Sato (rice wine)
Encyclopedia
Sato is a traditional northeastern Thailand (Isan)
Isan
Isan is the northeastern region of Thailand. It is located on the Khorat Plateau, bordered by the Mekong River to the north and east, by Cambodia to the southeast and the Prachinburi mountains south of Nakhon Ratchasima...

 beer style
Beer style
Beer style is a term used to differentiate and categorize beers by various factors such as colour, flavour, strength, ingredients, production method, recipe, history, or origin....

 that has been made for centuries from starch
Starch
Starch or amylum is a carbohydrate consisting of a large number of glucose units joined together by glycosidic bonds. This polysaccharide is produced by all green plants as an energy store...

y glutinous or sticky rice
Glutinous rice
Glutinous rice is a type of short-grained Asian rice that is especially sticky when cooked. It is called glutinous Glutinous rice (Oryza sativa var. glutinosa or Oryza glutinosa; also called sticky rice, sweet rice, waxy rice, botan rice, biroin chal, mochi rice, and pearl rice, and pulut) is a...

 by growers in that region. Just as other regional varieties
Chinese wine
Jiu is the Chinese word that refers to all alcoholic beverages. This word has often been mistranslated into English as "wine"; the meaning is closer to "alcoholic beverage" or "liquor"...

 made not from grape
Grape
A grape is a non-climacteric fruit, specifically a berry, that grows on the perennial and deciduous woody vines of the genus Vitis. Grapes can be eaten raw or they can be used for making jam, juice, jelly, vinegar, wine, grape seed extracts, raisins, molasses and grape seed oil. Grapes are also...

s but cereal
Cereal
Cereals are grasses cultivated for the edible components of their grain , composed of the endosperm, germ, and bran...

 are commonly called wine
Wine
Wine is an alcoholic beverage, made of fermented fruit juice, usually from grapes. The natural chemical balance of grapes lets them ferment without the addition of sugars, acids, enzymes, or other nutrients. Grape wine is produced by fermenting crushed grapes using various types of yeast. Yeast...

 rather than beer
Beer
Beer is the world's most widely consumed andprobably oldest alcoholic beverage; it is the third most popular drink overall, after water and tea. It is produced by the brewing and fermentation of sugars, mainly derived from malted cereal grains, most commonly malted barley and malted wheat...

, sato is commonly called Thai rice wine. When brewed in little brown jugs called , it is called or .

History

Due to internal migration of people from Isan throughout Thailand, sato (like many forms of northeastern Thai cuisine
Cuisine of Thailand
Thai cuisine is the national cuisine of Thailand. Blending elements of several Southeast Asian traditions, Thai cooking places emphasis on lightly prepared dishes with strong aromatic components. The spiciness of Thai cuisine is well known. As with other Asian cuisines, balance, detail and variety...

) have become increasingly familiar to the larger Thai population
Demographics of Thailand
This article is about the demographic features of the population of Thailand, including population density, ethnicity, education level, health of the populace, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects of the population....

, as well as to the expatriate and tourist communities. The increased awareness and availability of commercially-produced sato have increased its popularity. Under the Thai government's
Politics of Thailand
The politics of Thailand are currently conducted within the framework of a constitutional monarchy, whereby the Prime Minister is the head of government and a hereditary monarch is head of state. The judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislative branches.Thai kingdoms and late...

 One Tambon One Product
One Tambon One Product
One Tambon One Product is a local entrepreneurship stimulus program designed by Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra during the 2001-2006 Thai Rak Thai government. The program aims to support the unique locally made and marketed products of each Thai tambon...

 program (a government sponsored economic development program abbreviated TP and pronounced OTOP), several districts chose revenue-stamp
Revenue stamp
A revenue stamp, tax stamp or fiscal stamp is a adhesive label used to collect taxes or fees on documents, tobacco, alcoholic drinks, drugs and medicines, playing cards, hunting licenses, firearm registration, and many other things...

ed sato as their OTOP product. Today, several brewers produce sato under names such as "Siam Sato", "Ruan Rak", "Gru Pli", and others.

