I've been transported to the orc continent.

Chapter 301 The Taste of Wine

Bai Ling checked the fermenting sorghum every seven or eight days. After checking twice, the sorghum in the earthenware jar showed no change. Bai Ling knew that the temperature was not high enough. After thinking for a moment, he asked his father for two old animal hides and wrapped them around the earthenware jar.

This could be considered as giving the earthenware jar a makeover. He still checked on it every seven or eight days, and finally, after more than a month, the sorghum began to have a faint smell of alcohol, and the water in the jar increased.

He thought the sorghum would ferment quickly, but to his surprise, it wasn't until close to the New Year that the sorghum was fully fermented and ready to be used to make wine.

Bai Ling found an iron pot, then placed the wine still inside, and covered the area where the still and the pot touched with yellow mud.

The still is similar to a bottomless wooden barrel, with a small hole in it to allow the liquor to flow out.

Bai Ling poured the sorghum into the still, then added some water. Doing so would result in a lower alcohol content. He then placed the receiving trough on top, with its opening connected to the outlet.

Clean a spare iron pot that you don't use often, put it on top of a still, fill it with about half a pot of cold water, and then you can start distilling the liquor.

Bai Ling lit the leaves in the fire pit. After the leaves caught fire, he put small twigs into the fire pit, and the fire slowly grew bigger. Yue handed Bai Ling a few pieces of firewood, which Bai Ling took with a smile and put into the fire pit.

The fire in the hearth grew even bigger.

Knowing that Bai Ling was going to brew wine today, many beastmen from the tribe came to watch. With the New Year approaching, the beastmen stopped working and began preparing for the celebrations with their entire families.

Wine is a very precious thing for orcs. In the past, orcs could only get a few sips during the New Year. Now that Bai Ling is going to brew wine, all the orcs who have nothing to do come to watch.

The beastmen, dressed in thick animal skins, formed a circle around the fire pit, watching the smoke slowly rise from it, and watching Bai Ling place a large earthenware bowl on the half of a bamboo stick protruding from the wine still.

As more and more smoke rose from the hearth, drops of transparent water began to fall from the protruding half of the bamboo.

As the water droplets emerged, a faint aroma of alcohol wafted out. Zhan and Cang, who were standing behind Bai Ling, were the first to smell this fragrance.

"Ling, it really is alcohol, I can smell it!" Zhan said excitedly.

This aroma is different from the wine we got from the Greenwood Tribe. The wine from the Greenwood Tribe has a lighter aroma and a faint fruity flavor. The wine Ling made has a much stronger flavor and a unique taste.

The smell was a bit pungent at first, but after smelling it a few times, the pungent smell disappeared and instead became mellow and fragrant.

More and more water droplets dripped from the bamboo strip, slowly turning into a thin line. Bai Ling continued to add firewood to the fire pit, and the flames in the fire pit grew even bigger.

*

The earthenware bowl was almost full of wine, which was a pale yellow color. Bai Ling removed the bowl and placed a jar on top of it.

Zhan stood beside Bai Ling and asked, "Ling, is this the wine? Can we drink it now?"

Bai Ling shook his head: "This can't be drunk yet. The wine that has just been brewed is called the first brew, and it can't be drunk. It has to be thrown away."

Bai Ling handed it to Cang beside her: "Father, throw this away, you can't drink it."

Cang nodded, walked out of the crowd, and poured out the entire bowl of wine.

The wine flowed out of the spout even faster. Bai Ling took a small amount with a wooden spoon, put it in her mouth, and tasted it.

A spicy sensation rushed from his taste buds to his head. Bai Ling was initially a little uncomfortable, but the spiciness subsided as the liquor flowed down into his internal organs.

After the wine flowed into his stomach, a warm current surged up. You have to understand that it was the coldest time of winter. Bai Ling was wearing three layers of animal skins, but he still felt cold in his hands and feet. After taking a sip of wine, a warm current surged up in his stomach.

The warm current wasn't strong, and it didn't really warm Bai Ling's body, but it still made Bai Ling feel a little more comfortable.

After the taste in her mouth had dissipated a bit, Bai Ling handed the wooden spoon to Chief Zhan: "Chief, you should try some too. The taste of sorghum wine is different from that of the Greenwood Tribe. Don't drink too much the first time, just taste a little bit slowly."

Zhan also used a wooden spoon to take half a spoonful of wine. He first took a small sip, and his brows immediately furrowed, as if he had eaten something very stimulating. However, after a while, Zhan's brows relaxed, and then he took another sip.

Zhan handed the wooden spoon to the Grand Elder: "Grand Elder, you should try some too."

The Grand Elder's reaction was similar to Zhan's; he first frowned and then relaxed. The beastmen watching were also eager to try it and see what this wine was like.

Bai Ling said, "Children can't drink this wine, and females with cubs can't drink it either. Everyone else can try it, but everyone should drink it slowly. The taste of sorghum wine is quite strong, and most people can't get used to it the first time they drink it."

*

Yue took over Bai Ling's task of tending the fire. When the wine jar was almost full, Bai Ling took a wooden spoon, scooped up some wine, and tasted it.

Compared to when I drank it before, the wine tastes a bit milder now, and it's less spicy.

When brewing wine, the first batch of wine has the highest alcohol content, and the alcohol content decreases as the wine is distilled. Once the water from the distillation process loses its wine flavor, the distillation process is complete.

The sorghum yielded three jars of wine. Bai Ling poured all the wine into a ceramic pot, mixed it thoroughly, and then poured it back into two jars.

Bai Ling weighed the wine in his hands; these three jars must weigh over sixty jin. The clansmen who had been watching had all left, except for Zhan and the Great Elder, who stayed behind, looking at the wine jars with eager eyes.

Zhan pulled Bai Ling aside and said, "Ling, the New Year is almost here. On New Year's Day, the people in the tribe will eat together. I want to exchange some things with you for sorghum wine. On New Year's Day, all the orcs in the tribe can taste this wine."

In the past, during the Lunar New Year, the orcs in the tribe would share a little bit of the wine they exchanged with the Greenwood Tribe. This year, the tribe also exchanged wine with the Greenwood Tribe, but there was only one jar.

The jar was much smaller than the one used for holding wine; if it were to be divided, each orc would only get two sips.

If they could exchange with Ling, the beastmen would be able to drink more wine during the New Year.

Moreover, Zhan felt that Lingniang's wine tasted better. Although it was a bit pungent at first, once the fiery taste faded, it had a very captivating aroma.

Moreover, this kind of wine makes you feel warm after drinking it; a few sips in the dead of winter will make you feel very comfortable.