Boza: Ancient Fermented Sourdough Drink

Jan18

Boza is a fermented grain beverage widely popular in Turkey, from where it has spread to the Balkan States, the Levant, and even as far as Egypt. The history of boza, and its production from grains such as millet, barley, and wheat, and its fermentation with various sourdough starters, is fascinating.

What is Boza?

Boza is made from extant local grains cooked to a porridge, inoculated with a yeast or sourdough starter, and allowed to ferment for a short time. The porridge can also be made with various botanicals as flavoring agents.

After fermenting, the solids are strained out and a sweetener such as sugar or honey is added. It will contain about 1% or less alcohol by volume at this point, but also a rich strain of probiotics and vitamins. The consistency can vary from smooth like buttermilk, to a pudding that you eat with a spoon. The flavor is sweet/tart, and filled with umami.

Boza History

Records of making and consuming grain beverages go back at least 9000 years, with mentions of millet boza specifically, traced as early as the 10th Century CE among the Turkic peoples. Its popularity then spread to the Caucasus and Balkan regions.

The people of the Ottoman Empire notably became its very fervent fan base. From the 14th to the 16th Centuries boza making was a common trade. By the mid-1500s however, the custom of mixing boza with opium brought on the wrath of the Sultan, who banned its manufacture. With the rise of Islam, and prohibition of alcoholic drinks in the 17th century, boza was again prohibited and all boza shops were closed. This prohibition would be enforced, and then relaxed, several times in Ottoman Empire history. Still, travellers were able to find boza widely drunk, and at one time there were 300 boza shops employing over a thousand people in Constantinople alone.

Boza Ingredients

While boza from the the Balkans is usually made from millet, in modern Turkey bulgur (cracked parboiled wheat) is often used, and recipes can also contain rice. In Egypt, barley is commonly used. Some Balkan recipes call for baked wheat flour instead of bulgur, and sometimes maize (corn) is included.

Boza was traditionally a tart, and sometimes quite alcoholic beverage. After the prohibitive ruling by the Sultan, a sweet and non-alcoholic version was introduced in the 19th century and became much more popular than its sour and alcoholic predecessor. In 1876, brothers Hacı İbrahim and Hacı Sadık established a boza shop in Istanbul’s Vefa district that continues to serve sweet boza to this day. Modern Boza is allowed to ferment very briefly, perhaps 20 hours or so, and is sweetened with raw or turbinado sugar or honey before being refrigerated to inhibit further yeast activity.

*Turkish style boza from bulgur with chickpeas*

Botanicals

Historically boza was served with grape molasses (Greek: Petimezi) from Kuşadası, powdered cinnamon, cloves, ginger and grated coconut. Modern touches include garnishes such as mint, or pieces of fruit like pomegranate or persimmon. Some modern recipes may add a vanilla bean during the cooking process.

Fermentation Organisms

Traditionally, a sample saved from a previous batch was used to initiate the fermentation process, in a way similar to how sourdough bread is inoculated. Today the beginner can use a commercial sourdough starter, or create their own using a flour and water mixture exposed to the local ambient air.

Lacking these options it is possible to start a boza batch by adding yogurt and baker’s yeast. Alternately, mixtures of baker’s yeast and probiotic lacto/pedio bacteria blends can substitute.

Preparing Boza

Wash and cover the grains with fresh water

Soak the grains several hours or overnight

Drain the soak water from the grains and add more water to cover them

Cook the grains until they are soft adding water as needed

Liquefy the cooked grains in a blender with the some of the cooking water

Strain out the solids with a fine mesh strainer back into the cooking pot

Add the sugar, and more water to the desired finished quantity

Cool the liquid to lukewarm temperature and add the sourdough starter, (or yeast/yogurt) cover with a towel or cloth

Move the container to a warm place (such as an oven with the light on) at 21 – 27 ºC (70 – 80 ºF)

Ferment for 24 to 72 hours, stirring occasionally, and depending on how sour you wish to make it

Strain and transfer the liquid to a plastic jug, add finishing sugar, and refrigerate

Loosen the jug’s cap occasionally to release excess pressure

The boza will continue to ferment slowly and become carbonated and stronger in ABV

Serving Boza

In Turkey, boza is typically served cold in water glasses, perhaps ones with a handle like a mug. For additional flavor, it is often sweetened with sugar or grape molasses, topped with cinnamon and roasted chickpeas. A dessert spoon is sometimes supplied as well, as the boza can be as thick as a pudding, although it is usually about the consitency of milk kiefer.

