I Have a Countryside Gourmet Restaurant

Chapter 92: Chapter 92: Good Food Needs Fine Wine

Overjoyed, Li You continued to eat the crayfish.

He ate one after another, completely unable to stop.

Too bad there was no wine.

Otherwise, he’d have to have a little drink.

’Speaking of which, I should probably go buy some wine.’

’I could buy some baijiu, some beer.’

Li You wasn’t particularly interested in drinking, but there were times he still felt like having a sip or two.

’Right, with more and more dishes on the menu, shouldn’t I consider offering alcoholic beverages to the customers?’

’First, baijiu.’

’If you have fine food, you should have fine wine to go with it.’

’But what kind of wine could be considered fine wine?’

’Those high-end, famous brands?’

High-end, famous brands were certainly fine wines, but selling them in his restaurant was obviously unrealistic.

’If only I could find some of that bulk-sold, but genuinely grain-brewed, liquor.’

Li You was leaning more toward selling liquor in bulk.

’I could go check with Boss Xie.’

Li You remembered that among the bosses who had come to eat earlier, one named Xie Hai sold liquor in bulk.

However, at that very moment...

”Detecting the host’s demand for fine wine. A side quest has been triggered.

Quest Name: Fine Wine for the Restaurant.

Quest Requirement: The host must brew one type of alcoholic beverage. The type and amount are not restricted.

Quest Reward: Ten jars of fine wine (one hundred ten pounds per jar).”

The unexpected quest was a pleasant surprise for Li You.

Ten jars of fine wine! This was a classic case of getting a pillow right when you’re feeling sleepy—a perfect solution.

Besides, the wine rewarded by the system was guaranteed to be the real deal. It was something to look forward to.

’But the quest requires me to brew some kind of alcoholic beverage myself. Isn’t that a little too difficult?’

Li You had no idea how to make wine!

’Brewing... wine...’

Li You contemplated his chances of successfully brewing it himself.

Suddenly, a certain type of ”wine” came to mind.

Sweet fermented rice!

It’s also known as sweet rice wine.

In some places, it’s also called rice wine or glutinous rice wine.

It’s a traditional specialty liquor whose history can be traced back several thousand years.

Many families brew some every year for their own use. When making things like poached eggs or sweet glutinous rice balls, adding a bit of the fermented rice makes them absolutely delicious.

His own mother used to make a batch every year.

The method was incredibly simple: just mix steamed glutinous rice with a wine yeast starter and let it ferment.

Although it was more of a food than a beverage, it was definitely a type of ”wine” and would completely satisfy the quest requirements.

That meant Li You just needed to make a small batch of sweet fermented rice to complete the quest.

’So the quest isn’t difficult at all.’

Li You grew excited. He would finish his crayfish, then immediately head to town to buy glutinous rice and a yeast starter, and then he’d begin brewing.

’Of course, I could make the yeast starter myself, but since they sell it ready-made, I can’t be bothered.’

’Maybe someday, if the mood strikes and I want to experience making it from scratch.’

...

After finishing the crayfish and cleaning up, Li You closed up the restaurant, hopped on his motorcycle, and rode to the town market.

He walked into a dry goods store.

”Boss Li, haha, welcome, welcome!” The owner of the dry goods store was thrilled to see Li You and greeted him enthusiastically.

The owner’s name was Wang Dongliang, and he was one of the bosses who had eaten at Li You Restaurant that afternoon.

He was delighted to see Li You in his shop.

Li You, of course, recognized Wang Dongliang as well. He smiled faintly. ”Boss Wang, I’m here to buy some glutinous rice. Do you have any of the good stuff?”

”Yes, yes! Right this way, Boss Li. What are you planning to use it for?” Wang Dongliang said, leading Li You to the glutinous rice display.

Li You said, ”I’m planning to make some sweet fermented rice.”

Wang Dongliang nodded, then pointed to one variety. ”How about this one, Boss Li? It’s perfect for making sweet fermented rice.”

”Ingredient: Glutinous Rice.