is sato brewed in earthenware
Earthenware
Earthenware is a common ceramic material, which is used extensively for pottery tableware and decorative objects.-Types of earthenware:Although body formulations vary between countries and even between individual makers, a generic composition is 25% ball clay, 28% kaolin, 32% quartz, and 15%...

 jar
Jar
A jar is a rigid, approximately cylindrical container with a wide mouth or opening. Jars are typically made of glass, ceramic, or plastic. They are used for foods, cosmetics, medications, and chemicals that are relatively thick or viscous...

s or jug
Jug
Jug may refer to:* Jug , a vessel for liquids* Jug , used for rhythmic bass accompaniment* Jug , cross breed between a Pug and a Jack Russell Terrier...

s (.) It is also called ( alcohol [of] cradle
Cradle
Cradle may refer to:Mechanical devices:*Bassinet, a small bed, often on rockers, in which babies and small children sleep* Ship cradle, supports a ship that is dry docked...

) — is alcohol
Alcohol
In chemistry, an alcohol is an organic compound in which the hydroxy functional group is bound to a carbon atom. In particular, this carbon center should be saturated, having single bonds to three other atoms....

 as in lao-Lao
Lao-Lao
Lao-Lao is a Laotian rice whisky produced in Laos. Along with Beer Lao, lao-Lao is a staple for the people of Laos. Contrary to what the romanized transcription would make one believe, the name lao-Lao is not the same word repeated twice, but actually two different words pronounced with different...

 ( alcohol [of] Laos
Laos
Laos Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao, officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic, is a landlocked country in Southeast Asia, bordered by Burma and China to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the south and Thailand to the west...

), is "cradle" in the sense of holding something under construction.
Some, such as the Phu Thai of Renu
Amphoe Renu Nakhon
Renu Nakhon is a district of Nakhon Phanom Province, northeastern Thailand.-Geography:Neighboring districts are Mueang Nakhon Phanom, That Phanom, Na Kae and Pla Pak.-History:...

, sell home brew
Home Brew
"Home Brew" is an episode of the BBC sitcom The Green Green Grass. It was screened on 15 January 2009, as the second episode of the fourth series.-Synopsis:...

 sato kits in little brown jugs of various sizes. These also bear revenue stamps and, like the bottled variety, warnings that it is not to be served to those under 18
Age of majority
The age of majority is the threshold of adulthood as it is conceptualized in law. It is the chronological moment when minors cease to legally be considered children and assume control over their persons, actions, and decisions, thereby terminating the legal control and legal responsibilities of...

. Typical ingredients include rice chaff, milled rice, and refined sugar, and these make a beer of not more than 6.4% alcohol.

Brewing

Sato is brewed with glutinous rice
Glutinous rice
Glutinous rice is a type of short-grained Asian rice that is especially sticky when cooked. It is called glutinous Glutinous rice (Oryza sativa var. glutinosa or Oryza glutinosa; also called sticky rice, sweet rice, waxy rice, botan rice, biroin chal, mochi rice, and pearl rice, and pulut) is a...

  (also called sticky rice); a starter
Fermentation starter
Fermentation starters are preparations to assist the beginning of the fermentation process in preparation of various foods and fermented drinks. A starter culture is a microbiological culture which actually performs fermentation...

 culture
Microbiological culture
A microbiological culture, or microbial culture, is a method of multiplying microbial organisms by letting them reproduce in predetermined culture media under controlled laboratory conditions. Microbial cultures are used to determine the type of organism, its abundance in the sample being tested,...

, a mixture including primarily sugar; yeast
Yeast
Yeasts are eukaryotic micro-organisms classified in the kingdom Fungi, with 1,500 species currently described estimated to be only 1% of all fungal species. Most reproduce asexually by mitosis, and many do so by an asymmetric division process called budding...

; and water. Traditionally, a starter culture known as luk paeng ' onMouseout='HidePop("39954")' href="/topics/Starch">starch
Starch
Starch or amylum is a carbohydrate consisting of a large number of glucose units joined together by glycosidic bonds. This polysaccharide is produced by all green plants as an energy store...

, yeast, and mold
Mold
Molds are fungi that grow in the form of multicellular filaments called hyphae. Molds are not considered to be microbes but microscopic fungi that grow as single cells called yeasts...

