Mizumoto (water-based yeast-starter method)

Mizumoto (水酛) is one of the oldest methods of brewing Japanese sake, a way of making shubo (yeast starter) that developed mainly during the Edo period. In this method, rice is soaked in water, and lactic acid bacteria are allowed to multiply in that water to produce lactic acid. The lactic acid is then used to cultivate the shubo, which is used in the brewing process. The mizumoto technique suited warmer seasons and was valued for producing sake with a tart, acidic character. Its roots go back to bodaisen (also called bodaimoto), described in the Muromachi-period text Goshu no Nikki (御酒之日記), and its basic effects, purpose, and brewing method are shared with bodaimoto. Shubo made by the mizumoto method allows more stable fermentation and plays an important role in giving depth to the aroma and flavor of sake.