Quality: Medium.”

’Medium quality. Not bad at all.’

Glutinous rice is often called ”river rice” in northern regions.

Li You nodded. ”Looks good. I’ll take eleven pounds.”

Even though the quest requirements didn’t specify an amount, Li You decided to make a decent-sized batch anyway.

He’d suddenly developed a real craving for sweet fermented rice.

”Alright, I’ll weigh it out for you, Boss Li,” Wang Dongliang said. ”Need any yeast starter?”

Li You nodded. ”Yes. The good stuff.”

Wang Dongliang chuckled. ”Of course, only the best for Boss Li.”

After weighing the rice, Wang Dongliang produced a packet of sweet rice wine starter.

Making sweet fermented rice requires a specific starter for sweet rice wine.

The system assessed its quality as Medium.

Each packet weighed 8 grams, and Li You asked for three.

Twenty-four grams of starter for eleven pounds of rice was about right.

The total came to 35 yuan.

After paying, Li You took the glutinous rice and yeast starter and took his leave.

He didn’t make any other stops, heading straight back to the restaurant.

Now that he had the glutinous rice and the yeast starter, he could officially begin making the sweet fermented rice.

First, the glutinous rice had to be soaked.

It was best to soak it in cooled, boiled water.

That was why, before heading to town, Li You had already poured a basin of boiling water to let it cool down.

By now, it was almost completely cool.

So, after rinsing the glutinous rice, he could begin soaking it.

After a bit of work, the glutinous rice began its long soak.

The rice would be done soaking when it was soft enough to be crushed easily between his fingers.

This would take several hours.

So, all he could do now was wait.

...

In the blink of an eye, it was already five in the afternoon.

Li You picked up a grain of rice to test it.

’Not yet. It needs to soak longer.’

”Boss, what are you soaking all this rice for?”

It was Xia Xiaoyue’s voice.

Mu Qingye had finished her afternoon shoot. The two of them had returned, planning to have dinner before heading back to school.

Li You smiled. ”It’s glutinous rice. I’m planning to make some sweet fermented rice.”

”Sweet fermented rice?” Both Xia Xiaoyue’s and Mu Qingye’s eyes lit up.

Of course, they both knew what that was.

But Mu Qingye quickly grew puzzled. ”You can make sweet fermented rice yourself?”

’Isn’t that something you just buy in jars at the supermarket?’

Xia Xiaoyue said, ”Sister Qingye, you can definitely make it yourself. And generally, it’s way more delicious than the jarred stuff from the supermarket. It’s hard to find good quality jarred fermented rice. When I was a kid in my hometown in the countryside, my grandparents made it themselves every year.”

”Really?” Mu Qingye was getting excited. ”So, is it complicated to make?”

Xia Xiaoyue shook her head. ”Not at all, it’s super easy. Right, Boss?”

Li You nodded. ”It is indeed very simple.”

”It’s actually simple?” Mu Qingye was surprised.

’Making sweet fermented rice is a type of brewing, isn’t it? Could brewing really be simple?’

Li You smiled. ”Brewing can be very simple or very complex. Different alcohols have different methods and techniques. But making sweet fermented rice is genuinely easy. Anyone can learn how in a snap.”

Upon hearing this, Mu Qingye’s interest was piqued. She asked, ”Could I learn, too? So, Boss, when are you going to start making it? Can I watch and learn?”

Li You chuckled. ”Of course. But the rice isn’t done soaking. It probably needs another two hours or so. You might not be able to wait that long.”

’Two hours... that’s around seven o’clock. That’s fine, it’s not too late. The sky won’t even be completely dark by then.’

”Xiao Yue, what do you say we wait and watch the boss make the sweet fermented rice before we head back?” Mu Qingye asked Xia Xiaoyue.

Xia Xiaoyue nodded. ”Sure! That’s not too late at all. And I’d like to watch, too. It’s been years since I’ve seen anyone make it.”

”That’s great!”

Mu Qingye was thrilled and full of anticipation.

...