舌尖上的中国第1季 第40期:转化的灵感(14)

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In the abundant Jiangnan, rice is an indispensable part of life here. 富庶的江南地区稻米是生活中不可缺少的部分。

It's only natural to make several jars of wine to treat themselves and guests and worship gods during the slack season of farming. 年前正是农闲，做几坛米酒祭神敬祖招待客人，犒劳自己都是自然不过的事。

The cocoon-shaped Jiuqu or fermentation starter is the soul of wine-making. 蚕茧般的酒麴是酿酒的灵魂。

Jiuqu is considered the seed with yeast¹. 可以把它理解成“接上了菌的种子”。

A variety of yeasts² are lying in the mixture of rice powder and red-knee herbs. 这些稻粉和辣寥草的混合体里面沉睡着形形色色的发酵菌。

They are waiting for the perfect time to wake up. 等待合适的时机苏醒。

Cheng mixes the crushed Jiuqu with glutinous³ rice. 程进顺把碾碎的酒麴均匀地和糯米拌在一起。

Jiuqu is a great invention of the Chinese people, the most ancient and effective attempt of human beings at taming micro-organisms. 酒麴是中国人了不起的发明，是人们试图捕捉和驯化微生物的最古老而有效的尝试。

This is the most important step of making wine to bring about the most magical part of the transformation⁴. 这是酿酒中最重要的一步，它们将带来转化中最神奇的部分。

A deep hole is dug in the well-mixed rice. 拌好的糯米被拔出一个深深的酒窝。

Not a single grain of rice will be wasted. 再把指缝间的每一粒米都抹进缸中。

To distribute the last handful of Jiuqu power, all the procedures are finished. 撒上最后一把酒麴。

Now, we'll just let time deal with the rest of the work. 之后的一切，都要交给时间了。

The molds will change the starch⁵ into sugar. 那些霉菌将会把糯米中的淀粉变成糖。

The yeasts will turn the sugar into alcohol. 而酵母菌们负责把糖变成酒精。

We can almost hear the hilarious⁶ singing of yeasts spreading from the darkness. 在黑暗中仿佛传来发酵菌们欢快的歌声。

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