*Egyptian Boza with Date Sugar, Date Syrup and Ajwain Seed*

Boza Health and Nutritional Benefits

Researchers that studied boza samples made from maize, wheat, and rice flours determined that on average they consisted of 12.3% total sugar, 1.06% protein, and 0.07% fat. Boza also contains vitamins A, B, and E, in a highly bioavailable form, and it provides the health benefits of a probiotic drink with its variety of lactic acid bacteria cultures.

A myth in the Balkan countries suggests that drinking boza regularly makes women grow bigger breasts! While there is no scientific support to this claim, some women are convinced that it works.

Balkan Boza Recipe 2 litres

250g Millet, 280g Turbinado sugar, 150ml Sourdough starter, 1.5 litres Water

Turkish Boza Recipe 2 litres

200g Bulgur, 55g Brown rice, 200g Raw sugar 150ml Sourdough starter 1.5 litres Water

Egyptian Recipe 2 litres

250g Pot Barley, 200g Date sugar, 150ml Sourdough starter, 1.5 litres Water, 100g Date syrup, Toasted Ajwain seed

Roasted Chickpea Recipe

1 can (398 ml) garbanzo (chickpea) beans, drained, skins removed, dried with paper towel. Coat with 1 Tbs cold-pressed grapeseed oil; roast 30 minutes at 190 ºC (375 ºF)) turning frequently. Toss with zest of 1 lime, 2 tsp white wine vinegar, sea salt to taste. Return to oven 3 minutes; cool. Store in airtight container.

Grape Molasses (Petimezi)

1.35 litres white grape juice reduced by boiling to 250 mililitres

The Internal Alembic Still

Dec6

A closer look at a primitive process.

Recall that the alembic still has three basic components: the retort, the condenser, and the receiver. The alchemists of old constructed finely crafted clay and glass instruments for their distillations. But their secret processes would inevitably become known, and attempts to duplicate them with household utensils would be many.

In Asian cooking, large pots and deep woks are common. As it happens, their size and shape make them ideal for constructing what is called an “internal alembic” still. In this configuration, the mash or wine is put into the large pot, which is heated and becomes the retort. For the receiver, a small wok is placed on a pedestal, centered inside the pot. A condenser is constructed from a wok large enough to span the top opening of the pot. Cold water is circulated through the condenser wok, and vapours from the heated wine or mash condense on its cold bottom surface. As this liquid accumulates, it drips off the surface and down into the receiving lower wok.

A look through many a modern kitchen, and some not so modern, will often find the basic materials for constructing a modest internal alembic. Soup pots of four to six liters make a retort. Stainless steel bowls of various sizes are commonly available at superstores. A tall stemmed glass makes a good pedestal. The trick is to assemble the parts, charge the still, heat on a stove, and with a few tweaks and techniques, harvest the liquor. The other trick being, of course, to make sure you live in a country where home distilling is legal!

A Timely Translation Teaches Us Again How to Drink

Apr14

The story is told of a student of philosopher and spiritualist George Gurdjieff, who approached him one day with wonderful news. “I’ve stopped smoking!” he exclaimed. “Great,” it’s said Gurdjieff replied, offering him one of his own long, thin, Russian cigarettes. “But, have you stopped NOT smoking too?”

This philosophy, moderation in all things–even moderation, is wonderfully and humorously espoused in the 16th Century book How to Drink by Vincent Obsopoeus (ca. 1498-1539). In a new release, Michael Fontaine, Professor of Classics at Cornell University makes the original Latin text accessible to 21st Century readers with an up-to-date translation that includes clever neologisms and familiar terms. As a bonus, the original Latin is included on the facing pages for those who wish to practice their classic language skills!

Obsopoeus was German humanist, Latin poet, and translator active in the Reformation. In Germany at the time, the climate had become uncharacteristically hot, and German grapes, usually low in sugar and hence capable of making only weak wine, were instead turning out fearsomely strong drink. As a result, it seemed to Obsopoeus, the entire nation had become a citizenry of drunks.

