However, in the autumn of the following year, an unexpected turn took place. It was September of the following year, and the educated youth gradually got used to life in the mountains. In my spare time, I will also go to the Woods with the villagers to dig wild vegetables and pick up some mushrooms to improve the monotony of food. On this day, I went to the Woods to pick mushrooms, and accidentally found more than a dozen wild chestnut trees. There were many chestnuts scattered on the fallen leaves under the trees. I quickly asked my fellow villagers to come and pick it up. This thing is both grain and rice, and it is a treasure. Aunt Li Er, who came with me, smiled and said to me, "Oh, we have picked this thing before, but you see this chestnut is not much bigger than pine nuts. After that, the thief peeled it hard and the fruit inside was old and astringent. According to the people in the logging factory before, it is because we are not suitable for chestnut trees to grow here at all, and the things produced are not serious and small. After hearing what she said, I found that among the grinning chestnut buds on the ground, the fruit was pitifully small, only one-third as big as the sugar-fried chestnuts I ate in Beijing. Nevertheless, I packed a bag full of things and went back. I wish you all enjoy chatting before going to bed at night. Take this thing back and bake it in the kitchen pond. It is ok to knock melon seeds. As a result, I found out that my second aunt was right after baking that night. Such a small chestnut shell is still hard, and my fingernails were peeled before they finished peeling the nuts. I tasted it, and it was hard and astringent. I couldn't eat it at all. At that time, chestnuts in the room smelled delicious, but they could not be eaten. Just when everyone complained that the unforgettable hunger was hooked up by this fragrance. But Gao Yan looked at the abandoned wild chestnuts, his eyes were full of light, and he excitedly said to everyone, "Wait, this thing is not delicious, but it suddenly occurred to me that the Soviets used potatoes to make wine. Can this chestnut also be used as a raw material for wine making? I think steel is really a treasure this time! " ! After his reminder, we gradually responded. Yes, if we can improve the lives of the villagers, it will not be in vain for people to be so kind to us, and finally we have a chance to repay them. So we made a detailed plan at that time. At that time, young people all had a dream of being a soldier. Everyone regards this plan as a battle plan, and each has its own division of labor. They were so excited that they stayed up almost all night. The next day, Gao Yan asked the village chief for leave to go to the supply and marketing cooperatives in the town. We pooled all our money to buy him materials and improve the earthen wok in the village. Several others even went straight to the forest with chestnuts in their pockets and baskets. The village chief was also very supportive when he learned our idea. He not only gave me the unified command of half the children in the village, but also let us catch up with the only mule cart at home so that we could pull it back after picking chestnuts. Because all chestnuts need to be crushed in wine making, the only three stone mills in the village almost didn't stop overnight that night. The men in the village worked overtime all night regardless of the heavy work during the day and crushed all the chestnuts.
Then there are a series of complicated operations such as soaking, cooking, fermentation, koji mixing and distillation. At the suggestion of Gao Yan, we also added 10% sorghum to the raw materials of chestnuts. Nearly 19 days later, bursts of wine finally floated over the village. On the day of drinking, the whole village gathered around the open space in the yard and stared at the liquid flowing out of the improved cooking pot. After receiving the first big crock, according to the custom, you should respect your elders first. I took a ladle in my hand, filled it with a ladle, and handed it to the village head with both hands. The village chief seems a little excited, and his wrinkled face is full of expectation. I took the ladle, smelled it first, and then I felt a joy on my face, and I tilted my neck and gulped it down. Immediately after drinking, he nodded with satisfaction: "Little rabbit, it's good, it's really good. I don't love you for nothing. I have never tasted such delicious soju before. I don't think the 15 1 bottle of the town supply and marketing cooperative is worthy of this wine. Come on, everyone try! " People around you rushed up in an instant, and you enjoyed drinking a bowl of mine. "Out of curiosity, I scooped up half a bowl and tasted it. When I swallowed it, I felt a fire burning from my throat to my stomach. My face turned red in an instant, but the smell of chestnuts came back from my stomach. It feels wonderful and uncomfortable, and the whole person is particularly transparent and warm. Later, everyone urged me to name the wine. I thought about it for a long time, and finally I took a very grounded name: "Chestnut Roast". In the later years, the men in the village burned chestnuts in their flagons for many years, until the living conditions were good, and everyone no longer needed to pick chestnuts all over the mountain to make wine.
The story of chestnut burning wine ends here. When I stopped writing, the wine bug in my stomach began to stir again. Looking at the heavy snow outside the window, it seems that I have returned to the simple village many years ago and returned to those who are not relatives but are better than their relatives.
Well, today, it's time to drink some wine ~