Sake brewers have long used the appearance of the foam to tell the stages of the moromi’s progress (fermentation progress). The named stages are as follows:
| Foam Stage | English Translation | Aprox. Timing |
| suji-awa (筋泡) | Muscle Foam | day 2-3 of Moromi |
| mizu-awa (水泡) | Water Foam | |
| iwa-awa (岩泡) | Rock Foam | |
| taka-awa (高泡) | High Foam | Day ~10 of Moromi |
| ochi-awa (落泡) | Falling Foam | |
| tama-awa (玉泡) | Ball Foam | |
| ji (地) | Land or Ground |
Pictures for each of these stages as seen through the foam can be seen at the Daishichi’s site.
Continue reading “To foam or not to foam, that is a question of the yeast?”