or ''Kuchikami no sake'' is a kind of rice-based alcohol produced by a process involving human
saliva
Saliva (commonly referred to as spit) 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 DNA can be ...
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 phenomenon in Japanese morphophonology that governs the voicing of the initial consonant of a non-initial portion of a compound or prefixed word. In modern Japanese, ''rendaku'' is common but at times unpredictable, with certain words una ...
form of "sake".
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 a prefecture of Japan. Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan, has a population of 1,457,162 (as of 2 February 2020) and a geographic area of 2,281 km2 (880 sq mi).
Naha is the capital and largest city o ...
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 media
Kuchikamizake is featured as a plot point in Makoto Shinkai's ''
Your Name
is a 2016 Japanese animated romantic fantasy film produced by CoMix Wave Films. It depicts a high school boy in Tokyo and a high school girl in the Japanese countryside who suddenly and inexplicably begin to swap bodies. The film was commissi ...
''.
See also
*''
Chicha
''Chicha'' is a fermented (alcoholic) or non-fermented beverage of Latin America, emerging from the Andes and Amazonia regions. In both the pre- and post-Spanish conquest periods, corn beer (''chicha de jora'') made from a variety of maize land ...
''
*
Mead
Mead () is an alcoholic beverage made by fermenting honey mixed with water, and sometimes with added ingredients such as fruits, spices, grains, or hops. The alcoholic content ranges from about 3.5% ABV to more than 20%. The defining character ...
References
Sake
Japanese alcoholic drinks
Japanese words and phrases
Rice wine
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