Now, according to Obsopoeus, taking a bit–and sometimes quite a bit–of wine is a perfectly fine passtime. But “if you drink in an uneducated manner, wine will hurt you.” On the other hand, “if you are educated about your drinking…wine is enjoyable and good.” Obsopoeus endeavors to educate his readers in good drinking practices.

Falarnian was the type of wine he most favored. This was an ancient Roman vintage, something akin to Sherry, with the grapes grown on the slopes of Mount Falernus in southern Italy. With a cult following at the time, it was a white wine, though produced from black grapes. Like Sherry, it was strong, as much as 15% alcohol. Harvested after late frosts, it was allowed to mature in amphorae for as long as 20 years, turning it amber to dark brown in color. Also like Sherry, it could vary from dry to sweet in flavor.

So enamored was he of this gift of the harvest that he writes a litany of praise to the god of wine, Bacchus and His power. “You make men rich, handsome and genteel! You alone, my lord, can gladden the gods of heaven.”

Vincent Obsopoeus

Obsopoeus offers hints and tips about how the gentleman should approach the indulgence of wine. Drink at home with your wife he recommends. Or drink moderately with friends and family, always being reserved and discreet. Honor the god Bacchus, and always be appropriately thankful and mindful of his gift of alcohol.

On the contrary, getting smashed and vulgar every day is a terrible sin, and an insult to the divine gift offered to humankind by Bacchus. Obsopoeus spends an entire section of the book describing in lurid detail the degradation and debauchery exhibited by his fellow citizens while under the terrible influence of their own self-poisoning.

But at this point Obsopoeus introduces a plot twist to his book. How to win drinking games: a skill he studiously practiced in his younger years! Evidently there was only one kind of 16th Century drinking game: take turns downing glasses of wine until all but one player passed out.

Obsopoeus offers his tried-and-true strategies for winning these drinking contests, including several methods of cheating. You’ll have to read the book to discover his secrets, but there is one worth mentioning up front: don’t try to compete with women! “The reason, you’ll find, is that women who indulge are equipped with a breathtaking ability to hold their liquor. They put Bacchus Himself to shame when they drink wine.”

And one more hint: to relieve a hangover, get yourself an amethyst crystal. The name of this sure-fire cure comes from the Greek a- (against) metfhyo (drunkenness.) Bet you didn’t know that!

Obsopoeus published this, his most famous work, in 1536. He was about 38 when he wrote the book, aimed in part at hard-drinking 19 to 25-year-old college students. He addresses bro/frat culture with the admonitions of experience. By 41 he was dead, having wished he had taken his own advice in his youth. Hopefully, very many medieval bros heeded his message; here we are today, with the benefit of hearing it anew. Enjoy your drink, but respect its power. To Bacchus he exclaims “For crying out loud, I’ll be damned if You can’t resurrect dead bodies with the juices that flow from Your vine!”

Robert Rivelle George is the author of “The Umami Factor: Full-spectrum Fermentation for the 21st Century”

HOW TO DRINK
A Classical Guide to the Art of Imbibing
By Vincent Obsopoeus
Translated and Introduced by Michael Fontaine
320 pages Princeton University Press $16.95

Buccoleon Strong Ale

Oct21

This is a classic Belgian dark tripel. If you have tried Brouwerij Van Steenberge’s Gulden Draak, you know what I mean. Buccoleon Strong Ale is a tribute to that world-class beer.

Brewed with Belgian Strong Ale yeast, it offers flavors of raisins, plums and pears, together with spicy hints of cloves, rum, and nutmeg. Starting with a Pilsner malt base; wheat malt, cara-wheat, crystal malt, biscuit/aroma malts and caramely golden syrup provide a flaky crust for this virtual fruit tart. The yeast leaves its distinctiver mark.

As it is not a Gulden Draak clone, it is a bit drier and a little more bitter. Its original gravity of 24.5 Plato (1105) still leaves a lot of residual sweetness, so it is refermented in the bottle with Champagne yeast and no added bottling sugar. Age this one at least a year.

Gulden Draak is named after the golden dragon at the top of the belfry of Ghent. The story of how he got there is fascinating. Buccoleon was the dragon’s name. He lived in the swampy ground around Aleppo, one of the chief cities of the Saracens in northern Syria. He was such a tender-hearted old dragon that he was called The Weeping Dragon. He wept bucketfuls of tears when Belgian crusaders and the Saracens fell to fighting. Where his tears fell, beautiful flowers began to grow.

