or ''kuchikami no sake'' is a type of
sake
Sake, , or saki, also referred to as Japanese rice wine, is an alcoholic beverage of Japanese origin made by fermenting rice that has been polished to remove the bran. Despite the name ''Japanese rice wine'', sake, and indeed any East Asi ...
, rice-based
brewed alcohol
Alcohol may refer to:
Common uses
* Alcohol (chemistry), a class of compounds
* Ethanol, one of several alcohols, commonly known as alcohol in everyday life
** Alcohol (drug), intoxicant found in alcoholic beverages
** Alcoholic beverage, an alco ...
, produced by a process involving human
saliva
Saliva (commonly referred as spit or drool) is an extracellular fluid produced and secreted by salivary glands in the mouth. In humans, saliva is around 99% water, plus electrolytes, mucus, white blood cells, epithelial cells (from which ...
as a
fermentation starter
A fermentation starter (called simply starter within the corresponding context, sometimes called a mother) is a preparation to assist the beginning of the fermentation process in preparation of various foods and alcoholic drinks. Food groups w ...
. Kuchikamizake was one of the earliest types of Japanese alcoholic drinks. ''Kuchi'' means "mouth", ''kami'' means "to chew" and ''zake'' is the
rendaku
is a pronunciation change seen in some compound words in Japanese. When rendaku occurs, a voiceless consonant (such as ) is replaced with a voiced consonant (such as ) at the start of the second (or later) part of the compound. For example, t ...
form of "sake" found in compound words.
Description
Kuchikamizake is white in colour and has a sour taste. After two weeks of fermentation, it can achieve up to 7% ABV. It is made from chewed rice; the mixture of the enzymes from saliva and rice result in the fermentation process. Some islands in
Okinawa Prefecture
is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan. It consists of three main island groups—the Okinawa Islands, the Sakishima Islands, and the Daitō Islands—spread across a maritime zone approximately 1,000 kilometers east to west an ...
still held Shinto ceremonies involving chewed sake until the 1930s.
[http://depts.nanzan-u.ac.jp/ugrad/JINBUN/Jinruibunka/depinfo/item/FWReport_2011_Yoshida.pdf 2011年度南山大学人文学部人類文化学科フィールドワーク（文化人類学）I1・II2調査報告書 Nanzan University, 2011, p47]
In popular culture
Kuchikamizake is featured as a plot point in
Makoto Shinkai
, known as
, is a Japanese filmmaker and novelist. He is known for his anime feature films produced with CoMix Wave Films.
Shinkai began his career as a video game animator with Nihon Falcom in 1996, and gained recognition as a filmmaker with ...
's animated film ''
Your Name
is a 2016 Japanese animated romantic fantasy film written and directed by Makoto Shinkai, produced by CoMix Wave Films, and distributed by Toho. Inspired by the frequency of natural disasters in Japan, the film depicts the story of high scho ...
''.
See also
*''
Chicha
''Chicha'' is a Fermentation, fermented (alcoholic) or non-fermented beverage of Latin America, emerging from the Andes and Amazonia regions. In both the pre- and post-Spanish conquest of Peru, Spanish conquest periods, corn beer (''chicha de jo ...
''
*
Mead
Mead (), also called honey wine, and hydromel (particularly when low in alcohol content), is an alcoholic beverage made by fermenting honey mixed with water, and sometimes with added ingredients such as fruits, spices, grains, or hops. The alco ...
References
Sake
Japanese alcoholic drinks
Japanese words and phrases
Rice wine
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