sinovels Chapter 67 The Wine Has Been Brewed
Chapter 67 The Wine Has Been Brewed
Upon hearing his father's shout, Xu Chunsheng quickly put down what he was doing:
"It's here! Let me smell it."
Xu Chunsheng rushed into the bamboo shed, taking three steps at a time, and carefully sniffed the air:
"It's even richer than yesterday, with a sour and fragrant flavor."
The pure aroma of wine, mixed with the slight acidity of fermented corn, wafts out from the cracks in the earthenware jar lid. It's not too sweet or cloying, and the smell is harmonious and pleasant.
"I'm going to pick up Uncle Tang and have him give me his opinion."
After saying that, Xu Chunsheng went back into the house, got into his tricycle, and prepared to pick up Tang Yongnian.
Xu's mother called out from the yard, "Don't forget to buy some meat. I'll go and invite Teacher Tang over for dinner later."
"Okay."
Xu Chunsheng bought his things at the supply and marketing cooperative before going to the Tang family's house.
Xu Chunsheng, carrying a bag of apples, knocked twice on the Tang family's door, and the door opened shortly afterward.
Tang Yongnian opened the door, and was not at all surprised that it was Xu Chunsheng who knocked:
"You're here? Let me put on my shoes, then we'll go."
Without any further pleasantries, Tang Yongnian put on his shoes and called out into the house:
"Xiulan, I'm going to Chunsheng's house to take a look."
"Okay, I understand."
Xu Chunsheng placed the apple on the cabinet by the door before the two closed the door and went downstairs.
As he descended the stairs, Xu Chunsheng couldn't help but ask:
"Uncle, how did you know it was me?"
Tang Yongnian snorted:
"The temperature has been a bit high these past few days. If you don't come to me soon, I'm going to come to you. The higher the temperature, the faster the fermentation. If the jar isn't opened in time, it will turn bitter."
After saying that, he continued to ask:
"How does it smell?"
Xu Chunsheng walked beside Tang Yongnian and answered earnestly:
"The aroma of alcohol was quite strong this morning, with a sour and fragrant scent. I couldn't detect any other notes."
Tang Yongnian nodded to indicate that he understood.
After another bumpy ride, Xu Chunsheng stopped the car and helped Tang Yongnian out of it.
Compared to his last visit to the Xu family, Alan Tam has gotten used to the bumpy dirt road, and this time he was clearly not as uncomfortable as last time.
When Xu's father saw the two of them enter the village, he poured them a cup of tea. As soon as Tang Yongnian got out of the car, he brought it to him.
"Master Tang, thank you for making this trip again."
Tang Yongnian took the tea and smiled at Xu's father, saying:
"Why bother? I came by car, it's not tiring."
"Let's check on the wine first, then we can chat."
"Okay, okay."
Apart from the third brother and youngest sister who went to school, the rest of the Xu family went to the bamboo shed.
This is our family's first time brewing wine, and everyone is really looking forward to the results, wanting to see if it will be a success.
Tang Yongnian carefully sniffed the earthenware jar:
"The aroma of the wine has already dissipated. This batch has fermented quite well. Although it's not quite pure enough, there are no strange tastes. For a first-time winemaker, it's already quite good."
"Let's steam it now. The temperature is high these days, we can't wait, or it will turn bitter if we're not careful."
Xu Chunsheng quickly responded and stepped forward to reach out and lift the lid.
But Tang Yongnian stopped him:
"Uncover it slowly so the aroma doesn't dissipate too quickly. If you uncover it too fast, the alcohol will rise and cause you to choke, and the alcohol content will be lower."
After he finished speaking, he let Xu Chunsheng lift the lid little by little. A mellow and sweet aroma of wine was instantly released, clean and refreshing, and not pungent.
Xu Chunsheng leaned closer to smell it, then looked at the contents of the jar, his face beaming with joy:
The top layer is a pale yellow liquid, and the bottom layer is the corn that has sunk to the bottom. It doesn't look cloudy or sticky.
Tang Yongnian, who was standing to the side, also stepped aside so that the others could see better.
"It smells like wine, so we can call this a success, right?"
"We were able to do it only because Master Tang guided us."