A crusader took their bulbs back to Belgium, where they became famous for being the most beautiful tulips of all. Hearing about their fame, Buccoleon, whose scales had turned to gold because the crusaders had left, flew to Belgium to see for himself. He decided to stay!

Rum Raisin Brown Stout

Oct8

This is a beer that answers the question “What would it be like to brew up a batch of oatmeal raisin cookies?”

In the past, the term “stout” referred to a beer that was extra strong. Thus, we had Porter, and we had Stout Porter, which eventually became just Stout for short. Interestingly, what is now known as Stout is oftentimes rather low in alcoholic content while Porters tend to have an ABV of 5.5% to 6% or more. But historically, Stout was any beer that was as strong as the drinkers that were expected to consume it.

To make this brown stout, start with the ingredients for cookies: wheat malt, oats, sultana raisins. Add to this Maris Otter base malt, crystal malt, a touch of caramel rye malt, and some Cara Munich. Mash at a fairly high temperature to encourage the production of unfermentable sugars that will keep the brew more sweet and full-bodied. Magnum and Amarillo hops are assertive without being overpowering. Add golden syrup at the end of the boil to contribute more caramel flavors. Ferment with a fruity yeast such as London Ale. Soak sultanas in dark rum until they are soft, then whirl the mixture in a blender. Add some to the primary fermenter, and another batch to the secondary, along with a hint of vanilla extract.

The result is not so much a beer that tastes like oatmeal raisin cookies as it is an oatmeal raisin cookie that tastes like beer.

Cascadia Nation Black Lager

Sep12

The Cascade Mountain Range extends from Southern British Columbia through Western Washington and Oregon, into Northern California. Part of the Pacific Ocean’s “Ring of Fire” its highest peak is the volcano Mount Rainier. To its west are the hipster havens of Seattle and Portland, famous for some of the finest craft beer in the world. To its east lies the fertile hop growing region of the Yakima Valley in Washington. South of Portland, at the western edge of the Cascades, another stretch of fine hop farms fills the Willamette River valley.

The Cascade Range and its surrounding hop and barley farms form the mythical country of Cascadia. A generous cartographer would include the barley-growing regions of the Columbia Basin, and the Palouse, stretching east and south from Spokane, Washington. It also makes sense to declare San Francisco an honorary member among Cascadia cities, for it is the birthplace of the modern craft beer movement in the United States, thanks to the visionary efforts of Fritz Maytag and his Anchor Brewing Company.

Grain harvesting in Whitman County, Washington

The strains of hops developed in Cascadia, fittingly often begin with the letter “C” themselves. The “Four C’s” as they are sometimes called, are Cascade, Centennial, Chinook and Columbus. More recently Citra ™ has joined the group. They are dominantly bright, piney, citrusy and resinous in taste and aroma, and form the basis of most American India Pale Ales. Recently, they have been incorporated into a style known as Cascadian Dark Ale.

As hop and barley production began to ramp up in Cascadia during the 1980s, another development took place 180 degrees away in the Ring of Fire. Japanese brewers were early to recognize the potential for product differentiation offered by creating all-malt lagers in their commercial operations. Kirin and Sapporo led the way with premium “black beer” (黒ビール), featuring roasted malts and a sweet finish.

The Cascadia Black Lager shown here pays homage to both sides of the Ring of Fire. It is hoppy (40 IBU) like a Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, slightly roasty like a dark ale, with mildly sweet maltiness like Japanese black lager. It uses the San Francisco lager yeast to keep the finish drier than a typical ale. Cold-infused specialty grains, including debittered Carafa II, Munich malt and Breiss Special Roast maximize flavor while keeping away excessive burned harshness. A nice thick head leads to a moderately full mouth feel, and its 5.7% ABV is assertive, while keeping it well within the range of sessionability for the discerning and determined tippler!

Corny Comet Cream Breakfast Ale

Apr17

A cream ale for breakfast. Not meant to replace your double espresso, but rather to stand beside it, bracing you for the day to come.

Cream ale emerged in the late 19th Century United States when ale breweries, faced with immigrant competition from Bavarian brewers bringing lager to the market, devised a light and refreshing, yet bold concoction that combined the crisp, dry flavor of a lager with the rapid fermentation characteristics of an ale. In many of these renditions, a substantial ABV approaching 5.5% was a feature.

