and Editing: Rich Pav (https://www.uncannyjapan.com/)

HOSTS

CHRISTOPHER PELLEGRINI Vermont born and bred, long-time Tokyo resident and author of The Shochu Handbook, Christopher learned about delicious fermentations as a beer brewer at Otter Creek (Middlebury, VT). He now spends most of his waking hours convincing strangers that shochu and awamori are unlike anything they’ve ever tried before. 

STEPHEN LYMAN discovered Japan’s indigenous spirits at an izakaya in New York City. He was so enthralled that he now lives in Japan and works in a tiny craft shochu distillery every autumn. His first book, The Complete Guide to Japanese Drinks, was nominated for a 2020 James Beard Award.

Stephen and Christopher are fans of well made spirits whether they’re malted or kojified.

If you have any comments or questions about malt vs. koji, please reach out to Stephen or Christopher via Twitter. We would love to hear from you. 

SHOW NOTES

Malt vs. Koji

Early on in the introduction of Japanese alcohols to the west, an unfortunate translation happened. Rice koji (米麹) was translated into “malted rice” … the mistake was certainly an honest one, but it was also factually incorrect. Malting and koji saccharification serve the same purpose. Despite both leveraging natural processes to extract reluctant sugars from grains, their methods are startlingly different. In this episode we attempt to untangle these approaches to alcohol production.

Malting

Malting is most commonly used in beer and whisky production. Malting is the process of tricking whole grains into germinating. This beginning of the germination process activates enzymes that release sugars in the grain to provide food to the germ, which will grow into a plant. However, once those sugars are enzymatically released, the process is shut down by drying and heating the germinated grains, which are then called malted grains.

While most beer brewers do not make their own malt, some malt whisky makers do still malt their own grains. Floor malting is the most traditional method.

malt vs. koji
The malting floor at the fabled Springbank Distillery in Campbelltown, Scotland.

Kojifying

We are committed to making kojify a verb so we will keep using it until we hear others do the same. This is the process of converting the starch in a grain or other substrate into soluable sugars using koji mold. In Japan, once you’ve grown koji mold on rice it’s no longer considered rice. It is now something else. It’s rice koji.

Koji mold spores being propagated onto freshly steamed rice at Yamatozakura Distillery in Kagoshima Prefecture.

Unlike malting, which relies on the grain’s own enzymatic activities to saccharify the starches, kojifying uses the mold’s enzymatic activity to do the work. In order for koji to innoculate the grains, they need to be polished before being steamed. This is distinctly different from malting, which relies on whole grains.

Rice koji just before being moved into a primary fermentation.

Fermentation Processes

Besides the obvious difference of germination vs. mold propagation between malting and koji, there are also differences in the brewing process. For malt brewing, the sugars are extracted from the grains, the spent grains are disposed of, and the yeasts are introduced to the sugars in a process known as multiple sequential fermentation.

Graphic courtesy of Piero Barbieri, DensityDesign Research Lab

For koji alcohol, this process is a bit different. Both the rice (or barley or sweet potato or buckwheat or corn) koji and yeast are introduced into the same fermentation vessel simultaneously in a process known as multiple parallel fermentation. In this case, the koji continues to break down the starches remaining in the grains while the yeasts begin converting those sugars into alcohol. The koji will also continue to do this process to any new grains or starch sources introduced to the fermentation as is common in shochu production.

Much More to Explore

These show notes just scratch the surface, but should serve as a useful aid as you listen to the episode itself. As always, please feel free to reach out if you have any questions about malt vs. koji.

KANPAI!

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Episode 54 tackles the topic of dilution in spirit Episode 54 tackles the topic of dilution in spirits. With the obsession with cask strength something may be lost. And that is the texture that can be brought to a spirit with really nice spring water, which is abundant in Japan. Cheers!
Episodes 52 & 53 were a 2 part episode on the life Episodes 52 & 53 were a 2 part episode on the life and legacy of Jokichi Takamine, easily the most influential Japanese immigrant to ever inhabit America. @altmattalt & @shochu_danji cover Takamine’s life from his early days in Japan to his fateful trip to New Orleans to his life in Chicago and then New York. If you flip through these you’ll see some of the places he lived from Denis House in NOLA to @sho_fu_den in the Catskills to his current resting place in @thewoodlawncemetery in the Bronx. We are obsessed with this man. No doubt. 

Why is a Japanese spirits podcast obsessed? Because he was the first Japanese person to ever make whisky. A full generation before Taketsuru. Takamine was the OG.
Episode 51 was about a year of drinking less dange Episode 51 was about a year of drinking less dangerously. @shochu_danji and @christopherpellegrini discuss mindful drinking and how to pace yourself. One way, of course, is copious amounts of hydration. Drinking other fluids helps slow you down. Another is to drink premium products and savor them for what they are rather than rushing through as many glasses as possible. One great drink is worth far more than many lesser ones. Kanpai!
Episode 50 was our 1st ever Q&A episode. You can t Episode 50 was our 1st ever Q&A episode. You can trust us, we’re authors. Have a listen in your podcast feed if you haven’t already. Our next Q&A episode will probably be at the end of 2024 so you’ve got plenty of time to get your questions submitted. 

Rare photo of us together during a joint book signing @tales_of_the_cocktail #totc2023

📸 @gigi_gaoyang
Event Alert! Our first ever in-person Japan Dist Event Alert! 

Our first ever in-person Japan Distilled whisky tasting. Come out to Travel Bar in Brooklyn this Thursday 7/20 6-8pm to meet our co-hosts, sample some 8 & 16 year old Takamine Koji Whiskey, and try our favorite Takamine cocktail from one of our favorite bartenders, Jane Nam. 

Come on out and lift a glass to the most epic Japanese human to ever live in America. 

Tickets available through eventbrite (link in profile). 

#whisky #whiskey #whiskytasting #brooklyn #travelbar #kojiwhisky #kojiwhiskey #koji #takaminewhiskey #japandistilled #podcast #podcastlife
Stephen reporting live from @shochu_fes 2023 in Fu Stephen reporting live from @shochu_fes 2023 in Fukuoka!
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