Seeing that everyone had looked around enough, Tang Yongnian gave instructions:
"Since this is your first batch, there's no bottom trough. Take some clean chaff and spread a thin layer on the bottom rack of the pot."
After Xu Chunsheng brought the chaff, Tang Yongnian demonstrated it himself:
"Like this, apply a thin layer, and don't press it too tightly."
After the demonstration, Tang Yongnian asked Xu Chunsheng to pour out the broth so he could do it himself.
Xu Chunsheng followed Tang Changping's movements, spreading the chaff evenly and gently pressing it down.
"Yes, that's it. Loosening it allows for better air circulation, ensuring the steam travels evenly and the wine comes out at the same level from top to bottom."
After saying that, Tang Yongnian instructed Xu Chunsheng to scoop the fermented mash into the wooden still.
As Xu Chunsheng scooped the food, he gave him instructions on precautions:
"The grain should be spread out evenly, with the same thickness, so that one side is higher than the other."
"The heat is also important. First, use a high flame to get the steam going, and then immediately switch to a low flame."
Finally, I explained to them why I did this:
"If the fire is too strong, the wine will be too spicy and lack staying power; if the fire is too weak, the wine will be released slowly and turn sour and tasteless."
Tang Changping then pointed to the cooling radiator:
"The cold water needs to be changed frequently to keep the pot cold, so that the steam rising from it can condense into wine."
"Collect the first and last drinks separately. The first drink is spicy and cloudy, so discard those."
"The final distillate is weak and a bit sour, so we can save it and distill it again next time."
"We only want the wine in the middle."
While working, Xu Chunsheng listened carefully to Tang Yongnian's words and kept them in mind.
After Xu's father lit the stove, the family put the pot on the stove, added water, and then put the steamer on top.
The temperature rose little by little, and white steam slowly rose from the steamer.
Shortly after the white mist appeared, a thin, clear liquid slowly flowed out along the tube.
Tang Yongnian took a small bowl from the side and gestured for Xu Chunsheng to continue:
"What's flowing out now is the first batch of liquor; it has a pungent taste and may have some other flavors as well."
Mr. Xu, Mrs. Xu, and the eldest sister also came over to smell it. There was a spicy and pungent smell, along with some other indescribable odors, which made people want to sneeze, but they couldn't.
Xu Chunsheng also took a sniff:
"It is indeed a bit pungent. It looks very clear, but I didn't expect it to smell so bad."
Tang Yongnian laughed when he saw how uncomfortable they looked:
"Haha, the first batch of liquor is strong, these should be packaged separately, they can't be mixed with the good liquor."
The group nodded to indicate they had noted it down, and watched as the wine flowed continuously down the tube. Once the initial batch of wine was almost finished, they replaced it with a clean, large wine jar and placed it under the tube to collect the remaining wine.
"These are the best parts of this pot of wine."
The group then collected some more in small bowls and smelled it one by one:
"It's definitely not as pungent as before, and you can even smell the aroma of corn."
"The color is also brighter than before."
The Xu family gathered together and told each other everything they had seen and smelled.
Tang Yongnian picked up the conversation:
"Just let the fire burn steadily for now, and take over with confidence."
As the aroma of the wine in the pot gradually faded, the flow of the wine slowed down, the color became cloudy, the aroma was not as strong as before, and there was a faint sour smell.
Tang Yongnian had another jar replaced:
"These are the tail liquors coming out now. They have a low alcohol content, a mild flavor, and are a bit sour. If they are mixed into the middle liquors, it will affect the overall taste."
"Don't discard the first and last distillations. Save them up and distill them together later to extract the liquor."
Xu Xu's father, who was standing to the side, couldn't help but ask:
"Master Tang, is this batch of liquor up to standard?"
Tang Yongnian, however, said:
"If you're planning to sell it, it wouldn't qualify. It's fine for keeping for your own consumption or giving to relatives to try."
"This is already quite good for a beginner's first batch."
After Tang Yongnian finished speaking, he patted Xu Chunsheng on the shoulder:
"He has some talent. Try a couple more batches, and selling bulk liquor shouldn't be a problem."
Hearing Tang Yongnian's affirmation, the whole family was overjoyed, their faces beaming with smiles.