This cream ale uses 22 IBU of Comet hops, a variety that tastes and smells remarkably like pink grapefruit. Breakfast cereal included: organic corn grits, and steel-cut oats, along with some nice caramel notes from a variety of crystal malts. Starting gravity is 15 Plato, boosted by a late addition of rice syrup solids. White Labs WLP080 Cream Ale yeast blend provides crisp yet round fermentation notes. Dry hopping with Comet offers grapefruit aroma.

This is a fruity breakfast drink; cream of corn grits with fruit and oats, delivered with the full mouthfeel of an ultimate smoothie.

Kola\Coca Soda

Jan25

In the years after the Civil War in the United States, nostrums and remedies began to appear for sale in the cities and towns throughout the South. One of these was invented by a war veteran who had been injured in battle, and subsequently found himself addicted to morphine, which he had been using to relieve his pain. Marketed as Pemberton’s French Wine Coca, it was touted as a cure for the blues, as well as for morphine addiction. The alcoholic version of the drink was reformulated in response to temperance legislation enacted in the area, and eventually became the world’s top-selling soft drink.

Pemberton’s French Wine Coca

This recipe for a drink that contains both coca leaf and kola nut extracts looks particularly pale when compared to commercial cola products. That is because the coloring agent in those versions is caramel. Commercial caramel color is created by heat-treating sugars such as glucose in the presence of acids, alkalies, or salts. It’s there pretty much only for the color. Leave it out and you get a pale golden drink colored, in this case, by the kola nut, coca leaf, and raw cane ingredients. Lime juice and six essential oils complete the formula.

Kola\Coca Soda tastes amazingly like a fresh version of the familiar cola practically everyone knows. It is very aromatic, thanks to the fresh lime juice and combination of fruit and spice oils. If you add a shot or two of dark rum to this beverage you will undoubtedly find yourself soon shouting “¡Cuba Libre!”

Ebulus Cervisiam Delectamentum

Dec20

Depending on where you live, it’s not to late to get out in the woods and gather some elderberries. They make a nice wine of course, but they also make a tart and fruity beer. An elderberry braggot (beer and mead hybrid) is also a tasty possibility. The berries are the fruit of Sambucus species. In Europe, they come most commonly from the Dwarf Elder (Sambucus ebulus.) This tree was known as the Ebull in ancient times, the term taken from its Latin name. The beer made from elderberries is called Ebulum, and appears as a recipe in books from the early 1700s. The Oxford Dictionary defines ebulum as a name for elderberry wine, but London & Country Brew III (1743) says “make a white Ebulum with pale Malt and white Elder-berries.” This was possibly a barley wine.

Elderberries have a long history of medicinal use, with a reputation for successfully treating colds and flu. For this purpose they are usually made into a syrup. The raw berries are somewhat toxic, and so they are cooked. Elderflowers also have medicinal and culinary uses, notably as a background flavoring for the cordial Sambuca.

This Ebulum has a Chocolate Surprise. In addition to the pale malt (in this case Maris Otter) in traditional recipes, this one has chocolate malt, an English blend of crystal malts, and Dingeman’s debittered black malt. It is spiced with elderflowers, grains of paradise, and cinnamon, finished with Muscovado sugar at flameout. A touch of lactose added just before bottling creates a full mouthfeel and a bit of residual sweetness that balances the berries’ tartness.

Stripping two kilos of elderberries from their elaborate stems is tedious work. Drinking the results after a year of aging is a delectable reward.

Rum-barrel Hop-burst Robust Porter

Oct5

Robust Porter is the best kind of porter. Who would want a pathetic porter? The freight porters of old were a strong bunch. This is a strong drink for them.

To add to this porter’s robustness, the brewer uses the technique of “hop bursting.” Hop burst recipes call for adding to the wort only one large charge of the freshest possible hops with fifteen minutes left in the boil. The result is considerable bitterness, but with a huge amount of flavor and aromatic oils retained in the brew.

But this is more than just Hop Burst Robust Porter. It is Rum-Barrel Hop-Burst Robust Porter! Take toasted oak cubes and cover them with your favorite rum. Let it sit for two weeks, and then pour the tincture into the secondary fermenter. You are rewarded with a thick, rich, wildly complex beverage. After a long day down at the docks, this is going to be a big reward. This is seriously good Porter.