) is used to assist in fermentation. The steamed sticky rice is mixed with luk paeng and kept in a fermentation tank for three days, as the starch in the rice changes to sugar
Sugar
Sugar is a class of edible crystalline carbohydrates, mainly sucrose, lactose, and fructose, characterized by a sweet flavor.Sucrose in its refined form primarily comes from sugar cane and sugar beet...

. Water is then added to the fermentation tank and the mixture is allowed to ferment for a further week. Following that, the fresh rice wine is pressed from the dregs, and filtered.

is prepared by breaking the seal
Bung
A bung is truncated cylindrical or conical closure to seal a container, such as a bottle, tube or barrel. Unlike a lid which encloses a container from the outside without displacing the inner volume, a bung is partially inserted inside the container to act as a seal...

 in the mouth of the jar and adding clean water, then immediately drunk
Drinking
Drinking is the act of consuming water or a beverage through the mouth. Water is required for many of life’s physiological processes. Both excessive and inadequate water intake are associated with health problems.-Physiology:...

.

Owing to the simplicity of the process, the resultant beverage is often of variable quality and has a short shelf life
Shelf life
Shelf life is the length of time that food, drink, medicine, chemicals, and many other perishable items are given before they are considered unsuitable for sale, use, or consumption...

. Some molds and yeasts produce mycotoxin
Mycotoxin
A mycotoxin is a toxic secondary metabolite produced by organisms of the fungus kingdom, commonly known as molds. The term ‘mycotoxin’ is usually reserved for the toxic chemical products produced by fungi that readily colonize crops...

s. Ergot
Ergot
Ergot or ergot fungi refers to a group of fungi of the genus Claviceps. The most prominent member of this group is Claviceps purpurea. This fungus grows on rye and related plants, and produces alkaloids that can cause ergotism in humans and other mammals who consume grains contaminated with its...

, the common name of a fungus in the genus Claviceps that is parasitic on certain grains and grasses, also occurs in tropical regions, and may cause ergotism
Ergotism
Ergotism is the effect of long-term ergot poisoning, traditionally due to the ingestion of the alkaloids produced by the Claviceps purpurea fungus which infects rye and other cereals, and more recently by the action of a number of ergoline-based drugs. It is also known as ergotoxicosis, ergot...

.

Serving

Sato is typically served at room temperature. In Isan, sato is usually served in a large bowl, into which individuals dip their glasses or cups. is sold with a pair of drinking straw
Drinking straw
A drinking straw is a short tube intended for transferring a beverage from its container to the mouth of the drinker by use of suction. A thin tube of plastic or other material, straight or with an accordion-like living hinge, it is employed by being held with one end in the mouth and another end...

s, and labels recommend serving to couple
Intimate relationship
An intimate relationship is a particularly close interpersonal relationship that involves physical or emotional intimacy. Physical intimacy is characterized by romantic or passionate love and attachment, or sexual activity. The term is also sometimes used euphemistically for a sexual...

s.

See also

  • Choujiu
    Choujiu
    Choujiu is a type of Chinese fermented alcoholic beverage brewed from glutinous rice. It is very thick and has a milky white color, which is sometimes compared to jade....

  • Chinese wine
    Chinese wine
    Jiu is the Chinese word that refers to all alcoholic beverages. This word has often been mistranslated into English as "wine"; the meaning is closer to "alcoholic beverage" or "liquor"...

  • Chhaang
    Chhaang
    Chhaang or chang is a Tibetan/Sherpa/Limbu/Newari alcoholic beverage also popular in parts of eastern Himalayas.-Geographical prevalence:...

  • Doburoku
  • Gamju
    Gamju
    Gamju or dansul is a traditional Korean alcoholic beverage, made from rice fermented with yeast-cake. Because its fermentation is incomplete, its alcohol content is relatively low. It is made from steamed rice, to which water and yeast-cake are added. It is then fermented for several hours in a...

  • Lao-Lao
    Lao-Lao
    Lao-Lao is a Laotian rice whisky produced in Laos. Along with Beer Lao, lao-Lao is a staple for the people of Laos. Contrary to what the romanized transcription would make one believe, the name lao-Lao is not the same word repeated twice, but actually two different words pronounced with different...

  • Makgeolli

External links

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