ASIA
Between rice terraces, sea fog and high-tech cities, Asia’s drinks culture treats fermentation and distillation as disciplined craft. Sake starts with polished rice, water and koji mold Aspergillus oryzae, whose enzymes convert starch into fermentable sugars; the polishing ratio seimai-buai and styles from Junmai to Ginjo map both technique and origin. In parallel, traditions such as shochu, soju and Chinese baijiu—often rooted in solid-state fermentation—sit beside modern Asian whiskies shaped by pot still and Coffey still distillation. Here, regionality is less Appellation than process culture.
