Owners of Foo and KOKO collaborate with a Pune-based brewery to create a crisp rice beer
The ripples of the pandemic have been harsh on the food and hospitality industry in Mumbai but it is also paving the way for new ideas and products to make the home experience restaurant-like. The owners of Foo and KOKO had big plans to launch their first rice beer early this year before the lockdown caught everyone off guard. "We decided to go ahead with our plans, for what better time to launch a new beer than now, when the government has allowed home delivery of liquor," shares Keenan Tham, owner of Foo and KOKO. Foo Brew is one of the many to follow and is made by keeping a crisp, light, Japanese-style rice beer. "Personally, I enjoy the lightest beers, and we wanted to create something that went with our Asian menu; something that would complement our Chinese and Japanese flavour profiles," he adds.
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Nakul Bhonsle, director of Pune-based brewery Great State Aleworks, says their first idea was a lemongrass-infused beer. "But that would have become niche in terms of flavour. Keenan suggested we do something neutral that would appeal to all palates. We all agreed on a crisp rice beer. It is almost like a palate cleanser," says Bhonsle. The beer is an ale, which uses a warm fermentation technique.
"The challenge while using rice is in the mashing process. The rice needs to be gelatinised at higher temperatures before it is introduced into the mash. This gelatinisation is essential for the eventual conversion of complex starches into simple sugars, which the yeast consumes to produce alcohol," he explains. The addition of rice contributes a light body to the beer due to complete fermentation of its sugars, thus making the beer crisp and sessionable (a term for low amounts of alcohol).
The Foo Brew comes to us in a one-litre growler and we follow their request to chill it in the freezer for 10 minutes before consumption. The pour has a light head, and the first nose is sweet. The first sip is refreshing, and ever-so-light on the palate. At 4.5 per cent alcohol content, it is a heady recipe disguised as a sessionable pour. We pair it with some avocado sushi. The beer plays wingman to the palate as it swings between the spicy burnt chilli sauce, the soy, pickled ginger and the pungent wasabi. The beauty of the beer is that a few big gulps on, the rice flavour makes a showstopping entry.
We hear that the next one will be a black rice beer; that's enough to bring a smile to our face. "It will be a bold, nutty and strong beer," Tham promises.
Call 9920133488
Cost Rs 750 for 1 litre growler
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